One of the most intriguing characters in the tragic play "Othello," by William Shakespeare, is Othello"s "friend" Iago. At first glance, Iago seems to have no motive for the destruction he is causing. However, despite Iago"s unquestionable malignancy, the motivation behind his actions lie more in Iago"s quest for personal gain, as opposed to just being evil for evil"s sake. In order to achieve his personal gain Iago manipulates Rodrigo, Cassio and, most importantly, Othello. Iago"s main interest is the destruction of Othello. The reason being that Othello has chosen another man, Cassio, as his second-in-command, preferring him to Iago....
consumed with guilt that he killed his wife he does himself in.

Othello, Desdimona, Cassio, and Rodrigo, are all innocent victims that die because of the selfishness of one man. It becomes clear at the end of the play what is was that Iago wanted. He wanted the promotion that Cassio got and he wanted to hurt Othello not only for giving the promotion to Cassio but also because Othello is a black man of high rank. Iago was not evil for the sake of being evil. His evil was driven from jealousy and greed that he couldn"t control.