Comparing and Contrasting Envy and Deception in Shakespeare’s
Much Ado About Nothing and Othello
The course of events in Shakespeareˇs Much Ado About Nothing andOthello
are shaped by the deceit and envy of individuals whose desire s is
arguably to achieve a higher status in society, as well as to avenge the
cause of their own dissatisfaction .
Don John and Iago manipulate the minds of the people in Much Ado
About Nothing and Othello respectively by using the se charactersˇ
insecurities as tools in a quest to ruin their lives. Both plays also involve
some self -deception on the part of the characters though, being a
comedy, Much Ado About Nothing and Othello sees the reconciliation of
Claudio and Hero along with Benedickˇs and Beatriceˇs proclamation of
love. This is in contrast to the bleak ending of the tragedy that is O7We77o,
in which we witness the demise of Desdemona and Othello. This is perhaps
why these to plays share some differences as well as similarities — whilst
the motives of Iago and Don John are similar, a l ot of the deception that
occurs in Much Ado About Nothing and Othellois not for malicious
purposes and thus this is where O7We77o and Much Ado About Nothing and
Othellodiffers. Furthermore whilst Don John is clearly envious of his halfbrotherˇs social authority, the extent to which Iago is envious of Othello
and his relationship with Desdemona is ambiguous.
Given the fact that Don John is often referred to as “the Bastard”, it is
clear that his relationship with his half-brother Don Pedro is one that is
marked by an underlying resentment. Indeed Don Johnˇs illegitimacy
may well have led to his dark and sullen character for he is lower than his
half-brother in the social hierarchy seen in Much Ado About Nothing and
Othello. This has therefore created an envy of his half-brother that for
reasons unknown manifests into a desire to destroy Heroˇs and Claudioˇs
relationship. The enviousness of Don John can possibly be seen with Iago
in O7We77o for he has a hatred of Othello that remains unexplained till the
very end of the play. One argument that supports the theory that Iago is
jealous of Othello is perhaps the fact that the “valiant” Othello has
garnered such unearned respect. If we look at Act Two Scene One
when Othello has been sent to Cyprus to battle the Turks, we learn from
Cassio that the Turks have possibly drowned in a storm thus meaning
that they were not defeated at the hands of the Venetians. This being
the case, Othello is left with nothing to do but to ask “This fortification,
gentlemen, shall we seeˇt?” in Act Three Scene Two. Therefore, Othello
can no longer bring new tales of “the battles, sieges, fortunes/That I have
passed” which he used to woo Desdemona a s stated in Act One Scene
Three and so he seems unable to justify the view of Othello as valiant and
courageous. Indeed Iago plays on this when Othello has a fit in Act Four
Scene One where he refers to his fit as “A passion most unsuiting such a
man ”. This seems to be Iago subtly mocking Othello status as a soldier
and pointing out how unlike a soldier he really is. One could argue that
Iago sees it this way because he is envious of Othelloˇs seemingly
unearned position of power as he is already resentful of the fact that
Cassio was promoted ahead of him as explained in Act One Scene One
when he says, “Despise me if I do not: t hree great ones of the city/In
personal suit to make me his lieutenant,/Off-capped to him; and by the
faith of man/I know my price, I am worth no worse a place.” Whilst it is
clear that he resents being overlooked, it is possible that Iagoˇs envy is as
a r esult of the fact that he should be held in higher esteem than Othello,
let alone Cassio. It is therefore only fitting that he conspires with
Roderigo, someone who is himself jealous of Othello as he is married to
Desdemona who is the object of Roderigoˇs affection.
In order to appease himself, Iago instigates Cassioˇs aggression in Act Two
Scene Three by sending Roderigo to attack Cassio. This leads to Cassio
striking him and thus he is removed from his position as Othelloˇs
lieutenant. Iago replaces him and so he has achieved what was arguably
his aim. Indeed this desire for status is similar to that of Don John who as
well as wishing to ruin Claudioˇs relationship with Hero, wishes to unseat
him as Don Pedroˇs favouri te so that he would be able to aveng e Don
Pedro's crushing of his rebellion. Both Iago and Don John aim to gain
favour from the same person who they wish to destroy. What makes Don
John particularly malevolent is the fact that his jealousy is mainly derived
from his dissatisfaction with
his own life. He wishes to destroy the
happiness of his perceived enemies and this could possibly be held akin to
Iagoˇs wish to destroy Othello for reasons which
remain somewhat
ambiguous. It seems that Iagoˇs own malevolence is perhaps due to the
fact that he is just inherently evil. However it could be due to the fact that
he wishes to be in many ways Othelloˇs favourite and not only did
Othello favour
Cassio, he also loved Desdemona. It could be that he wishes to replace
Desdemona as an object of love, not in a homosexual sense, but in a way
that would help maintain a military camaraderie that would have been
present when they fought side by side. That being said, he does seem to
hold a belief that Othello is having an affair with his wife Emilia for he say
s towards the end of Act One Scene Three, “It is thought abroad that
ˇtwixt my sheets / He has done my office .” However one must
acknowledge the fact that he does hold a rather misogynistic view of
women , in the way that he maltreats Emilia, and in Act Two Scene One,
in the presence of both Emilia and Desdemona, he makes slanderous
claims such as, “You rise to play and go to bed to work.”
Don John and Iago are both incredibly able when it comes to
manipulating people by exploiting their insecurities. If we look at Don
Johnˇs deception of Claudio, he not only turns him against Hero but he
also attempts to make him distrust Don Pedro. In Act Two Scene One
Don John tells Claudio that, “Signor, you are very near my brother in his
love, he is enamoured on Hero, I pray you dissuade him from her,” Don
John blatantly lies to Claudio, telling him that Don Pedro swore he would
marry her, thus poisoning Claudioˇs mi nd. However, when one reads
the play it becomes somewhat unclear what Don Pedro's motives truly
are. Indee d one begins to suspect that perhaps he is similar to his
brother in the sense that, whilst being no where near as blatant, there
may be an ulterior motive in his actions. For example, when Claudio
professes his love for H ero, Don Pedro takes it upon himself to tell woo
Hero for him. Whilst this seems to be merely in good nature, Claudio
seemed to allow him to do so because of Don Pedroˇs authority over
him. Given the hierarchy that is evident in the play, it is possible that
Don Pedroˇs reason for taking t his task upon himself is simply because
he feels it is his duty to put his weight behind Claudioˇs task. However, at
the end of the play when Claudio and Hero are reconciled, Don Pedro
does seem to be somewhat melancholy which is clear when Benedick
points out “Prince, thou art sad, get thee a wife, get thee a wife, there is
no staff more reverend than one tipped with horn.” He is instructing
Don Pedro to find a wife so that he can be complete but it is possible
that Don Pedro is sad because the woman he wants belongs to Claudio.
So it seems that he shares the same envious trait that his half-brother,
Don John has. Looking back at the banquet scene in Act Two Scene One,
one canˇt help but feel that the reason why Don Pedro is being so
eloquent is not just because of his high social status but also because he
is in effect trying to subtly woo Hero. Therefore when Don John lies to
Claudio that Don Pedro has declared his love for Hero , not only has
Claudioˇs mind been poisoned, there is a chance that an underlying
suspicion has been reaffirmed. Don John has spotted a weakness in the
fact that Claudio answers to Don Pedro and so can not muster the
courage to question Don Pedroˇs motive. Don Johnˇs deception seems
to be succeeding as not only is Claudio suspici ous of Don Pedro, he is
also doubting the merit of a relationship with Hero.
Don Johnˇs exploitation of Claudioˇs insecurities is similar to the wa y in
which Iago has deceived Othello. Iago is fully aware of Othelloˇs growing
sense of isolation due to his race and age and so he plants ideas into his
head, leading to Othello being almost blinded, in a metaphorical sense .
Iagoˇs main weapon is Cassio who, he points out, served almost as a
messenger during Othelloˇs courtship of Desdemona as stated when he
says in Act Three Scene Three, “Did Michael Cassio , / When you wooed
my lady, know of your love?” This is very much like Don Pedroˇs
involvement in Claudioˇs bid to woo Hero only this time, Cassio answers
to Othello and not the reverse. Indeed what makes Iagoˇs deception
even more effective is his use of language to subtly plant ideas into
Othelloˇs mind. For example, when Iago says “But for a satisfaction of my
thought; /No further harm.” This is highly ironic because he is insinuating
that he doesnˇt want to g o any further in voicing of his so-called
suspicion yet by even suggesting such a thing, he has deepened
Othelloˇs suspicions further. Whilst he hasnˇt blatantly accused Cassio
and Desdemona of infidelity, much unlike Don Johnˇs blunt
proclamations , he has already done enough damage to allow Othelloˇs
mind to race. Indeed Iago continues to be disingenuous thus fuelling
Othelloˇs suspicions, and we start to see the extent to which Othello is
being deceived when he says, “And for I know thouˇrt full of love a nd
honesty.” Furthermore, lines in this scene are often split between Iago
and Othello. These lines mostly begin with Iago and are finished by
Othello and this represents the fact that at this stage, Iago only needs to
insinuate to Othello that there is some infidelity occurring, who will then
complete the line by jumping to conclusion or by interrogating Iago
further. Iago continues his act of honesty by even urging Othello to avoid
being jealous saying, “O beware, my lord, of jealousy/It is the green -eyed
monster which doth mock/The meat it feeds on.” Even though Iago
hasnˇt explicitly stated that Cassio and Desdemona are having an affair,
he is only serving to encourage Othelloˇs transformation into this green eyed monster.
Othelloˇs main downfall is the fact that, he often deceives himself and has
allowed himself to be almost entirely consumed by Iagoˇs manipulations.
Othello urges Iago
to “Give me the ocular proof” and develops an
obsession with this as he seeks to confirm his beliefs about Desdemonaˇs
infidelity. Therefore, when Iago lies that he has seen Cassio wipe his brow
with the handkerchief that Othello had given to Desdemona, he is further
convinced that she is having an affair. This handkerchief plays a key role in
Othelloˇs downfall and Desdemo naˇs death as this was the first gift that he
gave to her and is a symbol of his love for her. However, a only a short time
before it was figuratively dangled by Iago before Othello, Desdemona
had applied the handkerchief to Othelloˇs head due to his head ache
and only dropped it when he left. Emilia then picked it up and handed
it to Iago, who now has vital evidence to present. Othello was in the
presence of Desdemona when she dropped it and so he should be aware
of his. However, because he is so convinced that she is cheating on him,
he believes Iago w hen he says that Cassio has it. Indeed he now believes
the handkerchief to be proof of Desdemonaˇs unfaithfulness and tells her
later on in Act Three, Scene Three that, “ I have a salt and sorry rheum
offends
me/Lend me thy handkerchief.” Having misplaced the
handkerchief, Desdemona is unable to produce the handkerchief that
Othello gave her and so this confirms his suspicions.
This type of self-deception contrasts with the one seen in Much Ado About
Nothing and Othelloas it does not lead to the downfall of the characters.
Beatrice and Benedick are examples of this self-deception in the sense that
they both love each other, but hide behind this fact through a war of wits.
Indeed Beatrice claims to be against the idea
of getting married as she
says, “What should I do with him - dress him in my apparel and make him
my waiting gentlewoman? He that hath a beard is more than a youth,
and he that hath no beard is less than a man; and he that is more than a
youth is not for me, and he that is less than a man, I am not for him. ”
However,
behind this hyperbole is perhaps a vulnerability that we can
assume is linked to the fact that it has been hinted that Benedick at
one point led her on. However, Benedick hides behind inflated rheto ric, as
can be seen in Act One Scene One when he says, “The savage bull may, but
if ever the sensible Benedick bear it, pluck off the bullˇs horns and set them
in my forehead, and let me be vilely painted, and in such great letters as
they write ‘Here is g ood horse to hireˇ let them signify under my sign ‘Here
you may see Benedick, the married man.ˇ ” His referral to the “sensible
Benedick” is his way of saying that he is too rational to marry. The image of
the bull brings up the idea of a man, no matter ho w strong and
dominant, will be unintelligent for falling for a woman who, Benedick
believes, will end up making a fool of him and cheat on him. However,
when Don Pedro and Claudio lie that
Beatrice has declared her love for
Benedick, knowing full well that he can hear, he is overjoyed but still says
that, “I will be horribly in love with her.” He still has to gain the upper
hand against Beatrice by being more in love with her than she is with
him. Likewise I Act Three Scene One, Hero and her waiting women d
eceive Beatrice into believing that Benedick has spoken about his love
for her by pretending to be having a private conversation, aware of the
fact that Beatrice is listening. The irony of this scene is that in the
previous scene, having heard of Beatriceˇ s love for him Benedick gives in
to his infatuation but Beatrice does not see this as they spend their time
trying to outdo each other in their wittiness
and intelligence.
Nevertheless, Beatrice reveals her vulnerable side and starts to give in
to the id eas of love and marriage when she says, “And Benedick, love on,
I will require thee/Taming my wild heart to thy loving hand.”
Claudioˇs public shaming of Hero, in Act Four Scene One, shows the
extent to which Don John has been able to deceive both him and Don
Pedro. He claims to have seen Hero with a “vile” man, not knowing that
that was actually Margaret dressed as Hero, who had actually slept with
Borachio, Don Johnˇs accomplice. Claudio doesnˇt give Hero the chance
to defend herself and is so blinded by his rage that he says, “She knows
the heat of a luxurious bed/Her blush is guiltiness, not modesty.” He has
taken an insignificant detail and blown it out of proportion and his
language is somewhat explicit. This is very similar to Othelloˇs loss of self
-control in Othello. The friar has to engage in deception himself by
telling Hero to hide away and for Leonato to convince everyone that
Hero has died, after having himself said, “Hence from here, let her die.”
This deception actually helps in two ways: it allows the anger directed at
Hero to dissipate and leads to Benedick and Beatrice declaring th eir
love for each other openly. However one must not forget that in this
scene we have seen how important honour is in this play and Claudio
has tarnished Heroˇs name by saying that her honour, or in other words
her virginity has been taken away. This is identical to the way in which
Othello believes that Desdemona has herself lost her honour by sleeping
with Cassio whilst being married to Othello. This shows that Don John
and Iago have been able to use societyˇs ideologies to their advantage
when deceiving Claudio and Othello respectively. However, in the end
we reach two very different conclusions.
By Act Four Scene Two, Othello has become so consumed by deceit an d
jealousy that when Emilia tells him that Desdemona has never cheated
on him, he point black refuses to believe it, saying “Yes, you have seen
Cassio and she together.” He has pursued her to gain further evidence
against Desdemona but what he has heard has not fitted his
assumptions. This shows that with Iagoˇs manipulation, he has already
made up his mind about Desdemona. This is a fatal flaw as he is so
convinced that Iago is honest and so wouldnˇt lie to him that when
Emilia contradicts these believes, he refuses to listen. Indeed if we look
at Othelloˇs language when Desdemona enters the scene, we see him
using her words against her. She says that heaven knows she is honest
yet he uses this against her, “Heaven truly knows that thou art false as
hell.” His language becomes more erratic and has deteriorated
significantly when compared to that of the eloquent soldier of whom
we were introduced in Act One Scene Three. Othello has convinced
himself that Desdemona is unfaithful and decides that she and Cass io
must die. Indeed, in Act
Five Scene Two, when he is in Desdemonaˇs
chamber , tries to convince himself that he is doing the right thing in killing
Desdemona. His opening has him saying, “It is the cause, it is the cause my
soul/Let me not name it to you, you chaste stars/It is the cause.” This
repetition of “it is the cause” shows that Othello is deluding himself that
killing Desdemona is a just cause and reflects on the fact that Othello has
gradually become more insane. In his soliloquy he makes allusio ns to
justice and heaven and yet it is clear that he still loves her and is in many
ways conflicted in his feelings, especially when he says “O balmy breath
that dost almost persuade/Justice to break her sword!” The sword
symbolises the ability for Justice to punish sinners and what Othello is
saying is that Desdemona beauty and sweetness is almost enough to make
him not kill her. However, he still gives in to his delusions and even sees
himself as her saviour. This is clear when he says to Desdemona, “I wi ll not
kill thy unpreparèd spirit/No – heaven forfend – I would not kill thy soul!”
He has believes buy allowing her to beg for forgiveness, he is being her
saviour. Nevertheless Desdemona meets a grisly end when she is
suffocated by Othello and so he has committed a crime that Iago has
been trying to get him to commit. When Othello finally learns of Iagoˇs
deception and Desdemonaˇs innocence, h e is overwhelmed with
grief. He eventually kills himself and Lodovico confronts Iago, telling him,
“Look on the tragic loading of this bed. / This is thy work. The object
poisons sight. / Let it be hid” This sums up the result of Iagoˇs duplicity in
the sense that he deceived Othello into believing that Desdemona was
unfaithful when Othello never actually had any real “ocular proof”. The
play has in a sense relied heavily on Othello being, metaphorically
speaking, blinded by Iago.
This bloody conclusion is in contrast to the more positive conclusion of
Much Ado About Nothing and Othelloin which having been summoned to
what is in effect a second wedding party, a repentant Claudio is
summoned under the pretence that he is to marry another of Leonatoˇs
nieces. He had previously acknowledged the fact that he had been
deceived in an epithet to Heroˇs supposed tomb so when it is reveal ed that
Hero is indeed alive, he begs for forgiveness. One must wonder why Hero
willingly marries Claudio when he has allowed himself to be deceived to a
point where he has no qualms in disgracing her in public. Furthermore,
Benedick and Beatrice still ins ist on deceiving themselves when they both
say loudly declare that they do not love each other. However, Claudio,
Hero and indeed the audience know that this isnˇt the truth and they
finally profess their love for each other for
others to hear. In the end, unlike Iago, Don Pedro has failed as he is now
more alienated from the others than he was at the beginning of the play
and the truth has been exposed.
The reason why these plays reach such a different conclusion stems from
the language used by the villains, as well as the insecurities of those who
are duped. Iago has used his skills of double entendre in order to deceive
Othello, as well as exploit his insecurities. Furthermore, Othello is isolated
from everyone else in the play and this proves to be dangerous as he has
nobody to rely on for clarification of what is the truth and what is a lie.
This is unlike Claudio who had friends who were convinced of Heroˇs
innocence and are therefore able to set about proving it. What is clear
however, that the motiv es of Iago and Don John consist purely of an
innate envy of those in a position that is seemingly higher than their own.