Ho!

"And out of her own goodness make the net that shall enmesh them all (Shakespeare)." Iago manipulates the good qualities of Desdemona to portray her as a strumpet. The friendship, love and sexual connections the characters have with one another are twisted and abused by Iago to really get under every one's skin. The personal weaknesses and relationships between the characters traps them all into the tragic vision.

None of the misery that unfolds in Othello is accidental or coincidence. All of the "misunderstandings" are caused by Iago with the intention of screwing everyone over. When Iago targets Othello in the beginning of the play it becomes inevitable that the play will end the way it does. Because Desdemona is so naive, Othello will believe that she is flirting. Roderigo's admiration for Desdemona marks him a dead man the moment the play begins. These characters are all driven by love and sex.

Sex is definitely a motif throughout the story. Othello is driven to kill Desdemona because he thought she was having sex with Cassio. Roderigo wants to have sex with Desdemona, Othello already is. Iago promises Roderigo Desdemona and every one's fate is secured.

All of the characters have some relationship, whether direct or not, with Othello. Like Oedipus Rex, Othello does everything right, yet the outcome is still horrible. Oedipus' parents were part of the tragic vision because they were affected by the terrible things that happened to Oedipus. All of the character's surrounding Othello are affected by how they will inevitably handle each situation.

Although Iago is the mastermind behind all hell that broke loose, he didn't plan out what happened. Each character became part of the tragic vision based on how their weakness and relationships to Othello and one another were used. Emilia's weakness in love for her husband pulled her into the tragedy when she tried to please him with the hanker chief. Desdemona's innocent brotherly love for Cassio drove Othello to madness when dark thoughts were planted in his mind. Roderigo's desire for Desdemona drove him to attempted murder of Cassio. In Song Of Solomon the complex nature of love drove people to extremes. Iago used the intense nature of love the characters have for one another to destroy the lives of all in completing the tragic vision.