Othello

Othello, or The Tradegy of Othello, the Moor of Venice, is a tragic play written by the illustrious William Shakespeare, who also wrote many more plays throughout his lifetime and is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language. The first edition was written in approximately 1603, and the story is based upon a short Italian story called "Un Capitano Toro," or "The Moorish Captain." There have been many editions printed and to this day Othello is still performed in professional and communities today. It's impossible to shake the popularity of Shakespeare's works, if not all, as Othello has spawned numerous movie, opera, and book versions. The edition that I am reviewing is the electronic Kindle version, published by Public Domain Books, with 182 pages and in playwright form. Set in the beautiful city of Venice and the country of Cyprus, the story takes place in about the late 1500s, and the early 1600s. Othello, a courageous and skilled soldier, is married to the lovely Desdemona, with whom he is quite taken with. Though Othello has everything going for him there is one person who, unbeknownst to him, threatens to destroy that happiness. That person is Iago, Othello's appointed ensign. Hidden under a veil of honesty, Othello puts bestows great trust on Iago, though the latter is, in reality, a cruel and despicable man who will do anything to get what he desires. Including characters that simply add more thrilling drama and shocking intrigue, the play beautifully and darkly illustrates Othello's descent into madness, and leads up to the stunning conclusion that truly makes this a "tragedy." After Othello secretly elopes with Desdemona, a wealthy man named Roderigo who is upset at this arrangement complains to Iago, a soldier that serves under Othello. Iago and Roderigo share the shame ire towards the former but for different reasons. After having promoted the younger and less-experienced Cassio to lieutenant over himself, Iago plots to manipulate Othello into thinking that his wife is cheating on him. Iago proceeds to use his guile to toy with Othello's mind, shattering the trust he felt towards Desdemona, and morphing him into a vessel filled with rage, doubt, jealousy. Effectively, he utilizes Cassio and even his own wife to spite Othello. In a rage of grief and jealousy, Othello chooses to believe Iago's words, and more than one person has fallen to his serpent's tongue. Othello demonstrates the importance of trust. For example, Othello trusted Iago, and was therefore easily swayed by his words. His trust for Desdemona shatters with each moment of evidence that arises in favor of Desdemona cheating on him with Cassio. Another theme is believing what your eyes see versus reality. The force of Iago's manipulations made a greater force on Othello, rendering him paranoid and green with envy. Despite her husband's odd behavior towards her, Desdemona does nothing more than try to reinforce her love for him, despite his harsh words. Because of that love, she still has faith in him. Sadly, that faith doesn't pull through in the end... This play was nothing short of impressive. Beautifully written, nothing less from the great Shakespeare, it is a read that teens will find exciting, despite the year it was written. Though Othello is the title character, the one who shined the most to me was definitely Iago. He is the epitome of cruelty and manipulation, the kind of person that everyone loves to hate. Desdemona's love for Othello despite his mistrust of her was touching, and the ending left me deeply saddened, but had me cheering for its brilliance. This book is simply another gem from William Shakespeare and, dare I say it, possibly one of his best.

I had not read OTHELLO until now (nor had I seen it). While literary and popular culture had given me some notion of the personnae Othello and Iago, it was gratifying to encounter them in the original. But overall, I cannot say I particularly enjoyed OTHELLO. That's not just because it is a rather dark tragedy. Instead, it is because the play is so stark -- so black-and-white, if you will pardon the term.Othello is a Moor; hence, he is dark-skinned. He and the fair, and beautiful, Desdemona fall in love and marry, over her father's objections and against social conventions. No sooner are they married than Othello, a mighty warrior, is sent abroad to fight the Turks. Desdemona chooses to go with him. As will become relevant, it seems that their marriage never is consummated via intercourse. Iago is Othello's ensign. At bottom Iago is thoroughly malicious and monstrous. Among other deceits, he convinces Othello that Desdemona has been sleeping with Cassio, whom Othello recently appointed to be his lieutenant (in lieu of Iago). The principal device by which Iago "proves" to Othello that Desdemona is in thrall with Cassio is a special handkerchief -- white with red strawberries -- that Othello had given her, that she accidentally dropped, and that Iago plants in Cassio's room. As great a warrior as Othello is, he is a poor judge of people. Mistakenly then, and tragically, he believes in the loyalty and honesty of Iago and the infidelity and dishonesty of Desdemona. (Is some sort of sexism operative?) Driven and poisoned by jealously, Othello seeks revenge. At the end of the play, four of the principal characters have died on stage and two others have been seriously wounded.It is a bloodbath. OTHELLO might also be called a play of bloodlust. "Sblood" is Iago's very first word, occurring in the play's fourth line. Convinced that Desdemona has cuckolded him, Othello curses her as a "strumpet" and vows that "Thy bed, lust-stained, shall with lust's blood be spotted." The perversely curious thing, however, is that if he is wrong and Desdemona is still virginal, then the act of defoliation would also stain the marital bed. And then there is Desdemona's missing handkerchief (also called a napkin) -- white, decorated with red strawberries -- a rather unambiguous allusion to menstruation. After the last stabbing at the very end of the play, Desdemona's uncle cries, "O bloody period!" It's all a little much for me.Iago is a compelling character, supreme in his malignity. He calls to mind Milton's Satan (Milton probably took some inspiration from Shakespeare's Iago). Also fascinating is Iago's wife Emilia, who is staunch in her devotion to Desdemona and belief in Desdemona's integrity. Othello and Desdemona, on the other hand, strike me more as caricatures than fully developed and nuanced Shakespearian characters. Couple that with the stark nature of the play (no shades of gray here) and I personally end up ranking OTHELLO somewhere in the middle of Shakespeare's plays.

I yield to no one in my respect for the new, third series of the Arden Shakespeare. I own about 25 of them and treasure every one--until I came to buy this Othello. This is simply Honigmann's edition from the second (1997) series, with a new introduction (2017). The second series is far more scantily annotated that the third, so the retreaded text here is a bit disappointing. Now certainly Honigmann is a highly reputable scholar, but his edition still needs redoing and fleshing out to the new standards. However, the new introduction by Ayanna Thompson is indeed superb. I just wish the entire volume were this good.Arden needs to man up and admit that their Othello needs a completely new edition. I would recommend that purchasers wait for it. On the other hand, the price is modest, so if you're impatient by all means buy this one. But don't over-expect. I'll be on the lookout for a thoroughly revised edition; I hope it's sooner rather than later.(PS, if you haven't bought the Arden two-volume, three-text (Q1, Q2, F) Hamlet, wait no longer. It is superb, all but indispensable in my judgment. The introduction was even further revised in a 2016 update.(PPS: Likewise, Arden should have prepared a two-text Lear (F, Q) to go with the Hamlet. Splendid as Prof. Foakes's introduction and apparatus are (and he is one of our very best Lear scholars), two texts are now virtually required by most publishers for the tangled editing of this sublime play. Time for Arden to get on board with it and revisit this 1997 edition).

Arrived in prime condition and on time. Needed for school and was lower in price than my school’s bookstore.

L'une des meilleures éditions pour le riche arrière-plan culturel et l'état de la critique: très utile pour les étudiants.

Shakespeare è un maestro nel descrivere le passioni umane. In questa sua opera l'amore, avvelenato dalla gelosia, va assumendo le sue tonalità più cupe, fino alla tragica conclusione che vede la dolce Desdemona vittima innocente di un terribile inganno.

very helpful for vce english

いやとうとう読んだ。リア王もすごかったが、これもまた究極の作品だ。最後には何人もの登場人物が死んでしまうというこの毒々しさはまさにVerdiのオペラにもってこいの作品だろう。オペラですでに筋は知っていたのだが、まさに究極の毒ともいうべき作品だろうか。ところでこの作品の主人公はだれなのだろうか。題名通りOthelloか、それともDesdemona？いややはりIagoだろうか。それともいつもながらの「オリエンタリズムという偏見」という構図だろうか？おそらく、この作品をどう読むかという視角に影響されるだろう。そしてその視角は読み手の個人的な経験に決定される。そういう意味では多面的な角度からの再読に耐える作品だ。Jealousyという人間の普遍的な感情を徐々にmanipulateしていくのがIagoだ。Outsiderでありながら名誉を重んじる模範的な武人でもあるOthelloがIagoにより手玉に取られ操られ、一歩一歩追いつめられていく。そうMoor人であるOthelloはVeniceの社会の隠されたルールにはいまいち不案内なのだ。そしてOthelloという存在自体が実は不安定な存在だ。Moor人という出自に由来する違和感と肌の色そしてDesdemonaとの結婚。彼もShylockと同じようにVeniceという社会にとっては手段としての価値しか評価されていないのだ。一方は金融そしてこちらは軍事だ。このIagoがothelloそして周りの人物を操るプロセスがその醜悪さを含めて見事に描かれて結末へと導かれていく。これこそがこの作品の醍醐味だろう。Iagoは悪の権化だ。周りのすべての人物を自分の小さな栄達のために操るのがこの人物だ。この綿密に組み立てられた仕組みが最後には自分の妻によって暴露されてしまう。でもIagoの目的自体は凡庸なものだ。そしてこの結末をIagoは予想していたのであろうか。Desdemonaという存在は必ずしも受け身の存在ではないのだが、その最後の姿はこの構図の中での一服の清涼剤だろうか。

Il est des jours où tous est bon comme l'amour, puis un nuage vient perturber cette état.Le livre est tous simplement épique.