Tragic heroes in literature fall because of hamartia. This is a Greek word indicating a fatal flaw in action (but not in a character’s personality as some scholars have mistakenly maintained). Here is another formal definition: “Hamartia is a concept used by Aristotle to describe tragedy. Hamartia is the fall of a noble man caused by some excess or mistake in behavior, not because of a willful violation of the gods' laws.
Othello certainly does have character or personality flaws: he is too trusting or gullible, he is jealous, and he is proud. But Othello’s fatal judgment or mistake in action is that he trusts or believes Iago and he acts upon the false information that Iago gives him.
Othello is not a story primarily about miscegenation (the mixing of different races). Othello is an aristocrat, not someone who has struggled up from slavery. Unfortunately, this was and sometimes still is an interpretation that has occurred in American theater productions of the play, especially at a time when civil rights movements were intense (during the early 1960s).
Othello is not an uncivilized savage. Rather, he is a figure of mystery and attraction to Desdemona. But Elizabethans expected Moors to be aggressive and full of rage beneath their cool exteriors. Works of fiction from the 16th century – the Spanish Palmerin Romances – describe the Moors who invaded Spain as “barbarians” and “hellhounds.” Moreover, people of the Renaissance held a superstition that a mixture of calm and violent behavior existed in all inhabitants of semi-tropical lands.
Critics view Othello in two different ways: (1) Positively, Othello is idealistic, noble, strong, and trustful. And this makes him an easy victim. Or (2) negatively, Othello is too excessively proud (hubris) and has an inflated opinion of his own worth
Noted critic G. Wilson Knight suggests that the storm in the beginning of Act II is not only for plot but is also symbolic of the change in Othello’s emotional temper.
For some critics, the character of Iago is just too evil to be believable. Such critics then suggest that Iago is a symbol of evil rather than a real character. But other critics have no problem in believing that there are men of such extreme wickedness living in the real world.
A question concerning Iago’s motivation contributes significantly to the believability of the character. Iago does mention that he suspects Othello may have been Emilia’s lover (in Act II, 1). But this possibility does not really seem to bother him too much. Rather, he may just be rationalizing the reasons for his evil actions. The true motives are pleasure and action (Act II, 3). Iago is bored with life and seeks sport (which means entertainment). Iago has a frustrated desire for action. But his successful manipulation of others thrills him. He enjoys being evil.
Many critics compare Iago to the character of Vice Dissimulation in the medieval morality plays (the same comparison is also made of Richard III). Shakespeare would surely have seen and been influenced by the morality plays, which were still being performed regularly in England when Shakespeare was a boy. But to dismiss Iago simply as an allegorical character would be a mistake. There is far more to the character than that.
Finally, the reader should view Iago as a character swept up by forces of fate. He does not foresee the conclusion of his schemes and becomes a victim of his own wickedness.