Othello’s character is that of a well respected man, who begins his play with an air of perfection, but after the appearance of Iago, Othello appears weak and ignorant.
Othello is believed to be one of Shakespeare’s most controversial characters; however there are many qualities about Othello that make him an admirable man. He begins the play as a well respected, charming and successful soldier who is chosen to therefore lead Venice’s military forces. Othello has many great qualities about him but unfortunately has some flaws that become more apparent once Iago takes control of his mind.
Othello is believed to be one of Shakespeare’s most controversial characters; however there are many qualities about Othello that make him an admirable man. He begins the play as a well respected, charming and successful soldier who is chosen to therefore lead Venice’s military forces. Othello has many great qualities about him but unfortunately has some flaws that become more apparent once Iago takes control of his mind.
Othello is a courageous and honorable man who is beloved by his troops and honored by the city. Othello has many redeemable qualities that make him a great leader; he is considerate, sensible and extremely loyal to those he loves. An example of this would be when Othello explains how “Men should be what they seem,” (pg 51). Hidden in Othello’s words are his true feelings towards honor and trustworthiness, which is an admirable quality about him.
During the play Othello is shown as a man with many flaws and weaknesses that lead to his eventual downfall. In Act 1 Scene 3, Cassio asks Othello for Iago’s position of lieutenant because he lacks the skills necessary for this job and he wants to help him obtain it (Line 33). In this case Othello shows his positive character by giving Iago a second chance at his occupation because he knows how important it is for someone who has once been in a specific type of work to obtain it again.
The first other character we see judge Othello as good people would would be Desdemona as she says “Good my lord, you know I love you” (Act 2 Scene 1, line 70). She is saying this because Othello and Desdemona have only just met and she has not even tried to get to know him very well. The final positive opinion of Othello we see is in Act 4 Scene 1 when Iago tells Roderigo that “The Moor (Othello) is of a free and open nature/ That thinks men honest that but seem to be so” (lines 312-313).
This statement shows us how much Iago admires Othello because he is talking about Othello’s personality the way most people would talk about their friends. In Act 3 Scene 3 Brabantio says that Desdemona should stop seeing Othello because he is “black” (Line 52). Brabantio has formed the opinion that Othello has bad character based on his race, which is not true. This causes Othello to become angry and defensive, but it does not change anyone else’s opinion of him. Act 4 Scene 1 (Lines 87-117) is when Iago starts to show Othello that Desdemona has betrayed him by trying to get Cassio drunk so that he will sleep with Bianca.
In this part of the play Othello begins to believe that Desdemona has been unfaithful even though there have been no real evidence against her yet. Two other characters who judge Othello negatively are Roderigo and Bianca. Roderigo says that Othello has ruined him because he believes Othello owes him money (Act 3 Scene 1 Line 47). Being that Othello doesn’t even know Roderigo, this is an illogical statement by him towards Othello. Bianca also judges Othello badly when she calls Desdemona a “whore” (Act 4 Scene 1, Line 105) because she isn’t willing to sleep with her husband for money.
Othello is a character who is not able to recognize his own flaws. This makes him an easily manipulated person, which ultimately leads to the downfall of his marriage and his life. Othello’s flaws are one part that contribute to this downfall. He is very straightforward, loyal, caring, and trusting of other people’s words because of this need for straightforwardness. This can be seen in act 1 scene 3 when he tells Desdemona “I am your husband…And so adieu good Madame; some of my people will be with you by and by again…If I do die before thee, prithee shroud me in one of those same sheets.
This shows that Othello is a very trusting man. For him to allow people he has just met to handle his personal objects and use a sheet from his bed shows how much he trusts them. Othello’s trust in other individuals leads him to make decisions based on the words of others instead of his own feelings, something that causes problems for him later on. This can be seen when Othello finds out about Desdemona’s supposed affair with Cassio (2. 1).
He does not search for any evidence himself; instead, he listens to Iago’s idea of what may have happened (even though Iago is only speculating) and then accepts it as truth because “That which you know you know, / I am ne’er ignorant of what I know not (2. 1 117-118). Othello is also an individual who does not like to hear any bad things about other people, and this makes him susceptible to the manipulation of Iago. This can be seen when he tells Brabantio: “Good signior deliver, / Your daughter if you please; and wish me joy (1. 70-71)
Othello is there demanding his wife back from her father as though she has done nothing wrong. Even if Othello had been told something bad about Desdemona at this point, Othello would likely still remain loyal to her despite what others say because of his unwillingness to hear anything negative about others. Othello is also an individual who likes to follow the rules of society, and this makes him susceptible to following what other people say as well.
This can be seen in act 2 scene 3 when he says “my services that I have done the signiory Shall out-tongue any modest proposal (2. 3 62-63). Othello knows that it would be unacceptable for him to publicly slander another person, even if they are guilty of something; instead he must abide by social code and keep quiet until someone else brings up the subject first so that he may join in with them on the criticism. This need for Othello to follow social codes was likely also a reason for his lack of action when he found out about Desdemona’s supposed adultery.
When Othello learns from Iago that she is cheating, Othello becomes very upset and contemplates killing her because “death, that dark and grim-looked tyrant (3. 3 277) Othello also contemplates killing himself as well since “The life-blood of our enterprise (4. 1 116). However even though he has this information about what may be happening to his wife and the consequences of not acting on it make him miserable, Othello still decides to wait before doing anything about it which causes more problems for him later on.
