Othello: The Father/Daughter Conflict Brabantio, Desdemona's father in William Shakespeare's Othello, is not happy that his daughter is marrying the title character. This father/daughter conflict has a significant impact on the play by foreshadowing the climax, providing the antagonist Iago with material for his evil plot. Brabantio is a Venetian senator with precise ideas on the subject of his daughter. He wants to choose her a husband who he thinks is of her caliber and who can ensure her a good life, as well as increase the family's esteem in Venetian society. At the time, this was his right as Desdemona's father. Then, when life expectancy was short, Brabantio would have wanted a son from a rich house who could inherit the family wealth, and who was only a couple of years older than his daughter, so she would not be widowed nor would she have to return to his father's employ. Desdemona acts contrary to these plans by choosing to marry Othello who is a Moor, not a Venetian, which automatically lowers her stature. He is also an army general; he doesn't have a lot of money, just a certain prestige. He is also old: he could almost be Desdemona's father; in fact he is a friend of Brabantio. Military life would keep him (and her) out of Venice and prevent Brabantio from seeing his daughter or future grandchildren. As a result, Brabantio is extremely upset when he learns that they have escaped. Brabantio's anger at Othello's "theft" leads him to plead with the Duke and Senate to annul the marriage. It is also true that the scene where Iago and Roderigo tell Brabantio about his daughter's escape does a lot to develop Iago's character as a scheming weasel at the beginning of the book. The scene where Othello and Brabantio argue their cases before the Duke is the climax. of the underlying conflict between Desdemona and Brabantio. Desdemona's direct role in the saga is less important than the effects of this conflict on Othello, who emerges as an honorable and legitimately married man after his appearance before the Senate. However, the dubious nature of the marriage will cause conflict later in the story, as Brabantio disowns Desdemona and gives fuel to the gossip machine. Many times the fact that Othello stole Desdemona is given as evidence that she can be stolen from him.