SHAKSPER 1997: Re: Iago; Cleopatra

From: Hardy M. Cook (editor@ws.bowiestate.edu)
Date: 11/10/97 

The Shakespeare Conference: SHK 8.1127.  Monday, 10 November 1997.

[1]     From:   Melissa D. Aaron <mdaaron@students.wisc.edu>
        Date:   Sunday, 9 Nov 1997 14:37:17 -0600
        Subj:   Re: SHK 8.1125  Re: Iago

[2]     From:   Tanya Gough <yorick@cyg.net>
        Date:   Sunday, 9 Nov 1997 15:37:57 -0500
        Subj:   Re: SHK 8.1125  Re: Iago

[3]     From:   Chris Gordon <gordo003@maroon.tc.umn.edu>
        Date:   Sunday, 9 Nov 97 19:56:51 -0600
        Subj:   SHK 8.1124 & 8.1125 Iago/Cleopatra


[1]-----------------------------------------------------------------
From:           Melissa D. Aaron <mdaaron@students.wisc.edu>
Date:           Sunday, 9 Nov 1997 14:37:17 -0600
Subject: 8.1125  Re: Iago
Comment:        Re: SHK 8.1125  Re: Iago

>> One thing Richard has going for his villainy is power of the very real
>> kind which surely gives him an edge.  As for Iago being surrounded by
>> gullible people, I think our view of them is colored by the way Iago is
>> typically portrayed on stage.  In every production I have seen over many
>> years, he was clearly a character the average person would not trust
>> farther than the cliché suggests he/she could throw him.
>
>That's a real pity, by the way - if I were playing the part of Iago, I'd
>play him with a bit of coolness; much like a political advisor or Civil
>Servant.  I would feign sympathy for Othello, and make sure that he knew
>that I felt 'deeply sorry' about his loss and the betrayal of his wife.
>
>Has Iago been played this way in any production people have seen?

Stanislavsky in his notebooks on Othello, wanted to cast a big, somewhat
burly and hard-figured man, a classic "bluff soldier," as Iago-thereby
truly making him seem incapable of deceit, an "honest Iago."  I've never
seen this either, but it seems worthy of a trial.

Melissa Aaron

[2]-----------------------------------------------------------------
From:           Tanya Gough <yorick@cyg.net>
Date:           Sunday, 9 Nov 1997 15:37:57 -0500
Subject: 8.1125  Re: Iago
Comment:        Re: SHK 8.1125  Re: Iago

Re: my question about corruption vs. persuasion, Shaula Evans writes:

> Doesn't this hypothetical dilemma require a context?  I mean, if not,
> then every political, retail worker, and graduate of a Dale Carnegie
> course is evil according to the second half of your question...

Actually, I had hoped the answer (if there is one) would be informed by
the question at hand, that of Iago's particular brand of evil versus
that of Richard 3.  Also, Richard does more that "exercise charisma" -
he threatens, he cajoles, he lies, and he kills.  Surely that puts him
into a different class of evil-doers than us poor, struggling retailers
(I hope to goodness she didn't mean to include me with the evil "retail
workers" on her list! ).  Wait a minute, perhaps you'd better not answer
that.....!

Tanya Gough

[3]-----------------------------------------------------------------
From:           Chris Gordon <gordo003@maroon.tc.umn.edu>
Date:           Sunday, 9 Nov 97 19:56:51 -0600
Subject: & 8.1125 Iago/Cleopatra
Comment:        SHK 8.1124 & 8.1125 Iago/Cleopatra

I thought that Kenneth Branagh's Iago in the recent film version worked
splendidly; he clearly held Othello's confidence throughout his
manipulations, and he appeared to anyone with whom he interacted as
"honest." This is in contrast to almost all other productions I've seen,
in which-as the earlier post noted-the Iago character tended to be
remarkably sleazy and I inevitably wondered why anyone would refer to
him as honest.

As to what drives Cleopatra throughout the play, and finally to suicide:
I think she is interested in maintaining control of her kingdom in the
face of the almost overwhelming power that Rome represents. She elects
to kill herself rather than go as a captive to Rome, but she is also in
love with Antony and genuinely anticipates reunion with him. Nor do I
consider Gertrude a character driven by lust; if her relationship with
Claudius were that simple, would she feel the grief so intensely when
Hamlet confronts her with his knowledge of what Claudius has done? The
question of Gertrude's involvement with Claudius-including whether or
not anything was going on between them before King Hamlet's death-is one
that continues to intrigue audiences, students, and scholars.

Chris Gordon


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