Iago: Amoral Sociopath

Travis Hiland

Actions for reply by Travis Hiland

February 15 at 10:59 PM

Iago as amoral through objectification of others

You bet Iago is amoral. From a clinical perspective, he is a textbook narcissistic psychopath. The Psychopathy Checklist (PCL, more specific than DSM) uses the following traits to determine where someone lies on the psychopathy spectrum:

• glib and superficial charm
• grandiose estimation of self
• need for stimulation
• pathological lying
• cunning and manipulativeness
• lack of remorse or guilt
• shallow affect (superficial emotional responses)
• callousness and lack of empathy
• parasitic lifestyle
• poor behavioral controls
• impulsivity
• irresponsibility
• failure to accept responsibility for own actions
• violent, criminal versatility

The DSM classifies the Antisocial Personality Disorder of Narcissism with this criteria:

• a grandiose sense of self-importance
• is preoccupied with fantasies of unlimited success, power, brilliance, beauty, or ideal love
• requires excessive admiration
• has a sense of entitlement, unreasonable expectations of especially favorable treatment or automatic compliance with his expectations
• is interpersonally exploitive, takes advantage of others to achieve his own ends
• lacks empathy, is unwilling to recognize or identify with the feelings and needs of others
• is often envious of others or believes that others are envious of him
• shows arrogant, haughty behaviors or attitudes

So, here's an interesting twist, then. If Iago was a classic psychopath, and amoral, then he doesn't know any better. Should we pity him?

Christina Phetvixay

Actions for reply by Christina Phetvixay

February 15 at 10:14 PM

Iago as amoral through objectification of others

Travis, your psychoanalysis of Iago is a great argument.

Something I observed in relation to his insanity is his 'amoral' behavior. In the study guide on Othello we were challenged to judge Iago's character as immoral or amoral. Iago's amoral behavior is manifested in his incessant objectification of others around him.

Not only does Iago objectify Othello by making racist claims and failing to call him by his name or title, but he also objectifies him with metaphorical references to animals. Iago labels Othello as a "black ram" (I.i.88) and Desdemona as a "white ewe" (I.i.89). He claims that Brabantio would be related to Moorish horses in lines 110-111 and labels Othello a "beast" in line 117.

Later when Roderigo claims that he wants to drown himself, Iago advises him to "drown cats and blind puppies" (I.iii.400) instead of himself. Notice that Iago makes boundless comparisons to others as if they were all animals and in his advice he tells him to kill other animals rather than himself. I think that "blind puppies" could represent over-trusting men such as Othello while "cats" could reference the supposedly wild and unfaithful women like Emilia and Desdemona. Iago objectified Emilia through synecdoches that reduce her to body parts: "lips...tongue...heart" (II.i.101-102,107). Similarly, Iago objectifies Desdemona by using her as a means to an end in his plans to rise in power/rank. 

Iago seems to place himself above the moral laws of society in order to seek the power, rank, and status that he desires above all. His constant referencing of others as animals imply that he feels that his life and his plot to attain power are more important than anything or anyone else. Iago's motives reveal that power, money, and status quo were extremely influential factors in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.