Othello in Othello Essay

Othello I would consider to be the most trustful character throughout the play. And because of that I feel that he puts a lot more trust in people. In the beginning he is considered to be this tough, strong guy. But as the play progresses it was as if he changed into a completely different character. Iago is already known for being trustworthy, so Othello doesnt second guess him when he claims Desdemona is cheating on him. Even though Iago did not have any proof, Othello was willing to risk his love for Desdemona on these claims he was making.

One of the main reasons why I think Othello buys into the lies is because of Desdemonas father. When they went in front of the Duke, Desdemonas father put down Othello. Basically saying his daughter deserves better than him. Brabantio says, Look to her, Moor, if thou hast eyes to see: She has deceived her father, and may thee. Meaning his daughter deceived him so now she will deceive Othello. So when Iago said Desdemona was cheating on him, that was the second person telling him Desdemona was cheating on him. I think Othello really took that into consideration and reevaluated why Desdemona would want to be with him. I also feel like race was an issue back then and that it was uncommon for a white woman to be with a black man. I think that in Othellos head it made sense to him that Desdemona would want to be with Michael, the white general. Race, to me, seemed like it played a major factor to why Othello thought Desdemona was having the affair.

Also another important thing I think in this situation was the timing in which it took place. Iago brought these accusations up after Desdemona and Othello went in front of the duke and her father. After all was said and done, Othello knew her father was still not happy about it and was not for their marriage. Hearing the father of the woman you love saying he did not want his daughter to be with you really hurt Othello. I think that this really depressed Othello and I feel that he thinks Desdemona was reevaluating their relationship as well, even though she was not.

I think there were a lot of little things that came together that made Othello so gullible to Iago. He certainly was not at a state of mind to be hearing his wife was having an affair. They were going from one rough patch to the next. Which I think had a major part in Othello believing Iago. Also since Othello did have a lot of trust in Iago he had no reason to doubt his accusations.