Roderigo as a character is little more than a tool created by Shakespeare to advance Iago's dastardly plot. It becomes clear that his only real goal is simply the object of his desires, Desdemona; his obvious and irresistible love for her leads tragically to his pitiful end. He becomes a puppet for Iago, enslaving himself to the villain's plans in search of recognition and affection from Desdemona. However, what if her willingness to be part of Iago's plan is not a sign of powerful love, but of lazy infatuation? What if his complete willingness to listen to what someone else says shows a disinterest in trying for himself? Roderigo shows that he is incapable of wooing her himself, perhaps not because he is not desirable, but because he simply does not try as hard as Othello. Roderigo's enthusiasm for finding a safe "instruction manual" for getting Desdemona to love him is clearly indicative of a lack of true devotion. Roderigo is presented to the reader as exactly what he is: a scapegoat. Throughout his introductory scene, surprisingly the first in the play, Roderigo takes a back seat to the much more intelligent and nefarious Iago. In fact, in his very first line, which is also, interestingly, the first line of the play, Roderigo says: "I take it very badly/that you, Iago, who had my purse/As if the strings were yours, you should know that” (II1-3). This sentence already shows Roderigo's timid enthusiasm in the face of Iago's absolute control, and it doesn't show much in the way of dedication to a goal. In fact, most readers believe that Roderigo is simply a means by which Iago can carry out his plans, a puppet of a much greater mind, and the saddest thing is that...... middle of paper .... He lacks virtue or influence, he makes up for in relevance and metaphor. The real mystery of Roderigo is rarely analyzed by the casual reader, it is simply looked at. He is seen as lovesick, a puppy who tragically listens to the first man offering him his greatest dream. But his willingness to entrust his success and his supposed greatest love to another man shows not an act of desperation, but of indifference. He didn't go to Iago as a last resort, he went there to pass the effort on to someone else. Roderigo never shows the initiative to talk to Desdemona, he never really seems to try to do anything in pursuit of Desdemona... except listen to Iago. His brief moment of rebellion was more due to what Iago made him do rather than anything involving Desdemona, and he seems to walk like a lamb towards the massacre Iago had organized..