"The Iago Factor

Hamza Yusuf delivers a riveting talk on the concept of evil as personified by the character Iago in Shakespeare's Othello. Shakespeare's plays are best known for showing the complexities of human nature and the struggles we face in the spectrum of good and evil. Othello reveals the harrowing struggle of the title character, a Moorish general in the Venetian army, as he succumbs to the deceptions of his ensign, Iago, whose sinister plot is to falsely present the good and pure (represented by the character Desdemona, wife of Othello) as evil and wicked. Othello then engages in a heinous act. The tragic reality of his error in judgment is a stark reminder for each of us to not fall into the trap of our own inner Iago."