Iago Vs Othello - Most Interesting Character

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Who Is the more interesting character- Othello or Iago?

Iago and Othello are both very interesting characters in different ways for Iago is Coleridge's "motiveless malignant" whom we always question whereas Othello is culturally interesting, especially being a black man with a high status in Venetian society in which he would have been in a severe minority. Both present themselves through their language in different styles for Othello is primarily a soldier and thus his language is lexical,for he even refers to his wife as his "fair warrior" whereas Iago uses vivid imagery to demonstrate how his aim is to discredit Othello. For example Iago riles Brabantio by describing Othello's and Desdamona's lovemaking as "making the beast with two backs" and "an old black ram tupping your white ewe". Iago uses strong contrasts such as these to provoke other characters in which it can be said that he is the most interesting because he is both the driving force of the plot and he causes a huge amount of destruction all of which he appears to have no real motive for, to the point that even he, himself looks for reasons to excuse his behaviour.

However, whilst Iago is interesting as a villain for his sheer lack of motive, he can be said to be one of Shakespeare's predictable stock characters. For his role is to be the villain and nothing more. He represents a bitter man, who like many were extremely sexist towards women for he says that "In Venice they do not let God see their pranks, they dare not show their husbands ; their best conscience" implying that all Venetian women are unfaithful and sinful. Iago's view of women was shared in Shakespearean society for they were either placed on a pedestal or deemed as whores and rather sinful shown by the stereotypical women we have in the play "Othello" for Desdamona is our "white ewe", our faithful woman who is pure until her
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