English – Task 6: Literature Task
Section B:
It could be argued that by the end of Act 3, Iago assumes the role of puppet master in Othello, so successful is he in his plotting and manipulating of other characters. He is in control of his diabolical revenge and he orchestrates the plot-line of the story by means of suggestion and innuendo, playing into the characters weaknesses and in some cases, using their strengths against them. Iago is shrew enough to know that by presenting himself as 'honest Iago' (Stacee, find an act and scene reference for this quote) a trustworthy man, who seeks only to assist as best he can to protect Othello. The audience alone are aware of the cruel intentions of Iago and his plan to destroy Othello and Desdemona’s relationship, and in turn, Othello himself. Iago has cleverly ascertained that Othello suffers from self-doubt and he plays games with Othello’s mind with the intention of casting doubt over Desdemona's integrity and Cassio's intentions with his wife. In Act 2 Iago already says (Stacee , quote directly, , using inverted commas and listing the act, scene and line number)he wants to pour pestilence in Othello’s ears which is the metaphoric poison that will damage and destroy Othello’s sanity.
One of Othello’s greatest characteristics is that he is a very trusting person; however, this is now used against with by Iago in his efforts to convince Othello that Desdemona is having an affair with Cassio. The irony is that Othello believes everything Iago has to say, he is unable to see the true nature of Iago, he even calls him ‘honest Iago’. Iago inverts Othello’s trust for Desdemona as he plants seeds of doubts in Othello’s mind. Iago pauses and pretends to want to choose his words carefully which suggests and implies to Othello, that Iago is at pains to say the truth, and is avoiding mentioning something out of his own unwillingness to accuse others. Iago is well aware that his actions will leave Othello in a...