Iago attitude towards women

Nickeisha Gray
Dr. Ximena Gallardo C.
October 16, 2008
Othello, Shakespeare
Iago is a very selfish person. Iago only see his self in his eyes. He considers women to be very talkative. He feels he should be in power and control everything and everyone. He has no respect or morals. . Iago is a man who hates women, for he shows no love or sympathy to women as he constantly slanders them of things they didn’t do or even think about. Iago’s murder of Emilia could also stem from the general hatred of women that he displays. He certainly seems to take great pleasure in preventing Othello from enjoying marital happiness, and he expresses his love for Othello frequently and effusively. It is Iago’s talent for understanding and manipulating the desires of those around him that makes him both a powerful and a compelling figure
Iago’s opinion on women is that he detests women in all kinds and shapes, and finds faults even when they have little or no faults. Further on Iago comes to Brabantio’s house and says to him that his daughter has been stolen, rather than saying she ran away with Othello. He thinks of women property of men. In act 1 scene 1 line 80 Iago states,” Thieves, thieves! Look to your house, your daughter and your bags”. He implies that women (generalizing) talk more than they should, and that they don’t know when to stop. They are very lazy when it comes to housework however when it comes to their needs (desires sexually) they are not lazy. The main reason why Iago’s attitude towards women is not the best is due to the fact that women have no strong morals and that they are easily persuaded by other men, this is when he sees Casio kiss his wife. He also think that the women are untrustworthy and they do whatever they have to do even if it means to hurt ones feeling. He also believes women talk useless maters.Based on Iago’s behavior and attitude he thinks that women are of lower class to men. He sees them as sexually active creatures, and untrustworthy to their husbands, and that they don’t have feelings about anyone else except them selves.
According to Iago women are good when they are outside of their homes but once they enter the home they are worse than devils, Iago’s sneering attitude towards his wife and women in general is indicated once again. His use of the word ‘picture’ which denotes that out of doors the women are silent and pleasant to look at. He states,” Come on, Come on: you are pictures out of doors, bells in your parlors, wild cats in your kitchens, saints in your injuries, devils being offended, players in your housewifery, and house wife’s in your beds". In addition to the statement Iago stated we come to know that women act like saints even when they injure others. He also Says, ‘They are lazy around the house except that they are active in their bed’, suggesting that they are like prostitutes.
Further on He refers Desdemona as a guinea hen, which denotes a whore. Iago gives a description of his wife to Cassio who just had given her a greeting kiss to Emilia. He describes Emilia as a talkative person that she can’t keep there trap shut. He implies that all women have to open their mouth for everything. Iago states that I n Act 1 Scene 1. “Sir, would she give you so much of her lips, as of her tongue she oft bestows on me you’d have enough”.
Iago felt any man who was in love with any women was a fool. Iago tells Roderigo that he shouldn’t be an inane man to even think of taking his life for a female. Iago stated, “Ere I would say I would drown myself for the love of a guinea hen; I would change my humanity with a baboon”. Act 1 Scene 3 Line 310. Again this reveals to us that Iago says that he would never drown himself for a female, he rather change his humanity with a monkey which is totally degrading because he sees a monkey more fit than women. Iago felt that no man who chase after a female. He felt Othello was weak because he had lust and love for Desdemona.