THEMES

JEALOUSY: The first three acts is all about how jealous people are. Iago shows a lot of jealousy towards Cassio. He doesn't think that Cassio deserves the lieutenant position. He goes to great lengths to destroy the relationship between Cassio and Othello just for his own selfish desires. This shows how destructive jealousy can be when you let it control your decisions. Iago only cares about himself and as a result, becomes a two-faced person. Roderigo is also a jealous person. He goes and "tells on" Desdemona just because he is jealous of Othello. He has gone begging for Desdemona many times and he is jealous that he was not the one to win her over. Another theme of these acts is racism. The only reason that Barbantio is upset his daughter has married Othello is because he is black. Othello is widely respected but he is referred to as black and ugly. They even call him the "old black ram" I.i.87. The fact that Iago and Roderigo are so racist towards Othello also shows how jealous they are of him.