Iago is evil
Iago is evilI am not what I am
Iago is quite possibly one of the best examples of evil in literature.
He is not merely manipulative as other "bad guys". Iago also brings the
interesting aspect of truthinto it all. He quite literally tells the
best lies using mostly the truth. What can we callhim? Whether it be
the devil, Satan, Beelzebub, Lucifer or Moloch, these words representthe
very same idea: pure evil. Not the terrible creature from beyond, or
anything quite so mundane as that, but the fundamental belief of
malignancy in the world. All of these ideas reach a phenomenal peak in
Iago. Iago does not have the casual killing persona of a Stalinor Mao,
but instead possesses the pure hatred of everything he deems to be good
and pure. His very existence is for the destruction of the truly
innocent.
From the very beginning of Othello, Iago is in the midst of his
scheme to destroyOthello. He speaks with the muddy-mettled rascal,
Roderigo. And from the very firstmoment Iago admits to not really being
what he seems. He is not what he is. And whatdoes he use as his
reasoning for his obvious ill towards Othello. Well, he is sort of mad
that Cassio was chosen as a Lieutenant instead of him. It is interesting
that Iago feels theneed to justify himself to a pantywaist like Roderigo,
who entrusts him with his "purse"without really even knowing him. When
he does not belief his daughter to be "making thebeast with two backs"(I,
i, 113), as Iago so gently puts it, Brabantio calls Iago a villain.
Instead of denying it, Iago simply replies by saying, "You are-a
senator."(I, i, 115) Agreat way to avoid reality is to merely pretend it
is not there. Then, instead of takingcredit for telling Brabantio, Iago
allows Roderigo to remain and bear witness. After all,what is the devil
better at than casting false blame.
When Iago is preparing him for his confrontation with Brabantio,
Othello asks ifhis soul and parts will represent him well. Iago gives
the reply, "By Janus, I think so."(I,ii, 32) Now this does not really
mean all that much unless you consider the fact the Janusis the two-faced
Roman god. One side is completely different from the other. To
Othellothis means very little coming from a good friend like Iago, but
the reader must realize thatit was no coincidence Iago mentions this
ancient hypocrite....
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