Wesley Leal Mrs.

Steed AP Lit-1 3 November 2010 Evil Triumph A wonderful work to experience the triumph of a main character despite if it is an evil triumph or a heroic triumph a work of William Shakespeare's, Othello. In this play the main characters each possess characteristics that either help them or cause their eventual downfall. One main character, Iago, specifically possessed an evil ambition but a determination and passion in what he wanted to accomplish that he caused chaos which affected most of the main characters in the play. Iago utilized lies to persuade people which managed to create confusion and jealousy therefore creating tension as if it were a time bomb close to explosion. Also, his vague explanations managed to justify his accusations making him get what he want exactly as he planned it. One example of such is how Iago lied to Othello that Cassio had the handkerchief he had given Desdemona which was a sure sign of supposed unfaithfulness. The effectiveness of Iago's vengeance towards the main characters and the effects it produced to completely create disorder in other character's lives made Iago the one that was triumphant at the play's conclusion. From the beginning of the play Othello, vengeance began to grow in Iago as he was denied what he desired the most, to be placed in a glorious position above all and be recognized by it. This created the base of Iago's intentions to devise evil plans which involved multiple people and lies to carry out his revenge. Iago's lies where especially effective because he had a way of persuading his victims into completely believing in him because of how he feigned to be an honest man. His evil lies become evident in Act 2 where he says yet that I put the Moor, At

least into a jealousy so strong That judgment cannot cure. Which thing to do, If this poor trash of Venice, whom I trace, For his quick hunting, stand the putting on, Ill have our Michael Cassio on the hip, Abuse him to the Moor in the right garb (Shakespeare II,i,225-231). The fact that he plots to include so many people shows that he plans to get revenge to the full extent and completely ruin everyone's life to impact greatly on Othello the most. His success marked his triumph as he managed to carry out his plans until the deadly end of the play. The effect of such lies culminated in the creation of an utter confusion just like Iago intended to do which caused the death of such innocent characters. Iago intended to do this because he used other people to hurt Othello directly including his love Desdemona. This is proof of Iago's triumph because he was able to control Othello into going against what he loved the most. In Othello: Overview by K.M. Newton, he explains how Iago possesses such selfconscious cleverness and subtlety in abundance and combines it with a skepticism that regards all spiritual concepts and values with contempt. He succeeds in gaining power over Othello by persuading him to accept that his intuitive beliefs are untrustworthy, that appearances are deceptive, and that testing and proof are necessary before one can be certain of anything (Newton). We conclude form this that Iago has gained certain control over Othello's mind making him doubt the facts and believe in situations that lead him to commit the eventual assassination. Also, Iago mainly intends on convincing Othello that appearances lie and that even the best person is capable of doing anything despite the gravity of the action. Therefore, Iago's triumph was marked with the dominance of the other character's minds through his evil plans. Finally, the utter confusion created by the ultimate villain, Iago, ended in the death of Othello and other main characters in the play. Not only was he guilty of their deaths but also of their destruction from the inside out. The fact that it was what he intended to do made Iago

triumph at the end of the play. Even though it was a strong evil doing, he wanted it to be that way therefore making his plan effective unlike the other characters in the play. The seeds of doubt planted in Othello's mind by Iago were described in Act 3 as poisonous suggestions. Ideas can be like poisons. At first they hardly even taste bad, but once they get into your blood they start burning like hot lava (Shakespeare III,iii,335-339). Not only did it make him doubt but went further onto burning him inside like something poisonous. It affected Othello internally until it finally came crashing down until his suicide, which, Iago desired from the beginning making him triumph before his eventual downfall. In the end, Iago was the victor over all of the main characters due to the success of his plan. Iago's persuasive lies and use of the innocent successfully led to the destruction of their lives. Even though it was for a negative intention, Iago was determined to get the glory and position that he desired and he successfully accomplished his evil plot. Also, how he managed to control much of the character's minds made Iago a ventriloquist controlling the actions of his dummies. His vengeance was effective in gaining revenge on the his main target, Othello, making Iago the overall triumphant figure in the play by William Shakespeare, Othello.

Works Cited Newton, K.M.Othello:Overview.Literature Reference Center.Web. 3 November 2010. Shakespeare, William.Othello.New York:Harcourt, 1952.Print.