| Othello | A Christian Moor who has earned a high reputationas a general in the Venetian army and has recently married Desdemona, daughter of the Venetian senator Brabantio. Othello is characterized by his plainspoken, honest (perhaps even naïve) nature, which, together with his status as an outsider, leaves him vulnerable to the plots of his standard-bearer, Iago, to make him suspect his loyal wife, Desdemona, of infidelity. |
| Iago | Othello’s disloyal standard-bearer and the villain of theplay. Angry at having been passed over by Othello for promotion to the rank of lieutenant, and also because he seems to enjoy creating mayhem for its own sake, Iago develops an intricate conspiracy to ruin Othello. He is married to Emilia. |
| Desdemona | The Daughter of the Venetian senator Brabantio.Having been charmed by Othello’s tales of exoticlands and military exploits, Desdemona elopes with him before the play begins (although they do not consummate their marriage until they have received sanction from the Duke and, reluctantly, her father). Desdemona is a model wife, if perhaps too trusting of Iago. She follows Othello to Cyprus and showsconstant loyalty to him, even to the moment of death, when he kills her on false suspicions that she has been unfaithful. |
| Cassio | A young, charming, and handsome soldier,whom Othello promotes to the rank of lieutenant, over the more experienced Iago. Cassio is loyal to Othello and friendly with Desdemona, though he’s unkind to the prostitute Bianca, who seems to love him. While intelligent, he is not cunning, and Iago easily ensnares the unwitting Cassio in a plot to convince Othello that Desdemona has cheated on him with Cassio |
| Roderigo | A long-rejected suitor of Desdemona, whoseeks to woo her with jewels through the Iago as. LikeOthello, Roderigo trusts Iago and is duped by him. Otherwise, Roderigo shares none of Othello’s noble characteristics. |
| Brabantio | A senator in Venice and Desdemona’s father.At first enraged by Desdemona’s elopement with Othello, he does eventually grant a grudging blessing to their marriage. But his blessing never seems heartfelt, and he dies of grief shortly after their departure for Cyprus (and before any of the tragedies of the play occur). |
| Emilia | Iago’s wife and Desdemona’s friend and servingwoman. Although Emilia is far less idealistic about marriage and the world in general than Desdemona is, she is loyal to her mistress. Though she steals Desdemona’s handkerchief for Iago, she doesn’t know else anything about Iago’s plot. In fact, when she learns of his plot, she reveals Iago’s duplicity, and he kills her for it. |
| Bianca | A prostitute in Cyprus, who expresses real affectionfor Cassio. He, however, only mocks her. |
| Lodovico | A relative of Brabantio’s, Lodovico acts as an emissary, bringing letters from Venice to Cyprus. He is present on the island for the full unfolding of the tragedy |
| Montana | The governor or Cyprus before Othello’s arrival. |
Othello Characters
August 22, 2019