Iago is an evil, intelligent calculator. I found it ironic that in Othello Iago was known as an honest person, when in reality he was anything but honest. Through my research, I was able to discover that the Shakespearean definition of honesty and the definition of honesty we use today are not the same thing. The current definition of honesty involves someone being honest. In Shakespearean times, however, its definition was completely different. An honest person was someone who gave the public the impression of being a gentleman. Although Iago was a gentleman in public, he was not one in private. Instead, he sought revenge and manipulated many of the characters in the play. In Othello, Iago presents two different motives behind his hatred of Othello. The first reason given by Iago is that he did not get a promotion and the position he deserves was given to Cassio. Cassio was someone who had never seen the battlefield. For Iago, this is a real slap in the face. Two scenes later, Iago presents another reason for his hatred of Othello. Rumors spread that Othello and Emilia slept together. Whether this is true or not, Iago sees this as reason enough to take revenge. While he sets out to destroy more than just Cassio throughout the play, Iago was able to sow doubt, insecurity, and lies. He put this into action with all the supporting characters around him to make Othello believe that his wife was actually having an affair with Cassio, and it was the furthest thing from the truth. He is a master manipulator because he was able to plant these ideas in the heads of other characters, and he was able to get other characters around him to perform the actions that fed these lies into the perceived medium of paper. .... having to improvise and make it appear that Cassio had killed Roderigo in the duel, by stabbing him. Also in various sections of the play where Iago is alone, you see that Iago enjoys his intelligence and his manipulation of others. These examples combined can shed light on Iago's obsession and whether this obsession affects his own mental health. When it comes to this, Iago was a brilliant character and a clever calculating villain. People believed that Iago was trustworthy, when in reality he was not. Thanks to this gullibility, this allows him to manipulate them all. It's thanks to him that this piece interested me so much. He is the master manipulator and he was able to plant these seeds of lies in each character's head, without them realizing he was the bad guy. In my opinion, Iago is one of Shakespeare's best characters. Othello was a superb play!