"I am not what I am": Perceived Reality in "Othello."

The character Iago ominously mutters the speech communication, I am not what I am, at the beginning of William Shakespeares Othello the Moor of Venice (I.i.65). What Iago means by these words so early in the play is a minute of arc ambiguous, but as one reads on, many interpretations ensue. That very invent becomes a subtle but powerful theme each(prenominal) throughout the tragic story that unfolds, and not only in regards to Iago, but also to Cassio, Desdemona, and especially Othello himself. Throughout the play, Iago systematically obliterates the realities each character has struggled so hard to construct. Desdemona has, in an emotive correspond of passion and love for good story-telling, betrayed her father to elope with a Moorish general, seemingly smitten with the whimsy of adventure. Cassio has structured his priorities rigorously around perception--his reputation. Finally, above all, while Othello has become very idealistic of his accomplishments in battle, this justified confidence is overridden by his deep insecurities of alienation. starting signal in piece II and on through Act V, the fragile realities they have all created slowly chip out-of-door by the workings of Iago. In this essence, it is foolish to see Iago as evil or a devil, but more levelheaded to see him as the personification of Chaos.



He does little another(prenominal) than suggest, and he demonstrates by doing so the frailty of these social facades--the comprehend versus actual reality.

Desdemona enters the play in Act II sentiment III as a commanding presence, speaking to begin with the Duke in defense of her new husband, Othello. Though she seems level-headed and confident, Desdemona surrounds herself in a blinding cloud of whimsical desire for adventure and ideologic duty. Ideas, rather than actuality, guide her actions and her words. Othello explains to the Duke before Desdemonas entrance: She wished she had not hear it...and...

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