The Art Of Manipulation Iago s Genius Plan - 932 Words

The Art of Manipulation: Iago’s Genius Plan Who doesn’t love a good villain? In the Shakespeare story â€Å"Othello†, the character Iago appears to be the friend that everyone can trust but in reality the most manipulative then all of the other characters. Driven by revenge Iago manages to stir up all of the chaos he has so carefully planned, to take what is his. Iago was the controller of the game he was putting everyone through in the story. Iago was determined to get the rank he thought he truly deserved and wasn’t going to stop until he got it, no matter who got hurt. Throughout the story Iago managed to manipulate and feed off of the character’s weakness; Othello’s insecurities, Cassio’s trust, and Roderigo’s naivety. The first victim of Iago’s manipulation is Roderigo, because Roderigo is in love with Desdemona; this made it easy for Iago to add Roderigo into his plan. With Roderigo being so naà ¯ve, he shares his riches with Iago thinking it will help him get Desdemona but instead Iago takes it for himself saying â€Å"Thus do I ever make fool my purse† (I.iii.374) Iago takes the opportunities to make money, when he realizes that Rodrigo is desperate. After telling a few lies Iago is able to Roderigo to help him out on his big plan. Rodrigo had agreed to kill Cassio saying â€Å"‘Tis but a man gone. Forth, my sword: he dies† (V.i. 10) Although Rodrigo agreed, Iago changed his mind later and decided he wanted to kill Rodrigo instead. Iago’s aim is not to cure Cassio but to destroy