Explore Shakespeare’s presentation of the relationship between Othello and Iago

Introduction

• Shakespeare presents the relationship between Othello and Iago as one built on deceptive intimacy and deep psychological manipulation.

• Through a racial and social tensions, male insecurity, and homoerotic undertones, Shakespeare explores how Iago’s exploitation of Othello’s vulnerabilities driving the tragic downfall of the protagonist.

Different perspectives: Othello = built on trust vs Iago = built on hatred and exploitation

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• ‘a man he is of honesty and trust’ ‘honest Iago’ ‘I am bound to thee forever’ - echoes language of fealty and lifelong

• ‘I hate the Moor’ ‘I’ll pour pestilence into his ear’

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• In early modern society, male bonds of loyalty, trust, and honour were highly valued.

• Male friendship was often considered sacred, sometimes viewed as even stronger than marital bonds.

Exploitation of Othello’s Insecurity

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• ‘look to your wife; observe her well with Cassio’

• ‘she did deceive her father, marrying you’

• ‘jealousy: the green eyed monster which mocks the meat it feeds on’

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• In Renaissance, a man’s honour was directly tied to the chastity and fidelity of his wife. A perceived cuckold was mocked and humiliated.

• in Venetian society, black men were viewed as exotic outsider - Othello’s insecurities about being a Moor in a white society makes him vulnerability

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• AC Bradley ‘Iago knows Othello’s Achilles heel… by exploiting this, Iago manages to destroy Othello’s own confidence in his own judgement’

The intimacy of their destructive dynamic; driven by homoerotic desires

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• ‘I am bound to thee forever’ - placing them in a pseudo-romantic relationship that is embedded in this militaristic social sphere

• ‘I’ll pour this pestilence into his ear’ - deep sense of intimacy

• ‘by yond marble heaven, in due reverence of a sacred vow I here engage’ - religious + marital imagery

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• In Renaissance Venice, while authorities prosecuted homosexuality, it was also practised widely among the male population

• this suggest a complex, ambivalent societal view, where homosexuality was both tolerated and condemned

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• Freudian interpretation = Iago’s pain and distrust is caused by his repressed homosexual desire for Othello

• Hyman ‘Iago is motivated by a strong latent homosexuality’