“ | I am not what I am. | „ |
~ Iago revealing his deception |
“ | Demand me nothing. What you know, you know. Henceforth I never shall speak word. | „ |
~ Iago refusing to reveal his reasons for conspiring against Othello |
Iago is the main antagonist of William Shakespeare's play Othello. He is a Venetian soldier who conspires to destroy his commanding officer Othello's life by making him believe that his wife, Desdemona, is cheating on him with his lieutenant, Michael Cassio. He famously never reveals his primary motivation for his scheming against Othello, inspiring centuries of academic speculation.
In the play[]
Iago is first seen conspiring with his lackey, Roderigo, to undermine his General, a Moor named Othello, by revealing that he is sleeping with a white noblewoman, Desdemona, hoping that her father will have him thrown out of the army. Iago reveals that he hates Othello for passing him over for promotion to Lieutenant in favor of Michael Cassio. He plans to destroy Othello, and secures Roderigo's help by promising Desdemona to him after Othello is defeated. To their chagrin, however, Othello manages to win his father-in-law over with tales of his courage in battle and his professed devotion to Desdemona.
Iago launches the next stage of his plan by engineering a drunken brawl between Roderigo and Cassio, whom Othello demotes. He then persuades the wealthy, but dimwitted, Roderigo to give him money for further his scheme. He reveals to the audience another reason for hating Othello - the rumor that his wife, Emilia, is cheating on him with the Moor. As revenge, he plots to ruin Othello's life by making him believe that Desdemona is cheating on him with Cassio.
To this end, he tells Cassio to ask Desdemona to have Othello reinstate him, and then insinuates to Othello that Cassio wants Desdemona for himself. He tells his wife Emilia, Desdemona's lady-in-waiting, to steal Desdemona's handkerchief, a present from Othello, and then tells Othello he saw Cassio wiping his mouth with it; he also says that he heard Cassio talking in his sleep about being in love with her.
Finally, he lets Othello overhear a lecherous conversation between him and Cassio about the latter's mistress Bianca, but says her name so quietly that Othello thinks they are talking about Desdemona. Out of his mind with jealousy, Othello pledges to kill Desdemona and Cassio, and makes Iago his new Lieutenant. Iago then tells Roderigo to kill Cassio, but Cassio is only wounded, so Iago kills Roderigo to tie up loose ends.
After Othello murders Desdemona, however, Iago's plan is uncovered when Emilia tells Othello that Iago had made her steal the handkerchief, thus proving Desdemona's innocence. Enraged, Iago stabs his wife to death before being restrained. Othello demands to know why Iago destroyed his life, but Iago refuses to explain his motives, saying, "What you know, you know. Henceforth I never shall speak word." Iago is then led away to an ambiguous fate - to be tortured, imprisoned, executed, or all three.
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