Shakespeare is one of the most thought provoking authors ever to walk the earth. As a reader you can interpret his plays in many different ways. While reading Romeo and Juliet you can be saddened at the death of two young lovebirds who couldn't live without each other, or you can think of them as foolish for ending their lives over someone they just met days prior. If you look at Othello in the latter state of mind, you will realize how idiotic the main characters were, but what is published cannot be erased, so we have to deal with what we are dealt. The easiest way to determine an answer to any question is process of elimination. When determining who is at fault with all of the tragedy that occurs in the play we will start with the characters least at fault.
First we can rule out the head-honcho himself. Shakespeare is not to blame. He did create a lot of foolish characters, but he wasn't physically in the story to cause all of the mayhem. He wrote the story but he is not the object of our witch-hunt. All of the minor characters are not to blame. This includes Lodovico, Gratiano, the Clown, the Duke, senators and Montano. If they were only written in the play for a handful of pages they could not help nor hinder the casualties that were bound to occur. Brabantio could have had Iago and Roderigo arrested for trespassing in act I scene i but, Othello could have easily become jealous by any other man who chatted up his wife, so Brabantio is off the hook. |
The person who is the least to blame in Cassio. Iago hated him from the start and wanted his lieutenancy (I,iii,434-441), even though he drops that idea half-way through. Cassio is almost killed twice in the handful of weeks that this play takes place in. Iago practically puts a hit out on him when he tells Roderigo to get rid of him by “knocking out his brains” (IV, ii, 263). The only fault he had was one he was not conscience of. By talking to Desdemona so frequently he helped fuel Othello’s jealous rage, but he wouldn't have known that his actions would put everyone else in peril. Cassio can not be blamed for the tragedies, but he could be found guilty of paying for a prostitute.
Being caught in the wrong place at the wrong time happens to everyone, but Bianca takes the cake for the worst experience in the history of literature. She walked in at the perfect time for Iago’s plan to unfold. She unearthed the lost handkerchief and made it look like Cassio had given it to his whore. That punched Othello the hardest, but Bianca had no clue that it was Desdemona’s and that it was false proof of her infidelity. She had no idea what her presence would do to the others, so she can’t be blamed similar to Cassio.
Emilia on the other hand is a different story. She is at fault for marrying a horrible man, and stealing Desdemona’s handkerchief, but she had no idea what her horrid husband would do with it. Her husband wanting another woman's handkerchief should have set off red flags to her, but it did not. One particular thing that pushes the blame away from Emilia is the remorse she feels after she finds out her friend had been murdered. She steps in and tries to make it known who was at fault for Desdemona’s murder, and that shows a great deal of empathy. There is some fault that goes to Emilia, but she didn't cause all of the horror that took place.
Being caught in the wrong place at the wrong time happens to everyone, but Bianca takes the cake for the worst experience in the history of literature. She walked in at the perfect time for Iago’s plan to unfold. She unearthed the lost handkerchief and made it look like Cassio had given it to his whore. That punched Othello the hardest, but Bianca had no clue that it was Desdemona’s and that it was false proof of her infidelity. She had no idea what her presence would do to the others, so she can’t be blamed similar to Cassio.
Emilia on the other hand is a different story. She is at fault for marrying a horrible man, and stealing Desdemona’s handkerchief, but she had no idea what her horrid husband would do with it. Her husband wanting another woman's handkerchief should have set off red flags to her, but it did not. One particular thing that pushes the blame away from Emilia is the remorse she feels after she finds out her friend had been murdered. She steps in and tries to make it known who was at fault for Desdemona’s murder, and that shows a great deal of empathy. There is some fault that goes to Emilia, but she didn't cause all of the horror that took place.
Blaming Desdemona is really difficult because it really wasn't her fault, but she could have been a whole lot smarter. Her first slip up was constantly talking about Cassio when it so obviously frustrated her husband. She stood up for her friend which is great, but there definitely could have been better times to bring him up. Her next major mistake was dropping the handkerchief. I mean it’s a pretty solid material |
object, so if you drop it you’re going to know. Shall we continue? She doesn't stand up to her husband when he slaps her. *<in Tyra Banks voice> Come on Desdemona! I was rooting for you!!* All she says is “I have not deserved this” (IV, i, 269). She barely stands up for herself and it’s almost as if she has a death wish. The last and most awful thing she does is not fight her attacker. That is the part that kills me the most. She could have ran, kicked, screamed, anything, but she just let him kill her. She can't be blamed for her own death or really the death of others, but she could have fought back a little harder.
Next up is Roderigo. He was a major pawn to Iago, and agreed that he would killing a man, but he didn't actually do it. He simply poked the bear for Iago. He could have told Iago no, or just gave up his crush on Desdemona (a married woman), but in the entirety of the play Iago never intentionally did anything horrible just for the thrill of it. You can't blame a man who was killed by his only friend. He most certainly helped push along the tragedy, but he didn't orchestrate it.
Next up is Roderigo. He was a major pawn to Iago, and agreed that he would killing a man, but he didn't actually do it. He simply poked the bear for Iago. He could have told Iago no, or just gave up his crush on Desdemona (a married woman), but in the entirety of the play Iago never intentionally did anything horrible just for the thrill of it. You can't blame a man who was killed by his only friend. He most certainly helped push along the tragedy, but he didn't orchestrate it.
Finally we can blame a character - this game is no fun if we can't blame anyone. Othello killed himself, and Desdemona. He can be blamed for both deaths. He was ignorant and selfish. Not only is it morally wrong to kill your wife, but I’m pretty sure it also breaks some medieval law. He never questioned Iago’s accusations, and never let Desdemona explain herself. His lack of communication with other people, blind trust, and insane fits of rage is what made him act like such a fool and caused him to be physically guilty of most of the tragedy that occurred in act V. |
The most obvious person to blame is Iago. He planned every horrible thing that happened out single handedly. He had many foolish motives, and physically killed his wife: Emilia. He wanted people dead and others position's, he was greedy. He lied to everyone I previously mentioned. Although most of the characters could have easily put a stop to his wrath, he caused all the tragedy with intention, and that's why he is the winner of the blame game.