Iago: The Planted Weed What is a weed? A plant whose virtues have never been discovered-Ralph Waldo E erson!

The" are a gardeners worst ene "# the thing that drives the cra$" tr"ing to eli inate! The"# the selves# possess a power# the power to destro" and steal valuable nutrients %ro those around the ! The ost beauti%ul o% roses or the sturdiest o% sage bushes can be destro"ed b" the touch o% a weed! In Willia &ha'espeares( Othello, Iago is the weed o% the pla"# since his virtues are never discovered! Throughout the pla"# Iago aintains a preoccupation with plants and this preoccupation is re%lected in his behavior as well! )lti atel" his preoccupation with plants serves as a etaphor %or how he plants ideas into the other characters( inds! Throughout the length o% the pla"# Iago e*presses hi sel% through the use o% plant etaphors! &everal lines are spo'en with re%erences to plants# but perhaps the best e*a ple is as %ollows: Iago: +irtue? A %ig, (Tis in ourselves that we are thus or thus! -ur bodies are our gardens# to the which our wills are gardeners. so that i% we will plant nettles or sow lettuce# set h"ssop and weed up th" e# suppl" it with one gender o% herbs or distract it with an"# either to have it sterile with idleness or anured with industr"/wh"# the power and corrigible authorit" o% this lies in our wills0I!iii!121-1234! Iago co pares the hu an bod" to a garden stating that ulti atel" we are responsible %or our own %ates! 5ased upon what we choose to plant# reap# and sow in our gardens deter ines what we will receive in our li%eti es! With this etaphor# Iago is casting hi sel% as the aster gardener o% the pla"! 6e is also ob7ecti%"ing the others as plants so the" see easier to control! 8urther ore b" using the ter corrigible authorit" he is i pl"ing that one possess the abilit" to correct or i provise their %ate# which is what he does later in the pla"! Iago also uses the idea o% plants to indicate power over -thello! This idea is e*e pli%ied when Iago is telling Roderigo to be patient: Iago: Though other things grow %air against the sun#9:et %ruits that blosso ripe0II!iii!1;<-;=4! %irst will %irst be

6e is using the etaphor o% a plant to stress to Roderigo the i portance o% being patient! This shows the level o% planning that has been involved and ulti atel" indicates his power over both Roderigo and -thello! Iago# a%ter losing the general position to -thello# ust %ind a wa" to aintain power and he does this through the use o% casting hi sel% as the aster gardener! This etaphor illustrates how he aintains control over his plants# -thello and Roderigo! While Iago ainl" uses plants as a wa" to ob7ecti%" people and anipulate the # he also a'es re%erences to poison! &ince so e poisons are derived %ro to*ic plants# this is si pl" another wa" %or hi to aintain control over people# however the e*ecution is di%%erent! When he views the people around hi as plants# he sees the as ob7ects that he can control as the aster gardener! When he views plants as poison# the plants gain ore power# since the" can 'ill people! The role o% power is twisted so that the plants now have power over the people! This idea is seen in the %ollowing: Iago: The >oor alread" changes with " poison!9?angerous conceits are in their natural

poisons#9Which at %irst are scarce %ound to distaste#95ut with a little act upon the blood95urn li'e ines o% sul%ur9!!!@ot popp" nor andragora9@or all the drows" s"rups o% the world9&hall ever edicine thee to that sweet sleep9 Which thou owest "esterda"0III!iii!1A=-AB4! In this passage# poison is a etaphor %or the words that Iago has planted in -thellos( ind! 6owever# he is sa"ing that there is no plant around that can alleviate the e%%ects o% the poison! In this case the power has shi%ted %ro hi to the poison# which has been derived %ro a plant! There are other re%erences ade b" Iago to poison# perhaps a suggestion o% his 'nowledge o% various plants as the aster gardener! Perhaps the greatest e*a ple o% Iago using plants as a ethod o% power is when he plants the idea o% ?esde onas( un%aith%ulness in -thellos( ind! All through the pla"# several re%erences have been ade between Iago and plants! 6e has used plants in his speech as a wa" o% aintaining power o% others in the pla"! 6e does this through casting hi sel% as the aster gardener and ever"one else as his plants! The greatest e*a ple o% his gardening# however# is the planting o% the poison intended to destro" his garden! As entioned be%ore# once the poison is set# there is nothing that can %i* its e%%ects! It is in this idea that Iago# hi sel%# beco es the weed o% the garden! 6e has assu ed the postion o% a %riend# however has lied and decieved an" people! 6e appears as a %lower# li'e the others# however in the end it is reali$ed that he is nothing li'e the others and si pl" has been pla"ing the ! 6e has stolen %ro those around hi and has caused people around hi to whither and die! In the scene where -thello 'ills ?esde ona# she is described as a rose: -T6ECC-: When I have pluc'ed th" rose0+!ii!=14! With the etaphor o% ?esde ona being a rose# this %urther e*e pli%ies how Iago is the weed o% the garden! ?ue to his pretending to be a %lower# he has caused the rose to die! -verall Iagos( preoccupation with plants proves to be %atal# 'illing ?esde ona and -thello! Although Iago believes hi sel% to be the aster gardener# it is reali$ed towards the end o% the pla" that he is# in %act# the weed o% the garden! 6e uses plant etaphors throughout to illustrate his power over others# without reali$ing that he hi sel% is also a plant! While ?esde ona is the rose o% the pla"# he casts hi sel% as the weed o% the pla"! A aster gardener wishes to see their garden grow# not perish# and since he led to the destruction o% his garden he cannot be the gardener! 6e was a deceit%ul %riend# who appeared to be so ething he wasn(t# and thus he was the weed!