The Devil as Iago in Shakespeare's Othello An often debated question among literary scholars is what could have motivated Iago to set off such a chain of events that accumulated into a horrific amount of death and tragic consequences that occur in William Shakespeare's play Othello. On the surface, one might artificially assume that Iago was driven by two reasons to carry out such a harmful and inhumane plan. His anger at having been passed over to lieutenant by Othello in favor of Cassio, combined with his bias at the fact that his wife slept with Othello, pushes Iago to take part in dangerous and seemingly insurmountable actions to climb the social ladder and take revenge of Othello. . Leading proponents of this belief that Iago was motivated solely by these two factors would argue that he was simply a Machiavellian-inspired villain who acted only for the conceived betterment of himself and his current status. However, when you delve into Iago's unholy actions and intentions on a deeper level, it is clear that there is a metaphysical element to his character that, once revealed, is absolutely disturbing and truly horrifying. A more insightful analysis of Iago shows that he is not only the embodiment of evil, but that he is actually the Devil himself, bent on destroying all that is good in the lives of Othello's characters. it is Shakespeare's constant use of outward appearance as opposed to reality. It is Iago, who in the opening act of the play, makes this clearly evident to the audience by stating "I am not what I am" (1.1.65). Although it has not yet been revealed to the public who Iago (i.e. the Devil) really is, this statement is a direct revision...... middle of the paper ......or: Greenhaven Press, 1996. Reprinted from Literature . N. p.: Random House, 1986.Mack, Maynard. Everyone is Shakespeare: reflections especially on tragedies. Lincoln, NB: University of Nebraska Press, 1993.Muir, Kenneth. Introduction. William Shakespeare: Othello. New York: Penguin Books, 1968.Shakespeare, William. Othello. In Electric Shakespeare. Princeton University. 1996. http://www.eiu.edu/~multilit/studyabroad/othello/othello_all.html No lines nos.Wilson, HS On the Design of Shakespearean Tragedy. Canada: University of Toronto Press, 1957. Wright, Louis B. and Virginia A. LaMar. “The Engaging Qualities of Othello.” Readings on tragedies. Ed. Clarice Swisher. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, 1996. Reprint from the Introduction to the Tragedy of Othello, the Moor of Venice by William Shakespeare. NP: Simon and Schuster, Inc., 1957