Othello Essay, Appearance vs Reality - 1175 Words

Throughout history there has been a general understanding that appearances can be deceiving. A person may go through life without anyone understanding the true reality of their character. William Shakespeare, one of the greatest writers of all time, understood the relationship between appearance and reality and often gave characters two sides to their personality. One of the most fundamental questions in philosophy is the one of appearance vs. reality. We find ourselves asking the question of what is genuinely â€Å"real,† and what is viewed merely as just an â€Å"appearance,† and not real? It becomes difficult when we assume there is a difference in the two to determine which is which. Generally, what we label as â€Å"real† is regarded as external†¦show more content†¦In each case, Iago manipulates Othello into seeing and believing what he wants him to, rather than the reality of what is actually happening. In this way, Iago becomes a kind of ‘director’. This character made up by Shakespeare is a villain mastermind hiding under the appearance of a military veteran from Venice. His attempt to manipulate and deceive the other characters in this play revolves around his obsessive, relentless, bold and ingenious personality. In various points in the play, he claims to be motivated by different reasons. Some of the reasons are: resentment that Othello passed him over a promotion in favour of Michael Cassio and he thinks Othello and Cassio both slept with his wife Emilia. We are introduced to the antagonist, Iago and another character that shares hate for Othello also because he loves Desdemona in Act 1 Scene 1. The first line in Act 1 Scene 1 states Tush, never tell me! I take it much unkindly. That thou, iago, whon hast had my purse. As if the strings were thine, shouldst know of this In translation ‘All this time I’ve thought you were such a good friend that I’ve let you spend my money as if it was yours’. 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