To place the blame on one single person would seem ridiculous. Out of all the characters within the play not one was a saint. We had Iago, who would seem to be the obvious culprit, but does that excuse Emilia, who took the beloved handkerchief? Not even Othello and Desdemona are innocent in this situation, but one thing that each of these characters seemed to lack was communication.
In the very beginning, we saw Iago’s hate grow when he revealed his jealousy for Cassio’s promotion and then his accusation against Othello.Iago hate blamed Othello for choosing Cassio over him for the position and then blamed Othello for doing “[his] office” (I.iii.431). There is no doubt that Iago had enough fuel for revenge, but wouldn’t this all have been resolved if Othello would have chosen Iago for lieutenant?
Othello had a choice between experience and status and he chose status because it was necessary for him to maintain his own social ranking. It seems odd that someone who has faced such discrimination and hatred for his own status would deny another person the opportunity just because of their social stature.
Both Othello and Igao are seen as characters who both obviously avoid communication, whether it be by lying or refusing to seek the truth.Although Iago lied and manipulated his way to the end, does that make him any more guilty than Othello who refused to find out the truth? Then there are character such as Desdemona, Emilia and Cassio. These characters never plotted against anyone, but they still hold some of the guilt.
Every character held a share of guilt no matter the individual size, but it isn’t necessarily because they all committed punishable acts. They are all guilty of failing to communicate the right information or even at all. So before a finger is pointed to one individual, it has to be taken into consideration who was truly at fault: communication.
In the very beginning, we saw Iago’s hate grow when he revealed his jealousy for Cassio’s promotion and then his accusation against Othello.Iago hate blamed Othello for choosing Cassio over him for the position and then blamed Othello for doing “[his] office” (I.iii.431). There is no doubt that Iago had enough fuel for revenge, but wouldn’t this all have been resolved if Othello would have chosen Iago for lieutenant?
Othello had a choice between experience and status and he chose status because it was necessary for him to maintain his own social ranking. It seems odd that someone who has faced such discrimination and hatred for his own status would deny another person the opportunity just because of their social stature.
Both Othello and Igao are seen as characters who both obviously avoid communication, whether it be by lying or refusing to seek the truth.Although Iago lied and manipulated his way to the end, does that make him any more guilty than Othello who refused to find out the truth? Then there are character such as Desdemona, Emilia and Cassio. These characters never plotted against anyone, but they still hold some of the guilt.
- Emilia was blinded by her desire to please her husband and instead of finding out what exactly was going on she ended up aiding in his master plan all by chance.
- As for Cassio, he simply was too distracted by the approval of Othello to realize what exactly was going on, which makes him guilty because of ignorance.
- Desdemona is in the same boat with Cassio because she lacked the logic to confront Othello with her questions. It seemed to be that instead of investigating Othello’s new found hatred and disgust for her she would help Cassio out, but does that mean that her kindness aided in her guilt?
Every character held a share of guilt no matter the individual size, but it isn’t necessarily because they all committed punishable acts. They are all guilty of failing to communicate the right information or even at all. So before a finger is pointed to one individual, it has to be taken into consideration who was truly at fault: communication.