Consider the different interpretations of Iago as a tragic villain at the end of the

play.

Iago plays an extremely important and major function in the tragedy of

Othello. The audience are aware of the typical characteristics of a tragedy, where a
protagonist is brought to ruin or otherwise suffers the extreme consequences of
some tragic flaw or weakness of character. However by the end of the play, many
believe that Iago is in fact directly responsible for the deaths of Roderigo, Emilia and
the protagonist and his love. Iago is a character that undoubtedly creates grief,
frustration and animosity throughout the play, causing the audience to feel either
contempt or awe for his incredible ingenuity. This continues at the end of the play
when Iago’s conspiracies are discovered by the rest of the characters, who finally
realise the villain that they have perceived to be a loyal and “honest” companion.
The way in which Iago reacts to the events (that he had strived to cause) has been
widely interpreted, and it is in the final scene that the audience are made to
contemplate their ideas of Iago as tragic villain.
Act 5, Scene 2 begins with the final conversation between Othello and
Desdemona, where Othello confronts his wife about his irrevocable feelings of her
affair with Cassio. Othello explains to the bewildered Desdemona:

“By heaven I saw the handkerchief in’s hand.

O perjured woman, thou dost stone my heart”

Othello reveals to Desdemona his proof of her infidelity and therefore the reason
that he is sure enough of his suspicions to murder her. The hyperbole he uses here
implies that the lies he believes his wife to be telling, deprives him of the little
remorse and compassion he had left. Furthermore, when Emilia is made aware of
Desdemona’s death, she begins to interrogate Othello and prove that he has made a
terrible mistake. She reveals, “That handkerchief thou speak’st of.. my husband
begged of me to steal it” It is here that both the remaining characters and audience
are made aware of Iago’s treachery and how his actions were pivotal in the murder
of Desdemona and the overall downfall of Othello.
Additionally, the audience immediately notice differences between the Iago
they have witnessed earlier in the play and the one that appears in the final scene.
Throughout the play Iago impresses the audience with lengthy, eloquent speeches,
particularly in his soliloquies. However, it seems that after Desdemona’s death Iago
reverts to blunt responses. This may come to a surprise to the audience, who would
have expected Iago to produce fluent, arrogant responses in order to accentuate to
the others how he successfully fooled each and every one of them. However, Othello
questions the “demi-devil” Iago, “Why he hath this ensnared my soul and body?” In
response to this, Iago states “from this time forth I will never speak a word.” Iago
refuses to give his victims the satisfaction of knowing his reasons behind his actions,
showing absolutely no remorse or empathy. Critic A.C. Bradley writes, “he does not
show pleasure in the suffering of that person: he shows at most the absence of
pain” I believe this is true of Iago as in the final scene he does not particularly
display satisfaction out of the destruction of so many lives, but shows an emptiness
that the audience may find impossible to comprehend. Here Iago seems to surpass
other literary villains and even allows comparisons to be made between him and the
devil; both being disturbingly “destitute of humanity” and incapable of showing any
trace of affection.
Emilia is a character that plays a small part throughout the majority of the
play, however it is the death of her “mistress” Desdemona that allows her to speak
her mind and confront the other characters, informing them of the truth. Iago
cannot stand this, and orders Emilia to “charm” her tongue. Emilia refuses,
proclaiming that she “will speak as liberal as the north”. Iago can barely contain his
anger and “thrusts at Emilia”. The other characters are disgusted, shocked and
appalled and ask “You sword upon your woman?” Iago continues in openly abusing
his wife as he labels her as “filth” and a “villainous whore” before he proceeds in
killing her. The way in which Iago treats his wife in this scene reveals how he has no
feelings for her and certainly doesn’t love her. This display of hostility contrasts with
his attitude in Act 1, Scene 3 in which he states in his soliloquy “I hate the Moor,
and it is thought abroad that ‘twixt my sheets.” Here Iago implies that one of the
reasons that he seeks revenge on Othello is because he is thought to have slept with
his wife. Iago is suggesting that this would have hurt him as he cares for his wife.
However, Iago’s swift transition to a raging murderer accentuates how he merely
sees women as objects, with no real desire for them but rather for the power that
they may give to a man. Iago’s complete disregard for his wife’s feelings and the
way he has no reservations in killing her, stresses his lack of ability to suppress his
dark and devilish tendencies.
In conclusion Iago is undoubtedly an important and fundamental character to
the play. His success can mainly be attributed to his perceptive temperament and
masterful wit. His ability to find and exploit weakness has made him such an
accomplished villain. However the aggressive, infuriated and abrasive way that he
acts in the final scene suggests that maybe he was not completely content with the
way his plan had unfolded. Despite causing the death and mental breakdown of
Othello which he strived for, Iago seems shaken. However in spite of this reaction,
one thing remains true: Iago is one of Shakespeare's most complex, intriguing and
ominous characters. Without Iago there would be no tragedy in Othello.

Katie Mills