The most beautiful aspect of the play is Iago's ingenious deception of Othello. In every phrase, Iago knows just what to say to swing his Moor closer to the belief in Desdemona's infidelity. The subtle strategist to his general (and the puppeteer to Roderigo and Cassio), Iago is in full glory practicing his art of insinuation.

Iago is the master of duplicity: "Divinity of hell! When devils will the blackest sins put on, they do suggest at first with heavenly shows". Here he echoes Banquo in Macbeth: "To win us to our harm, the instruments of darkness tell us truths, win us with honest trifles, to betray's in deepest consequence". However, while in Macbeth the devious instruments of darkness were netherworldly creatures, here Iago himself takes on devil's work. Treachery plays here the most insidious part: it lays the ground for murder.

Treachery itself takes its roots in hatred. While Richard III and Macbeth are murderers for their own advancement, Iago's guiding star in his hunt is hatred. His "I hate the Moor" at the end of the 1st act, breaking the flow of the soliloquy in which he derides Roderigo (and not unlike Richard III's "Ha!") is the essence of Iago in a line.

The reasons for his hatred are not as clear cut. Iago knows that his being cuckolded by Othello is a mere suspicion (but willfully decides that he does not want to know for sure and will act as if it were true). This is his private (false) excuse for hating Othello. His public one, or at least the one he presents to Roderigo, is having been passed over in the pecking order of military ranking. But he only gives this argument to Roderigo and never repeats it in any soliloquies. And we know how much Iago can be trusted when he speaks to someone else...

His take on Cassio is not much more lucid. Cassio is surely not married, and yet according to Iago, he is "a fellow almost damned in a fair wife" (whether this is one of Shakespearean slips where he forgot to give Cassio a wife or a mutation of "life" into "wife", the phrase is just too beautiful to disregard, even if it does not fit with the text). "He hath a daily beauty in his life that makes me ugly" complains Iago of Cassio. He also worries of having been cuckolded by the lieutenant. The former may signify Iago's fear of looking bad in the face of Cassio's promotion (although "daily" and especially "beauty" do not really fit, so the phrase could signify other things and overall seems obscure). The latter suspicion is just preposterous.
So it appears that Iago, whom in this play Shakespeare gave most artful language, is sometimes inconsequential and opaque. While it may not have been Shakespeare's intent, one could conclude from this that hatred may exist for Iago without any real reasons at all. Some people fall in love for no reason, Iago may have fallen in hatred for no reason. Maybe Iago's excuses for his actions are just his awkward attempts at justifying his inexplicable hatred?

In any case, with all his hatred and scheming, Iago is another spectacular Shakespearean villain endowed with inspired language. His art of intrigue ensures him a place among Shakespeare's leading characters (villains for the most part) and will entertain our enduring fascination with human nature's dark side...

Definitely Shakespeare stays true to his form and creates another literary masterpiece. Just like that of Romeo and Juliet, this is another tragic play. It is set around the early 1600s in England and tells the story of the marriage of Othello, a black man of high standings, and Desdemona, a white lady.

Iago acts as the catalyst for the conflict, trying to disassemble the marriage and Othello and Desdemona. In Shakespeare's dialogue, he uses rather explicit imagery in describing the pair to others to arouse racial prejudice against their marriage. He does all this to get back at Othello for not promoting Iago to a higher position and giving the rank to another soldier. At the climax of the story, the "honest Iago" (yes, I remember this quote quite clearly, as it is mentioned multiple times and is an oxymoron because while everyone believes him to be honest, on the inside he is a clever schemer) successfully convinces Othello that Desdemona has been unfaithful to him.

The story gains its momentum by revolving around the handkerchief which Othello gives to Desdemona.. Iago successfully steals it from her and gives it to Cassio, who thinks another lady has given it to him. When Othello sees the handkerchief in Cassio's hands all the thins Iago says comes back into his head, and he smother Desdemonda killing her.

Shakespeare's play is of a man different from the rest of the people, he is the grey pebble on the sandy shore. This plays into his psyche, making him more susceptible to believe that Desdemona has betrayed him. He also incorporates the settings to his advantage from the more civilized and governed Venice to the island of Cyprus, a place where there is no law. When in Venice, there are no tragedies, all conflicts are resolved through talks and negotiations. However, when they move to Cyprus, the disputes are settled with fighting. The use of nature to determine their motives is another reason why Shakespeare is one of the best writers of his time.

Shakespeare uses the underlying theme of revenge as the basis for his story. It all starts when Othello promotes Cassio to lieutenant rather than Iago, even between Cassio and his own lover, and even extending to Iago and his accomplice, a forlorn man who once wanted Desdemona's hand in marriage. This finally climaxes to Othello and Desdemona. It seems as if the only one who does not take a role in this cycle of revenge is Desdemona. She seems to accept her fate and prays before her death. In the play, she is the most pure of them all.

With Shakespeare's clever banter in Othello and his use of figurative language, he makes this play to be an enjoying one. The story moves quickly and keeps one entranced with Shakespeare's language.

Two words: Read it

Definitely another one of Shakespeare's masterpieces. The plot is just enticing and climatic, with many moments of uniqueness and suspense. Besides the awesome plot, it is the reader's engagement in each character's actions that draw this tragedy closer to every reader.

In these 250 pages, Shakespeare accounts one of humanity's darkest secrets--namely vindication. Othello, the main protagonist, married to a beautiful Desdemona, is a revered Christian Moor and an ingenious general of the armies of Venice. Despite this high status, he is portrayed as an easy prey for Iago, the main antagonist. Having hired the less experienced Cassio as lieutenant, Othello has actually marked the beginning of his downfall. Working with Rodrigo who tries to win Desdemona's favor, Iago undertakes the task of destroying both Othello and Cassio. The remaining plot consists of Iago's numerous attempts, failures and successes. Iago, however, does not immediately resolve to using violence to satisfy his revenge, a decision that might surprise the reader at first. On the contrary, he succeeds to win Othello's trust through his malice, manipulative word choices and ironic statements. With Othello trust as his goal, Iago states, "Men should be what they seem, / Or those that be not, would they might seem none!" Hearing this, Othello would build more trust in Iago, who now seemingly shares the same moral principles of Othello. Using this recently gained trust for his advantage and Othello's ignorance, Iago seeds in Othello the thought of Desdemona's affair with Cassio, an action that is purely part of his machinations. The result is obvious: Othello immediately fires Cassio and hires Iago as the lieutenant for his recompense. However, this does not satisfy the antagonist, as he still has not destroyed Othello. Giving him further "proofs"--for these were merely part of his plan and thus not veritable--Iago establishes feelings of hatred and envy in Othello, who now confesses, "I do not think but Desdemona's honest." Othello's change in attitude is manifested as he calls his wife "the whore of Venice" and then "slaps" her, an act that downgrades her and demonstrates his fury. The plot from here is for you to find out. Although the plot is full of deception and destruction, Shakespeare succeeds in having a happy conclusion for this classic book.

Knowledge of both the location and the era in which this book took place is definitely necessary to understand such terms as "the Moor," "Cyrus...Venice," and the abundant contrasts between "black" and "white." The book is set in the end of the sixteenth century, a period when Turkey tried to invade Venice. Most of the plot takes place in Cyrus, one of the Venetian cities attacked and later conquered by the Turks in 1570. Because of his war backdrop, Othello is referred to as "the general of Venice" throughout the book, amplifying his position as a revered leader in society. Othello's true race, on the other hand, has long been debated by critics. "Moor," nowadays, refers to the Islamic Arabic inhabitants of North Africa. In Shakespeare's time, the term might have either referred to Africans from other regions or tanned Europeans. Shakespeare often mentions "the black Moor," ensuring the addition of skin color in order to differentiate Othello from other Venetians. This difference of skin color, however, is ambiguous and should not be interpreted as a racial discrimination as the modern reader might believe.

Overall, a book that describes an individual's vendetta and ultimate downfall, "Othello" is not only as entertaining as another classical masterpiece of Shakespeare's but also a source where readers can truly fathom what we call today Karma.

Othello is one of Shakespeare's strongest plays. Certainly Iago is one of his strongest villains. This story is about the differences between good and evil and the struggle that goes on within any persons soul when choices have to be made. Iago is so masterfully portrayed that I felt strangely disturbed when I finished this play. Other characters in the play are also wonderfully portrayed. This is certainly one of Shakespeare's greatest tragedies.

This book is great for people that have a difficult time understanding Shakespeare. The side notes are more elaborate than most of the other editions and they include an act by act summary so that you know exactly what's going on and don't get lost in all the wording.

For the most part, I really do like Shakespeare's plays. But this one play I consider an utter flop. It would seem any time romance is involved, people tend to make the material more than it is. Sometimes it works, but sometimes it fails miserably. The most annoying thing about this play is that except for Iago, all of the characters are major simpletons. And while this may work in comedy (like it does in Shakespeare's "The Comedy of Errors") it does NOT work here. The sotry revolves around Othello who marries Desdemona to the disapproval of many parties, including Roderigo who wanted Desdemona for himself. Basically Iago (the so called villain) is willing to help destroy Othello supposedly to aid Roderigo. While Iago is supposedly a villain, the truth is any reasonable person in Iago's shoes would have been angered. (1) He was turned down for promotion in favor of Cassio, and everything from the play indicates that Cassio is Iago's inferior. (2) He has reason to believe that his wife has been messing around with Othello AND Cassio.) While some people have tried to write this off as another lie, this isn't too sound seeing that Iago expresses these reasons in a soliloquy where this no point whatsoever in being dishonest. One of the major annoying things about this play is that everyone keeps saying how nobel Othello is, but nothing in the play really justifies this. And as term 'noble' keeps repeating, it ends up sounding increasingly sarcastic. (Not unlike the way Antony destroys Brutus by the repeated term of 'honorable'.) Anyway, it doesn't take long for Othello to show his hypocrisy. He claims to love Desdemona, but the truth is it would seem more that he is just sexually attracted to her. (Most of you saw the "Titanic." And Rose's fiance Calvin SEEMED nice at first. But he didn't love Rose. He was only attracted to her and saw her as a piece of property. Later, he didn't have any problem with slapping her or firing gunshots in her direction. Jack LOVED Rose, and he sacrificed his life so she could live!) I think "Romeo and Juliet" is overrated, but AT LEAST Romeo LOVES Juliet, and he kills himself because he thinks she is dead. If Othello loves Desdemona, why is he so ready to jump on the issue of adultery? Iago manipulates Othello so much it is laughable. And here the devil would have such a great time confronting Othello with his own hypocrisy. (1. Iago has reason to believe that Othello has been messing around with his wife. 'Shame to him, whose cruel striking, kills for faults of his own liking!' (2) Even in "Dante's Inferno," crimes of passion and adultery are the most lightly punished ones in hell.) Iago continues to walk Othello through his degeneration until Othello becomes guilty of the unforgivable murder of someone he CLAIMED to love for something she didn't even do. Othello proves himself to be the most repulsive and unsympathetic protagonist in any of Shakespeare's writings. By the way in "Excalibur" King Arthur SAW his wife sleeping with Lance A Lot and he could NOT bring himself to kill them! In "King Lear," Albany's wife Goneril is plotting his death AND messing around with Edmund. And he remains calm and just doesn't kill his wife! In "The Scarlet Letter" Roger KNEW Hester was cheating on him, and he remained more respectable: "Even if I imagine a scheme of vengeance, what could I do better for my object than to let thee live...Live therefore and bear about thy doom with thee in the eyes of men and women in the eyes of him who thou didst call thy husband." I find it most fitting to conclude with a quote to Othello from Slayer: "Hell Awaits."

Out of all the villains Shakespeare has crafted, Iago and Richard III take the cake. What I love about Iago is his passion for evil. While Richard III is evil because he wants something, it's sort of detached while simultaneously sexual. Iago's brand of evil is passionate and emotional. Some might say that Othello was Shakespeare's greatest hero, and therefore his downfall was the greatest tragedy in Shakespeare. Whatever the case may be, it's a riveting read and a definite must for anybody even remotely interested in Shakespeare.

Is there any other character in all of literature who is as calculatingly evil as Shakespeare's Iago? His jealousy over being passed over in favor of Cassio engenders a revengeful scheme that turns jealousy into a weapon used to destroy the noble Othello. Here innocence and trust is contrasted with pure manipulation and evil in what is one of Shakespeare's most revealing tragedies. The characters act exactly as they would be expected to based on the overriding quality that they represent. Othello is wonderful Shakespearean drama that ranks among his greatest works.
The Folger Library editions are my favorite. Each page has a facing page that explains obscure terms and helps as a handy reference to make reading the plays pleasurable and educational. These paperback editions of Shakespeare's works are a great value and fit in your pocket.

I sat down in study hall. The heat outside was never caressed by any wind, so it layed in the air like a fog. I was bored to say the least, but it was ok. This class would end eventually too. i had that hope to go on. While my eyes wondered with no other choice i saw on the shelves a book entitled "Othello." I knew this was a shakespeare book, and though all my contemporary youths loathed Shakespeare, I had always been fascinated by his Human interpretations. Also Othello had always fascinated me, but i never knew why. So without anything else to occupy my time i took it, and began to read it. What happened was amazing. It no longer was "taking up my time;" I now wanted to read it when i was busy, when i had to go to bed, whenever i had free time. It is a universal book, it is sad, it is a tragedy, it is Shakespeare. I love it as my favorite Shakespeare book. Go read it and see what you think... if you dare.

I read this book this last year in highschool for English class. It was awful! First of all it's really confusing and second of all it's just a stupid plot and ending. It was so boring and so long. Don't read it it's a waste of time.

What is more inticing than a story involving war-like patrons and scandal? This book has been absolutely entertaining and suspensful to read. It was stunning how many false stories, insinuations, and accussations the character "Iago" had set up from the beginning to the end. There were also so many other character types such as the pawn-like Roderigo, the seemingly calm yet furiously jealous Othello, the bleeding-heart of Desdemona, the honorable Cassio, and more! It was amazing how Iago had actually set up his false stories from the very beginning of the novel where he first employes Roderigo as his foolish pawn. The only factor of this book that was somewhat unsettling was how easily swayed Othello had gotten from Iago's insinuations. To a certain point, it almost seemed unrealistic. For example, towards the end of the play, when Iago retrieves the seemingly precious and invaluable handkercheif and uses it to make it seem that Cassio had recently been with Desdemona, that seems to be a little bit illogical. Just because Othello finds that Cassion has been holding the precious handkercheif doesn't abosuletly mean the Desdemona has been unfaithful. However, some could argue that the heavy pile of insinuations and false stories/accusations that Iago has placed on Othello could be seen as reason enough for Othello's furious rage and jealous behavior. All in all, though, this book has been quite pleasing. The amount of scandal (scandal as in the falsness of Iago) has been enough to please anyone looking for a suspensful tragedy to read.