Othello: Act 2, Scene 1
Iago’s
Second
Soliloquy
•
As soon as Iago has gotten
Roderigo to agree to his plan, he
dismisses him and plans to meet
him at a later time.
•
Alone, Iago praises himself. He
makes up information about
Cassio and Desdemona, but tells
himself that it could be true.
Iago’s Perception of Events
That Cassio
loves her, I do
well believe it; /
That she loves
him, ‘tis apt
and of great
credit.
Here, Iago
convinces
himself that
what he has said
about
Desdemona and
Cassio is true.
For Iago: Suspicion = Truth
‘…tis apt”
--likely
“…of great credit”
--quite believable
Iago’s feelings for Othello
“The Moor, howbeit
that I endure him
not,”
However it may be,
I cannot stand
Othello.
Iago’s description of Othello

[The Moor] Is of a
constant, loving,
noble nature, /
And I dare think
he’ll prove to
Desdemona A
most dear
husband.”
Literary Term: Pun
Definition:
A play on
words that
sound similar
or exactly the
same.
Example:
Dear means
both beloved
and expensive.
The word “dear”:
Iago is making a cruel
pun on the word “dear”
because it means both
“beloved” and
“expensive.” Because
Othello is “constant,
loving, noble” he will
be outraged over Iago’s
accusations and
Desdemona will pay a
high price.
Iago feels lust, not
love.
Now, I do love her
too; / Not out of
absolute lust,
though
peradventure I
stand accountant
for as a great sin,
But partly led to diet
my revenge,
Here, Iago speaks
of his own
motivations. This is
not real love, it is
one part lust and
nine parts power.
He seeks revenge
for his own
suspicions.
For I do suspect
the lusty Moor /
Hath leap’d into
my seat; the
thought whereof
Doth, like a
poisonous
mineral, gnaw at
my inwards.
And nothing can
or shall content
my soul…
Iago wants
revenge for his
own suspicion
that Othello has
slept with Emilia.
This thought is
eating at his gut
and he will not be
satisfied until he
exacts his
revenge.
…Till I am even’d
with him, wife for
wife,
Or failing so, yet
that I put the
Moor / At least
jealousy so
strong / That
judgment cannot
cure.
The phrase, “even’d
with him, wife for
wife,” seems to
mean that he has
some notion that he
might have sex with
Desdemona, but
that is not the most
important thing for
Iago: he wants
Othello to feel
poisonous jealousy.
Iago’s Plan: His preview
…Which thing to do,
If this poor trash of
Venice, whom I trash
For his quick hunting,
stand the putting on, /
I’ll have our Michael
Cassio on the hip, /
Abuse
him to the
Moor in the rank garb
Roderigo

In this part of the soliloquy, Iago is
referring to Roderigo: “This poor trash
of Venice…”, in other words:

If Roderigo can carry out what I need,
whose steps I purse to make him hunt
more quickly, for which I put him up to
Cassio: “On the hip”

To have Cassio “on the hip” means he
will have Cassio at a disadvantage.
This is a
Wrestling
term

Abuse him to the
Moor in rank garb--
Here, Iago is saying
that he will use
language that
makes Cassio look
coarse or
lecherous.
Iago’s Paranoia
For I fear
Cassio with
my nightcap too--
Iago’s
paranoia
makes him
suspect that
Cassio is
sleeping with
Emilia (Iago’s
wife).
Iago’s intentions
Make the Moor thank
me, love me and
reward me
For making him
egregiously an ass
And practicing on his
peace and quiet
Even to madness
Othello must be made
to feel the same
way about
Desdemona and
Cassio. Iago will
enjoy this because
Othello will be
thanking him while
going mad with
jealousy.
 Tis
here, but yet confused: /
Knavery’s plain face is never seen
till used.
 Here,
Iago is saying that he has a
plan, but the details are still unclear.
Or, he needs to work out some
details. But he is a master of evil
(“knavery”) and can improvise