Othello's Flaws
Shakespeare’s plays always contain a tragic hero and what is a tragic hero without his tragic flaw. His characters are brought down by their own weakness or circumstances beyond their control. An example of this is Macbeth, where the witches and Lady Macbeth were causes of his downfall beyond his control. In Othello’s case, his own weaknesses are the causes of his downfall. So yes, I believe that Othello’s own weakness is responsible for the play’s tragic outcome through Iago, Desdemona, Emilia and Othello’s own jealousy and naiveté.
Though Othello is the cause of his own downfall and the play’s tragic outcome, it’s Iago that guides him along. Iago merely uses suggestion to persuade Othello. The first thing Iago does is he uses lies to make Othello believe him. He says that Cassio was talking to …show more content…
In my opinion his tragic flaws are jealousy and naiveté. Othello’s jealousy of Cassio is so strong that it blinds him from thinking properly. He chooses to believe “honest” Iago continually without proof that Desdemona was cheating with Cassio. This is a perfect example of his naiveté as he chooses to trust Iago over his family and friends. He also doesn’t believe Desdemona as she pleaded with him as he strangled her. Since Othello is the tragic hero, he is very dramatic which is why he is responsible for the outcome of the play. He decides to kill Desdemona and Cassio for their “crimes”. When he realizes he was wrong, which is also a trait of a tragic hero, he kills himself in grief. I do believe that Othello is mostly responsible for the outcome of the play because he is the one who orders Iago to kill Cassio and he kills Desdemona and himself. It is his naiveté and jealousy that triggers him to make such rash decisions. It blinds him from the truth, prompts him believe an untrustworthy man who only wants to cause him harm and he kills his wife and
Though Othello is the cause of his own downfall and the play’s tragic outcome, it’s Iago that guides him along. Iago merely uses suggestion to persuade Othello. The first thing Iago does is he uses lies to make Othello believe him. He says that Cassio was talking to …show more content…
In my opinion his tragic flaws are jealousy and naiveté. Othello’s jealousy of Cassio is so strong that it blinds him from thinking properly. He chooses to believe “honest” Iago continually without proof that Desdemona was cheating with Cassio. This is a perfect example of his naiveté as he chooses to trust Iago over his family and friends. He also doesn’t believe Desdemona as she pleaded with him as he strangled her. Since Othello is the tragic hero, he is very dramatic which is why he is responsible for the outcome of the play. He decides to kill Desdemona and Cassio for their “crimes”. When he realizes he was wrong, which is also a trait of a tragic hero, he kills himself in grief. I do believe that Othello is mostly responsible for the outcome of the play because he is the one who orders Iago to kill Cassio and he kills Desdemona and himself. It is his naiveté and jealousy that triggers him to make such rash decisions. It blinds him from the truth, prompts him believe an untrustworthy man who only wants to cause him harm and he kills his wife and