Othello: Act I

As of right now, this play is driven on Iago's lust for revenge. He is holding a grudge against Othello for one reason: Othello did not promote him to lieutenant. Instead, the responsibility was given to Cassio; someone who has never been in battle. Even at the beginning of the play, Iago stirs up trouble by convincing Brabanzio that Othello has stolen his daughter. Iago, as wise as he is, enlisted the service of Roderigo in his scheme. Iago plans on using Roderigo because he is wealthy and completely in love with Othello's wife, Desdemona. Iago has created his plot for revenge and he plans on using Othello's good nature to do so.

Iago and Othello have completely different characteristics. While both of them are intelligent, Iago is more cunning then Othello. He is also more prone to succumbing to his feelings. An example of this is when Iago is not promoted to the position. That is the entire reason that he wants revenge. He has just reason to be upset, but that doesn't give him the right to go on a rampage. He let his anger get the best of him, and by doing so, he might end up taking himself down along with Othello. Even though he can come up with this intricate, step-by-step plan, I think he is not as smart as he seems to be. His entire plan is to get revenge on Othello for not giving him the position. However, it seems that all he wanted was to be lieutenant. If this is the case, then I think it would have been easier to get rid of or kill Cassio. By doing so, he would have been the only option left for the position. On the other hand, Othello is an honorable, good natured man. The Duke holds him in high regards along with basically everyone else. This is blatantly obvious when Othello is telling the Duke his story about how he won Desdemona over. At he end, the Duke is persuaded into believing Othello and even says that his own daughter would fall for him. Othello is trusted by the Duke and he trusts everyone. He believes that people are naturally good; which makes Iago's plan much easier to carry out because Othello will never expect him.

Villains can either make a story better or break it down. As of right now Iago is definitely a villain that makes it better. He is really the only person that has done anything in the play. He started a riot to try and expose Othello for being a type of man that he is not. His plan is almost flawless (as is every villainous plot); there is only one person that knows Iago was the one that deceived the senator, Ricardo. If Ricardo continues to play a part in his plan, then all should end how Iago wants it to. If he does not, however, then Iago will suffer greatly. In this play, the villain overpowers the hero tremendously(for the first act at least); paving the way for tragedy.