Truth and falsehood in Iago's personification of evil in Othello

¶ … Iago as a Personification of Evil

Critics have debated for centuries the nature of Iago in Shakespeare's Othello. Is he the personification of evil? Or is he simply a man driven to jealousy and revenge in much the same way that a character in one of Poe's short stories might be? Is Iago, in other words, a human being -- or a devil? It is not an easy question to answer, especially when one considers that there are many different ways to view the tragedy. Each performance and production provides its own interpretation -- and each reader of the play on the page provides his or her own perspective. Yet, if we consider the perspectives of different critics, we may be able to better understand the character of Shakespeare's Iago. Here is the problem we face: any discussion of Iago as a personification of Evil must include a discussion of whether Iago may be viewed as a man rather than as a devil (which is evil personified). If he is not evil personified, he must be a man. This paper will show how Iago may be considered as a man -- rather than as the personification of evil.

Marvin Rosenberg gives perhaps the most balanced view of Iago when he states that he would like "to defend Iago against the charge that he was a decent man…[or] a creature of subhuman evil, malignant without any motivation" (145). What Rosenberg states is that Iago is neither completely evil -- as some have said -- nor completely good (in his own way) -- as others have argued. While it is easy to swing from one extreme to the other, the balanced view is the one that is neither too extreme in one way nor too extreme in the other way. If we follow Rosenberg, we see that Iago is a human being who cannot be labeled so easily.

Likewise, J.H. Crouch attempts to take a similar balanced viewpoint when he asks, "Is (Iago) the personification of evil, or is he a well (or ill)-motivated jealous rival to Cassio or Othello or anyone else?" (465). Crouch answers, of course, "Neither" (465). What Crouch shows Iago to be is a man, in whom "something went sour" (465). In other words, Iago demonstrates all the characteristics of a human being: he is rational, he is humorous, he philosophizes, and he has relationships (both with his friend and his wife). Crouch cites a performance of Othello. In this performance an actor portrays Iago as someone who "is all good fun, that he is the coy-boy, the puppet-master" (465). Such a portrayal is possible because those elements are there in the person of Iago as created by Shakespeare. They are human traits. The problem that critics face with Iago is that here is a character who displays traits that are both human and inhuman. The malice that Iago bears Othello is certainly inhuman in the sense that no rational human being would sign off on such behavior. And yet Iago is completely rational throughout the entire play. According to Crouch and Rosenberg, he most certainly is.

Rosenberg states that to equate Iago with Evil is to give a "symbolist" label to the play. Shakespeare does not write in symbols, however. Rosenberg notes that Shakespeare creates characters that are real life human beings. The problem that critics face with Iago is that they do not like to admit that he is a human being like themselves. Or, if they do admit it, they feel the need to gloss over his evil tendencies. Some critics want to read Iago as a symbol of evil -- or as the personification of evil -- because he is easier to understand if he is just a symbol. But if Iago is a real human being, then his actions must be explainable. For this reason, some critics regard Iago as an early representation of a psychopath.

A balanced reading of Iago is one that takes into account his humanity as well as his wickedness. Iago is a three-dimensional character -- not a symbolic representation of Vice. He is Shakespeare's own creation -- a man with a name and a character. Iago is a human being who can charm people and also stab them in the back. He is a kind of con artist to Othello. He tricks him into believing his lies. Obviously, he hates Othello and wants to destroy him. This is one reason why critics suggest that he is the personification of evil. But just because a character wishes evil and does evil to other characters does not mean that he is any less of a human being. Human beings, Shakespeare shows, are capable of doing evil things. That is one lesson we can learn from Othello.

Another lesson we can learn from Othello is that, as Crouch states, it is impossible to label characters or persons. In other words, one should not try to dismiss Iago as pure Evil just to get around having to deal with him on a human level. By not labeling Iago as a personification of evil and instead looking at him like a human being, one is forced to face an unpleasant fact. That fact is that people can do evil to one another. That evil can be inside of all of us. To say that Iago is the personification of Evil is to say that the Evil is outside of us -- which is not what we learn from the play. The evil that is inside Iago spreads from him to others. Roderigo plays a part in his evil play. Othello begins to act less good and more evil. Cassio gets drunk and into a fight. We see that the evil can spread from person to person. It can be in any of us and in all of us. That is why it is important to see Iago more as a human being rather than as evil personified. When we look at him as a human, like ourselves, we can receive the lesson better. We can be more aware of evil in men and watch to avoid it.