Iago is very clever. As dangerous and as evil his plans are, I really like his character. He is also very racist as he refers to Othello as the 'black Moor' and anti-feminist as well. This is revealed through his conversation with Desdemona on how an ideal woman should be like. But he is highly skilled in manipulation tactics. He first did so with Roderigo, taking advantage of his undying love and affection for Desdemona, who was already Othello's wife. Iago used Roderigo to get things done, to provoke Cassio, to raise the alarm et cetra. And Cassio just falls into his trap perfectly. When all the damage is done, Iago deteriorated the situation by adding insult to the injury when telling Otello what had happened between Cassio and Montano. But he did so in such a discreet way that Cassio didn't even know that his career was just destroyed and teared apart by Iago. While Iago gave him advice for him to redeem himself (but actually just setting Cassio up for yet another downfall), Cassio whole-heartedly sought his advice and even thanked him. As he is the only character that directly addresses the audience, so he is a very appealing character to me.
Othello is somewhat the protagonist. In Act 1, he is noble and highly respected leader. His confidence and calmness were seen during the confrontation scene when Desdemona's father accused him of wooing her daughter with witchcraft. He also got his priorities right, which was to focus at the task at hand, to defeat the Turks at Cyprus. He seemed somewhat flawless in Act 1: a brave general, a loving husband, a peace-maker which made me feel as though he is rather fake and unbelievable. But his ratings drooped a little (for me at least) when he dismissed Cassio after listening to Iago's highly crafted speech. Cassio did not even have the chance to explain (but anyway he was too drunk). But then again, I cannot blame him for dismissing Cassio for Iago's just too clever. And then, it can be evidently seen in Act 2 that Othello is rather a soapy fellow to Desdemona. Too soapy, in my opinion, considering the fact that all the other male characters were anti-feminist. Desdemona is indeed the captain's captain.
I respected Cassio, I really did. Although his character was insulted right at the beginning of the play, I still found him a great character for he is a responsible lieutenant. Despite being insulted by Iago about his well-to-do family background a reason for his promotion to a lieutenant, I was under the impression that Cassio was a trustworthy and dependable character. However, I found his over the top apple-polishing a little annoying as he went on and on with the flattery which sounded like a broken tape recorder to me, just like Roderigo's whines. He also gave in to Iago's persuasion very easily for if he never drank, he wouldn't have fell into Iago's trap. But what done is done, for Iago is indeed a very persuasive character.
The one that has my sympathy is the poor Roderigo. Having failed to get Desdemona, he is being severely exploited by Iago with his schemes. And Roderigo, the poor fellow, is playing his part exactly like how Iago directed him to. Iago is the director, while Roderigo is the actor. Or you can say Iago is the puppet master and so forth.
2. My thoughts on the storyline.
So far, the storyline has been pleasant and fast-paced. From Act 1 to 2, Iago's great evil schemes begin to unravel and it enlightens me a lot about the fact that I know all about Iago's plans. The most clever part of the storyline is that the audience are actually one of the characters of the play as well so it makes readers, like me feel involved. And Shakespeare, or rather Iago, does not treat us, readers completely stupid people. Iago challenges and convinces us that he is not exactly a villain and tries to justify it. Here, Iago also tries to manipulate us, the readers. And the fact that we know all about Iago's schemes makes readers on par with Iago, in other words, as smart as Iago, makes us feel very good, for we are respected and also are as intelligent as Iago. The storyline up to Act 2 is simple enough but I have this feeling that the plot is about to get more exciting and more complex as it progresses through Acts 3 to 5.
