Othello by William Shakespeare is a remarkable story of trust, deception, lust and the most destructive of human emotions: revenge and hatred. Iago, best known as Othello's antagonist, embodies vengeance and hatred to advance an agenda to crush all those who oppose Iago's plans. As defined by Merrium-Webster, the definition of a protagonist is a main character in a literary work or a main actor, character, or participant in a literary work. Shakespeare's Othello is a play about Othello, an example of a tragic hero with all the figures centered around Othello as the protagonist, but Othello has two main characters. Iago and Othello have stark contrasts as lead roles and different themes depicted through the two characters' actions, words, and moral compass. As Othello plays, the audience discovers that Iago is the driving force behind Othello and the cause of all the chaos. Iago's thirst for revenge due to his dissatisfaction and failure to accept the potential position of lieutenant drives Iago to ruin the lives of everyone associated with Othello. The thirst for revenge drives Iago, just as Iago directs the plot to achieve all goals and, because of this, Iago is the true protagonist of Othello. Few characters in Shakespeare's plays besides the "main" main character are associated with actively pursuing an agenda that destroys others. the characters live. Charles III is well known as a bringer of Shakespearean chaos and a Machiavellian figure, but he is overshadowed by Iago's malevolent nature. Iago is a complex character who seeks the total destruction of Othello emotionally and physically. Iago as a character is manipulative and secretive, only revealing his inner workings to his audience through soliloquy and demonstrating his deceptive character ...... middle of paper ...... with the characters. Iago is the protagonist of Othello through strong actions, strengths complemented by flaws and humor that manipulates the audience's feelings. Works Cited Eguzoro, Jennifer. “AP Literature.” : Essay on Othello. Blog Spot, April 3, 2011. Web.Hull, Jim. “The story first”. In pursuit of the protagonist. Narrtive First, October 1, 2011. Web.Mishra, Rajnish. “Rajnishmishravns.” Rajnishmishravns. Wordpress, December 6, 2011. Web.Portman, Jamie. “Iago and Othello.” http://www.branaghcompendium.com/artic-mong95.htm. Np, December 23, 1995. Web. Shakespeare, William. Othello. 2nd ed. Flight. 1. Houston: Barnesandnoble, 2011. Print. Revised. Brown, Craig. "Shakespeare? He's only in it for the money." Online mail. Associated Newspapers, May 22, 2013. Web.West, Fred. Iago the psychopath. Atlanta: South Atlantic Modern Language Association, 1978. Print.