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Who is Shakespeare’s ‘worst’ villain? Iago, in Othello, is probably the most destructive of Shakespeare’s characters. He destroys several people’s lives during the course of the play, including several careers, and two deaths, through the manipulation of everyone around him.
Aug 13, 2017 · There are many contenders for the designation of chief Shakespearean scoundrel — Lady Macbeth or King Claudius, for example. I have chosen three Shakespearean villains that I consider to be the...
There are villains, and then there are Shakespeare’s villains. The Bard has penned some of the most murderous usurpers, power delirious betrayers and conniving villains in the history of literature, but that is not why they stand out. These villains are the absolute worst because they are ultimately human and are acting on human needs.
- Iago. Driven by an overpowering lust for evil rivaled only by Satan, Iago grabs the title as worst Shakespeare villain hands down. As the critic William Robertson Turnbull once pointed out, "Iago is an unbeliever in, and denier of, all things spiritual, who only acknowledges God, like Satan, to defy him" (Othello: A Critical Study 269).
- Richard III. The tyrannical, morally vacuous Richard III orders his own brother's execution and the murder of two innocent children because they are obstacles to his kingly ambition.
- Cornwall. In King Lear, a play rife with heinous evildoers, Cornwall towers over them all. Infinitely greedy and exceptionally cruel, Cornwall schemes with his wife, Regan, and sister-in-law, Goneril, to torture Lear and Gloucester.
- Aaron the Moor. Among other vile crimes, Aaron the Moor, servant and lover to Tamora, masterminds the brutal rape of Titus Andronicus's daughter, Lavinia.
— Richard III Act 1 Scene 2. Richard is showcased as the typical villain, being responsible for a number of murders. Shakespeare depicts him as stabbing Prince Edward along with his brothers, before going to the Tower and dispatching Henry VI.
But every once in a while, he writes a villain who, even though they might be totally evil, at least has a bit of reason for behaving that way. So, here is a list of the top five most misunderstood villains in Shakespeare – those for whom murder may have been a little bit justified. Macbeth, Macbeth
Othello's Iago is probably the most evil of all Shakespeare's villains. Jealous because he didn't get a promotion, he pledges to destroy Othello—but to pretend to serve him so he can do so....
