Learn about the theme of jealousy in ''Othello'' by William Shakespeare. Discover themes, quotes, and analysis in this famous tragedy that ends in a murder-suicide.
Updated: 11/21/2023
Jealousy in Othello by Shakespeare | Theme, Quotes & Analysis
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Frequently Asked Questions
What are some examples of jealousy in Othello?
In the play, Iago is jealous of Othello's career success/military prowess and his relationship with Desdemona. He is angry that he has not had as much success as Othello, so he uses his own jealousy as fuel to ruin Othello's life. He manipulates a situation in which Othello believes Desdemona to be unfaithful, stirring Othello's jealousy in the process. In the end, both of their lives are ruined, suggesting that jealousy is a dangerous and toxic emotion.
What does "Othello" convey about the theme of jealousy?
"Othello" conveys that jealousy is a dangerous emotion. Iago's jealousy drives him to ruin Othello's life and ultimately destroys his own life as well. Othello's failure to resist jealousy results in him murdering his wife. The theme of jealousy in the play is that it is clearly a negative, and at times, overwhelming force.
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ShowJealousy is one of the predominant themes in William Shakespeare's Othello, infiltrating many scenes throughout the play and driving it to its tragic conclusion. The story of Othello, who is manipulated by his supposed friend Iago, into falsely believing his wife, Desdemona is unfaithful, explores many of the ways in which each character's flaws contribute to the theme of jealousy in the tragedy. While the play begins with Iago's unreasonable hatred toward Othello, the impetus behind his plot to misdirect the main character and play upon his own insecurities and feelings of inferiority also point toward those same feelings on Iago's part. As in all tragedies, Othello's own insecurities are his most tragic flaw as the hero. This flaw eventually leads to a tragic outcome for Desdemona and Othello, who succumbs to Iago's lies and misdirection and murders his wife in a rage.
Most characters within the play experience jealousy at turns, most noticeably Othello and Iago, whose dynamics of jealousy are spawned by their own feelings of insecurity. For Othello, his insecurity arises from his race, and birth as a Moor. Though he has achieved great things in battle and won the love of a beautiful wife, he still questions his own worthiness. This makes him easy prey for Iago's lies. Iago, in turn, feels insecure in the face of Cassio's promotion, but also Othello's success.
The jealous and insecure dynamics of both men are a strong contrast to Desdemona, who does not understand how Othello can be consumed by emotions and suspicions that have no basis in reality. While both men allow their own emotions to guide every action, it is perhaps Desdemona, with her purity and innocence that pays the greatest cost during the course of the play.
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Why is Iago jealous of Othello? The play begins with Iago's inexplicable hatred of Othello relayed through his conversation with Roderigo at the top of Act I. His primary motivation in this scene is the promotion of Cassio into the position Iago wanted for himself. Secretly insolent toward his superior, we only get subtle mentions later of other possible motivations for his vendetta against Othello, including Iago's own desire for Desdemona and his imagined belief that Othello has bedded his own wife, Emilia. Critics have also suggested that both Othello's Moorish race and upbringing combined with his swift rise to power incites jealousy in Iago, who admits he is not the best soldier, only the one that has been fighting the longest. Iago is not only jealous of the man who was promoted before him, but also of the person who offered that promotion. Particularly one who he sees as fundamentally inferior to himself due to race and birth.
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There are many mentions within the play of jealousy, either overt or conveyed through indirect statements made by the characters. Many characters, both major and minor discuss issues of jealousy. As Iago hatches his plot, he mentions the jealousy he hopes to invoke in Othello by leading him to believe in Desdemona's infidelity.
At the top of the second act, Iago says:
that I put the Moor
At least into a jealousy so strong
That judgment cannot be cured. (2.1)
Earlier in Act I, Iago refers to rumors from abroad that Othello has been involved with his own wife, Emilia, in addition to his pursuit and win over Desdemona:
it is thought abroad, that 'twixt my sheets; He has done my office (1.3)
The rumor is unfounded and unlikely given Othello's love for Desdemona, but Iago's response does dovetail with the jealousy that Iago feels getting passed over for the promotion, as well as his anger towards Othello, whose success far exceeds his own. Iago questions the rise of a man he sees as of lower status due to race and upbringing.
Iago even makes a show of warning Othello again about the jealousy he has actually been feeling:
Oh, beware, my lord, of jealousy!
It is the green-eyed monster which doth mock
The meat it feeds on. (3.3)
Jealousy guides even minor characters like Bianca, Cassio's actual lover, who finds the handkerchief in Cassio's bedroom where Iago has planted it. She becomes enraged with jealousy of its unknown owner:
A likely piece of work, that you should find
it in your chamber, and not know who left it there!
This is some minx's token,.... (3.4)
The scene, of course, happens in front of Othello and is the physical bit of proof he needs to believe Iago's insinuations wholeheartedly.
Desdemona herself has a key conversation with Emilia, Iago's wife, in which such jealousies are incomprehensible to her, who is portrayed as pure and lacking understanding of the concept and its hold on Othello. Emilia says:
But jealous souls will not be answered so.
They are not ever jealous for the cause,
But jealous because they're jealous. It is a monster
Begot upon itself, born on itself. (3.4)
These comments echo those of her husband a few scenes before to Othello about the "green-eyed monster" In the end, Othello's jealousy causes him to kill his wife by suffocating her with a pillow. When Emilia informs him of Iago's lies, Othello, in grief, takes his own life.
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Shakespeare's Othello is a play driven by jealousy. With the exception of Desdemona, whose pureness of heart makes jealousy inconceivable for her, most characters in the play, even the minor ones, experience jealousy. Bianca, Cassio's lover, flies into a rage upon discovering Desdemona's scarf in his chambers, a scene which supposedly provides the visible truth that Othello seeks to confirm the suspicions. Iago's lies and insinuations are easily swallowed by Othello, whose insecurity and feelings of inferiority about his high station and beautiful wife make him likely to believe she fancies Cassio more. Iago himself, maybe even more than Othello, is driven by jealousy and insecurity over his lack of promotion, the unfounded rumors that Othello bedded his wife, and his own desire for Desdemona. Desdemona herself is perhaps the only character in the play who does not possess--nor understand--jealousy as a motivation.
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Video Transcript
Jealousy in Othello
As is typical of Shakespeare's tragedies, the main character in Othello is besieged and overcome by a weakness that leads him to ruin. Othello is perhaps one of Shakespeare's most troubled and emotionally exploited heroes. Having married a woman of unparalleled beauty and nobility, Othello already feels unworthy. His lack of self-esteem is further exploited by the villain, Iago, who insinuates that Desdemona is unfaithful. Othello's jealousy is so powerful that he murders his beloved wife, but Othello is not the only character whose actions are motivated by jealousy.
In this lesson, we will examine the theme of jealousy as it relates to the development of the plot, and as motivation for several of the play's characters.
Who is Jealous?
Othello is driven to madness by the insinuations that his wife is cheating on him with this lieutenant, Cassio. Iago artfully engineers Othello's descent into madness by gradually feeding Othello lies. Why? Well, Iago is jealous too! There is also one minor character whose jealousy plays a pivotal role in advancing the plot. Bianca is Cassio's girlfriend, who reveals Cassio's possession of Desdemona's handkerchief in front of Othello.
Othello's Jealousy
Although he is a successful military commander, Othello is a Moor from Cyprus. His dark skin and enslavement as a youth paint an unpropitious view among the other characters regarding his professional worthiness, as well as a fitting husband, for the beautiful Desdemona.
Othello's background is a focal point of the plot, abused by Iago to rouse the disdain of the other characters. It stands to reason that Othello would be a bit insecure.
I crave fit disposition for my wife.
Due reference of place and exhibition
With such accommodation and besort
As levels with her breeding (Act1.Scene 3)
Othello feels undeserving of his wife, recognizing that the color of his skin and his humble origins make him unfit for the pure and noble Desdemona.
Elizabethan England was for all intents and purposes a homogenous culture. Othello's marriage to Desdemona is viewed by others, especially Iago, as an affront to the natural order of the world. Othello is aware of how his marriage is viewed by others. It is easy to understand why he is vulnerable to the mere insinuation that his wife is unfaithful. Iago exploits Othello's insecurity and turns it into crippling jealousy.
Iago's Jealousy
Shakespeare crafts the perfect villain in Iago, who's professional and personal jealousy, as well as his disregard for morality are the ideal makings of a malefactor. Iago confesses to hating 'the Moor' (Othello) and seeks his revenge for sport and profit (Act1. Scene 3), meaning that his revenge will be both fun and fruitful.
Iago is jealous of both Othello's success and the fact that Othello made Cassio a lieutenant. Iago claims that Cassio has never set a foot on the battlefield and that in promoting Cassio Othello has chosen by letter and affection and not by old gradation (Act 1. Scene 1).
Iago is also motivated for personal reasons. He desires Desdemona even though he believes her purity has been spoiled by Othello; Iago is also looking to avenge what he believes was an affair between Othello and Iago's wife:
I do love her too;
Not out of absolute lust, though peradventure
I stand accountant for as great a sin,
But partly led to diet my revenge,
For that I do suspect the lusty Moor
Hath leap'd into my seat; the thought whereof
Doth, like a poisonous mineral, gnaw my inwards;
And nothing can or shall content my soul
Till I am even'd with him, wife for wife,
Or failing so, yet that I put the Moor
At least into a jealousy so strong
That judgment cannot cure. (Act 2. Scene 1)
Iago is married to Emilia, and he suspects (but cannot prove) that Emilia had an affair with Othello: it is thought abroad, that 'twixt my sheets; He has done my office (Act 1. Scene 3).
Bianca's Jealousy
Although a minor character who only appears in a few scenes, Bianca's jealousy could not be more critical to the plot. Bianca is a courtesan. In today's society she would be considered a prostitute or, at best, a 'kept woman.'
Iago plants Desdemona's handkerchief in Cassio's quarters. Cassio finds the handkerchief, and intrigued by its beauty, asks Bianca to copy it. Bianca suspects that this handkerchief belongs to another woman and that Cassio must be seeing someone else. In Act IV, Bianca, enraged by jealousy, declares:
A likely piece of work, that you should find
it in your chamber, and not know who left it there!
This is some minx's token, and I must take out the
work? There; give it your hobby-horse: wheresoever
you had it, I'll take out no work on't. (Act 4. Scene 1)
This speech takes place in front of several characters including Othello, who immediately recognizes the handkerchief as Desdemona's. This is the event that convinces Othello that Desdemona is having an affair with Cassio.
Lesson Summary
Jealousy is employed throughout Othello as motivation for the characters' actions, but Shakespeare also uses jealousy to explore the inner-workings of human frailty. Othello, the mighty warrior risen from the ashes of his past, is brought to his knees by jealousy. Iago, full of spite and anger, turns his jealousy into an ugly plot and carelessly destroys several lives.
In Bianca's case, jealousy undoes her only hope for moral redemption, as she destroys her chances with Cassio, but more importantly, her jealousy provides the pivotal moment in the play, which sets the tragic end into motion. Shakespeare takes this common, albeit unhealthy, human emotion and crafts it into a crippling frailty and tool for evil, making Othello one of his most ingenious tragedies.
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Jealousy in Othello by Shakespeare | Theme, Quotes & Analysis
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