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The Othello Conundrum: The Inner Contagion of Leadership

Imperial College London, UK, m.stein{at}imperial.ac.uk

The purpose of this paper is to contribute to the literature on leadership, emotions and organizations by examining Shakespeare’s Othello. While much of the existing literature focuses exclusively on the external dimensions of leadership, this paper adds a new dimension by focusing as well on the internal workings of the mind of the leader, here that of Othello. This focus is made possible by postulating that the subordinate Iago — whose relationship to Othello is central to the plot — represents an inner character within Othello’s mind, as well as an external character. As an inner character, Iago fills Othello’s mind with powerful feelings of jealousy and envy, especially about an alleged relationship between Othello’s wife and his lieutenant, Cassio. Othello’s conundrum thus concerns whether he should tolerate these feelings and live with his uncertainty about his wife’s purported infidelity, or, alternatively, try to rid himself of these feelings by killing her and Cassio. Concepts from psychoanalysis and a variety of other traditions are drawn on. Following this, there is an exploration of a contemporary reference, that of the demise of the Gucci family dynasty. The paper ends with an examination of the implications and a conclusion.

Key Words: contagion • emotion • envy • jealousy • leadership • psychoanalysis

Organization Studies, Vol. 26, No. 9, 1405-1419 (2005)
DOI: 10.1177/0170840605055339


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