Here, Othello says that he looks down to see if Iago’s feet are cloven like the devils, but realises that, that’s just a story with a moral. If that thou be’st a devil, I cannot ill thee. When Othello says, “I look down towards his feet, but that’s a fable. Thinking Cassio a good man and unaware of Iago’s plan to manipulate Othello, Desdemona tries to convince Othello to reinstate Cassio, as he had never before failed Othello, and it was due to his moment of ignorance that he neglected his duty. 44-51).ĭesdemona represents all that is good in the play. For if he be not one that truly loves you,/ That errs in ignorance, and not in cunning,/ I have no judgment in an honest face. Good my lord,/ If I have any grace or power to move you,/ His present reconciliation take. When Desdemona says, “… your Lieutenant, Cassio. By the end of the play, neither has won, as Desdemona and Emilia are both dead, and Iago revealed and punished. Iago and his evil battle to corrupt and turn the flawed natures of other characters, and he does succeed to some extent. Though there is much gray area between good and evil, Iago’s battle against Othello and Cassio certainly counts as an embodiment of this theme. Desdemona can be seen to represent everything which is good while Iago represents everything which is evil. The contrast of good versus evil is created by all the other contrasts revealed in Othello. Iago is doing this to push Othello past the point of sanity so that Othello is about to go mad and cannot get the idea of killing Desdemona out of his head. He refers to them as goats, monkeys and wolves as these animals were thought to be lustful creatures. In this particular statement Iago is talking about Cassio and Desdemona. When animal references are used with regard to Othello, as they frequently are, they reflect the racism both of characters in the play and of Shakespeare’s contemporary audience. 404-406) Iago’s close references to animals convey a sense that the laws of nature, rather than those of society, are the primary forces governing the characters in this play. Animal imagery is used consistently throughout the play to depict Iago’s racist values toward Othello, telling Brabantio that his daughter and Othello are “making the beast with two backs.Īnother example of this is when Iago says, “Were they as prime as goats, as hot as monkeys,/ As salt as wolves in pride, and fools as gross/ As ignorance made drunk. As black people were associated with demons during Shakespearean times because of their dark skin, the origins of Iago’s racism is revealed.
This statement is both racist and degrading towards Othello as Iago is comparing Othello to a black ram. Iago’s racist values toward Othello are revealed when he says, “Even now, now, very now, an old back ram/ Is tupping your white ewe” (1.
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