Emilia is Iago's wife, and Desdemona's maid, a woman of practical intelligence

and emotional resilience. She follows Iago in wifely duty, but during the play
develops a strong loyalty to Desdemona and, at the end, denounces Iago's lies to
defend Desdemona's reputation. She speaks disparagingly of men, but, until the
last scene, she supports her husband when needed. When finally she sees the
truth, Emilia abandons all loyalty to Iago and verbally attacks him for the villain
he is. In response, he silences her by killing her. She believes most men are
foolish, wicked, or perverse, and nothing she experiences during the course of
the play disproves that assessment.