What makes a man a hero? Is it his strength, his courage, his nobility, his kind heart, or his honesty? A hero consists of all the above qualities as well as many others, so to say that Othello from the William Shakespeare play The Tragedy of Othello, the Moor of Venice would be inaccurate. Conceited, simple-minded, a man who does not take responsibility for his own actions, are better words to describe Othello. His evil deeds at the end of play do not have any form of redemption. All these factors are reasons why Othello is not a hero.
Pride and conceit are two qualities that most everyone will agree are horrible to have. However when we are first introduced to Othello, one of the very first lines that escape from his mouth, reek of those qualities. " My parts, my title, and my perfect soul/Shall manifest me rightly - (Act 1, Sc 2. line 37) Othello's pride is not only in regards to his achievements and himself but they are also about his wife Desdemona. Othello seems to think of Desdemona as a possession rather then a person. "I had rather be a toad/ And live upon the vapour of a dungeon/ Than keep a corner in the thing I love/ For others' uses- (Act 1. Sc 3. line 21) Actions like this also indicate that perhaps Desdemona's affair' was not so much about a betrayal of the love of Othello and Desdemona, but rather that his pride was hurt. .
A hero is supposed to be a person who has great strength this does not only mean strength of the body, but of the mind as well; Othello was extremely simple-minded. When Iago began his plot he did not even have to try very hard to convince Othello that his wife and friend Cassio were having an affair. Othello took Iago's word, so much so that he didn't even bother to ask Cassio or Desdemona, he didn't even ask the opinion of other people close to them. "But this denoted a foregone conclusion/Tis a shrew doubt, though it be a dream."" (Act 3 Sc. 3 line 486).
