Iago Beyond the realms of villainy and diving into hell
It has been highly debated among scholars for years on the intentions and malice behind the character of Iago in Othello. ... Although on the surface, Iago’s character is filled with deviance and malicious deceits similar to any other Shakespearean villain, his intentions behind his actions are what lead to the parallel with the devil. Iago as Satan brings a great deal of both clarity and dispute to the underlying word placement and religious implications throughout the play. ... There is a wealth of evidence that points Iago to the dark side that reaches beyond the mere confines of amorality. For example, the following words from Iago suggest inspiration from hell and the Devil. “Hell and night/ Must bring this monstrous birth to the world’s light” (1. ... “Divinity of hell! ... These quotes support the notion that Iago is consumed by Satanic thoughts throughout the progress of the play beginning from the very opening – hell and the Devil are continuously seeping through his mouth where the familiarity with the pain he speaks of is brought to the forefront. ... According to Stanley Hyman, Iago “is motivated by the fact that he is Satan or a figuration of Satan, eternally fixed in a posture of hatred of God and envy of man” (Hyman 29). Iago is undeniably engaged in the seduction of the moral mankind with the destruction of the values that he neglects to represent. ... “Divinity of hell! ... “So will I turn her virtue into pitch;/ And out of her own goodness make the net/ That shall enmesh them all” (2. ... We see him tear into Othello time and again, pulling him to the side of the anti-Christ, thus forcing him to commit the final sin that ends the play. Iago’s influence on Othello is one that reaches beyond any other villain I have seen in Shakespeare’s play.