‘In Othello, it is jealousy that drives the tragedy.’ To what extent do you agree?
Jealousy is undeniably the emotional and psychological force that dominates Othello, yet
Shakespeare presents it not as just the cause of the tragic hero’s denigration, but as a tragic
symptom - a destructive consequence of manipulation, insecurity and moral blindness. While
jealousy drives much of the play’s tragedy and is most explicitly embodied in Othello himself, it
is engineered and inflamed by the Machiavellian villain Iago’s calculated deceit, and sustained
by the social and racial anxieties that underpin the play’s world.
Shakespeare establishes the theme of jealousy right from the outset of the play in Act 1, Scene
1, as he allows the reader to explore the tragic villain Iago’s motivations for ‘[serving] his turn’
‘upon the Moor.’ Here, through dramatic monologues, Iago confesses to Roderigo and the
audience his bitter resentment over the ‘Florentine’ Cassio being promoted to the role of
Lieutenant by Othello, and his resolute declaration of ‘I know my price, I am worth no worse a
place’ reveals Iago’s wounded pride and jealousy at being denied the ‘place’ he is supposedly
entitled to. Though Iago’s claim to ‘hate the Moor’ is sometimes interpreted as motiveless malice
- especially in light of his paradoxical statement and inversion of Biblical verse in ‘I am not what I
am’, which exposes his duplicitous nature - Shakespeare establishes that this hatred is rooted in
a corrosive professional and personal jealousy, which Iago later builds on when he states that ‘it
is thought abroad that ‘twixt my sheets he has done my office’ and that he ‘fears Cassio with
[his] night-cap too’, revealing his overwhelming jealousy at the mere rumour of either man
having engaged in an illicit affair with Iago’s wife, Emilia. As such, Shakespeare demonstrates
that Iago’s jealousy is multi-faceted; Iago is not only jealous of Cassio’s elevation, but also of
Othello and Cassio’s perceived sexual gratification at his expense, as well as Othello’s power as
a black outsider who commands respect in a white Venetian society, as shown by the Duke’s
description of him as ‘noble’ and ‘valiant.’ This is reflected in Shakespeare’s repeated use of
bestial imagery in Iago’s taunting of Brabantio, such as ‘old black ram’ and ‘Barbary horse’,
which not only highlights Iago’s racialised jealousy, but also begins to plague the language of
the play with suspicion, hyper-sexuality and degradation, foreshadowing Othello succumbing to
the same base and violent rhetoric when he derides Desdemona as a ‘whore’ and ‘lewd minx’ in
Act 4, Scene 2. Thus, Shakespeare crafts Iago as both a perpetrator and victim of jealousy,
which often serves as a mask for deeper psychological and social insecurities - in the villain’s
case, a threatened masculinity at being a ‘cuckold’ and fear of disempowerment. Within this
scene, Shakespeare also illustrates how jealousy is a transferable ‘poison’ through his
manipulation of Roderigo - who is aggrieved to hear that Othello has secretly eloped with
Desdemona - in order to embroil him in his plot and make ‘the fool [his] purse’, arguably
foregrounding Iago’s later exploitation of Othello’s jealousy by ‘[pouring] pestilence into his ear’
to create the ‘net’ that ‘shall enmesh’ all the tragic victims of the play.
Furthermore, the temptation scene in Act 3, Scene 3 represents the pivotal moment where
jealousy seizes Othello’s mind, transforming him from an eloquent general who once dismissed
‘love or jealousy’ into a tragic hero doomed by his excessive paranoia. Here, the audience sees
Iago’s terrifying villainy on display, as he insinuates in a disturbingly intimate and private
exchange with Othello - where he is able to position himself as the ‘honest’, trusted confidant -
© Humanities Unlocked. | AQA A-Level English Literature 2025 | For personal use only. Redistribution is
prohibited.
Jealousy is undeniably the emotional and psychological force that dominates Othello, yet
Shakespeare presents it not as just the cause of the tragic hero’s denigration, but as a tragic
symptom - a destructive consequence of manipulation, insecurity and moral blindness. While
jealousy drives much of the play’s tragedy and is most explicitly embodied in Othello himself, it
is engineered and inflamed by the Machiavellian villain Iago’s calculated deceit, and sustained
by the social and racial anxieties that underpin the play’s world.
Shakespeare establishes the theme of jealousy right from the outset of the play in Act 1, Scene
1, as he allows the reader to explore the tragic villain Iago’s motivations for ‘[serving] his turn’
‘upon the Moor.’ Here, through dramatic monologues, Iago confesses to Roderigo and the
audience his bitter resentment over the ‘Florentine’ Cassio being promoted to the role of
Lieutenant by Othello, and his resolute declaration of ‘I know my price, I am worth no worse a
place’ reveals Iago’s wounded pride and jealousy at being denied the ‘place’ he is supposedly
entitled to. Though Iago’s claim to ‘hate the Moor’ is sometimes interpreted as motiveless malice
- especially in light of his paradoxical statement and inversion of Biblical verse in ‘I am not what I
am’, which exposes his duplicitous nature - Shakespeare establishes that this hatred is rooted in
a corrosive professional and personal jealousy, which Iago later builds on when he states that ‘it
is thought abroad that ‘twixt my sheets he has done my office’ and that he ‘fears Cassio with
[his] night-cap too’, revealing his overwhelming jealousy at the mere rumour of either man
having engaged in an illicit affair with Iago’s wife, Emilia. As such, Shakespeare demonstrates
that Iago’s jealousy is multi-faceted; Iago is not only jealous of Cassio’s elevation, but also of
Othello and Cassio’s perceived sexual gratification at his expense, as well as Othello’s power as
a black outsider who commands respect in a white Venetian society, as shown by the Duke’s
description of him as ‘noble’ and ‘valiant.’ This is reflected in Shakespeare’s repeated use of
bestial imagery in Iago’s taunting of Brabantio, such as ‘old black ram’ and ‘Barbary horse’,
which not only highlights Iago’s racialised jealousy, but also begins to plague the language of
the play with suspicion, hyper-sexuality and degradation, foreshadowing Othello succumbing to
the same base and violent rhetoric when he derides Desdemona as a ‘whore’ and ‘lewd minx’ in
Act 4, Scene 2. Thus, Shakespeare crafts Iago as both a perpetrator and victim of jealousy,
which often serves as a mask for deeper psychological and social insecurities - in the villain’s
case, a threatened masculinity at being a ‘cuckold’ and fear of disempowerment. Within this
scene, Shakespeare also illustrates how jealousy is a transferable ‘poison’ through his
manipulation of Roderigo - who is aggrieved to hear that Othello has secretly eloped with
Desdemona - in order to embroil him in his plot and make ‘the fool [his] purse’, arguably
foregrounding Iago’s later exploitation of Othello’s jealousy by ‘[pouring] pestilence into his ear’
to create the ‘net’ that ‘shall enmesh’ all the tragic victims of the play.
Furthermore, the temptation scene in Act 3, Scene 3 represents the pivotal moment where
jealousy seizes Othello’s mind, transforming him from an eloquent general who once dismissed
‘love or jealousy’ into a tragic hero doomed by his excessive paranoia. Here, the audience sees
Iago’s terrifying villainy on display, as he insinuates in a disturbingly intimate and private
exchange with Othello - where he is able to position himself as the ‘honest’, trusted confidant -
© Humanities Unlocked. | AQA A-Level English Literature 2025 | For personal use only. Redistribution is
prohibited.
