One critic states the "Othello’s story is the perfect illustration of a man’s tragic vulnerability". Do you think Othello’s downfall is a consequence of his own weaknesses or is he a victim, subject to circumstances beyond his control?

Many different interpretations link to Othello’s downfall, including the part Iago and Desdemona play, and how the main character’s personality and actions affect the fate of the other characters. A point much contested by critics is how Shakespeare presents Othello himself: some, such as A.C. Bradley, hold the view that the General is a noble tragic hero, whereas F.R. Leavis would contradict this by claiming Othello to be a weak man whose fatal flaw is jealousy. Iago is a key instrument in Othello’s downfall and uses deception to plant the idea of Desdemona’s infidelity. He adroitly persuades Othello to accept this idea in a very short length of time. Shakespeare first uses Iago to develop the theme of perception when Iago hints at the topic of Desdemona’s supposed affair in 3:3. Iago then claims to have asked about Cassio ‘But for a satisfaction of my thought’. The idea of ‘thinking' is repeated many times after this, and is significant because of the way Shakespeare has the characters appear to perceive each other – for example how people see Iago, who is mentioned many times to be ‘honest’ – Othello even says ‘I know thou’rt full of love and honesty’ – and this dramatic irony allows him to successfully carry out his deception. The audience alone knows he is untrustworthy until late in the play, as he appears to be helping each character while actually stirring negativity between them. This ‘motiveless malignity’, as claimed by Samuel Taylor Coleridge, leads Othello to murder Desdemona. However, some would disagree with critics who claim Iago to be a simple, average bad character concocting trouble: he is an unscrupulous,