In his play 'Othello', Shakespeare portrays the relationship between the eponymous Othello and the Machiavellian Iago in a dramatic and compelling way. His subtle, yet powerful use of language, as well as his structural and narrative decisions, ensure that audiences - whether Jacobean or modern - are emotionally invested throughout. The relationship is characterised by a profound role reversal that sees the eponymous tragic hero fall victim to his fatal flaw: poor judgement. Literary critics have taken starkly different approaches to this relationship. Critics such as A.C Bradley have taken a more charitable approach to Othello's fall from grace at Iago's hands, arguing that it any man would have succumbed to Iago's skillful scheming. Others, such as T.S Elliot contend that Othello is 'a terrible display of human weakness' whose descent into madness is inevitable.
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