Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

    Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    Unavailable
    Othello
    Unavailable
    Othello
    Unavailable
    Othello
    Ebook149 pages2 hours

    Othello

    By William Shakespeare

    4/5

    ()

    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    Listen to the audiobook instead

    About this ebook

    One of the most powerful dramas ever written for the stage, Othello is a story of revenge, illusion, passion, mistrust, jealousy, and murder. If in Iago, Shakespeare created the most compelling villain in Western literature, in Othello and Desdemona, he gave us our most tragic and unforgettable lovers.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherStart Publishing LLC
    Release dateApr 1, 2013
    ISBN9781625589538
    Author

    William Shakespeare

    William Shakespeare is widely regarded as the greatest playwright the world has seen. He produced an astonishing amount of work; 37 plays, 154 sonnets, and 5 poems. He died on 23rd April 1616, aged 52, and was buried in the Holy Trinity Church, Stratford.

    Read more from William Shakespeare

    Related to Othello

    Related ebooks

    Performing Arts For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related articles

    • Article

      Seven Poems

      May 1, 2022

      Seven Poems
      2 min read

    • Article

      The Book of Loki

      Mar 12, 2018

      The Book of Loki
      20 min read

    • Article

      Good Boy

      Sep 8, 2020

      I’ve always had a problem with introductions. To me, they don’t matter. It’s either you know me or you don’t—you get? If you don’t, the done. Simple. Kick me out of the house at fifteen—a main thing you need to know is that I am a hustler through and

      18 min read

    • Article

      The Epic Of Gilgamesh

      Jan 1, 2020

      My friends, who can reach heaven? The monster bellows like a river swollen with flood.Many are consumed in his fiery breath. My friends, who can reach heaven? Let us ask the mountain for a sign.Let us cut the spirits from the cedars. My friends, who

      3 min read

    • Article

      AUSTRALOPITHECA1 & STARMAN2

      Sep 1, 2019

      The countdown to you begyns with me, deere Starman, when I wander, dumbly, deep into a space hospittable to Hunger. Now, all’s desert. No milk in syte. Just pitifull sand, what shushes as it slydes through your hande to rejoin itself. I’d join myself

      7 min read

    • Article

      Spellcheck

      Jan 1, 2019

      Whose history I do not know. I do know I’ve been e-upbraided for my fast and loose spelling of Woden, the god whose last worshipper must have slipped under the sod during the medieval period, somewhere in the 10th century—imagine those bog-soaked des

      5 min read

    • Article

      Starbucks and Shipwrecks

      Jan 18, 2019

      Starbucks and Shipwrecks
      5 min read

    • Article

      Two Poems by Phillip B. Williams

      Dec 15, 2017

      The masters are yet dead. Wanting to be human,I tried to rewrite The Waste Land. The canon’s reachcasts ruinous light. The masters’ pens breachthis page where, above, my own hand spectates. Babylonrisen, exorcism in reverse, whose nature upended now?

      6 min read

    • Article

      HERNAN BAS New and Recent Work

      Dec 15, 2018

      HERNAN BAS New and Recent Work
      6 min read

    • Article

      A Refusal To Mourn The Deaths, By Gunfire, Of Three Men In Brooklyn

      Jan 1, 2019

      And at times, didn’t the whole countrytry to break his skin?—Tim Seibles You strike your one good match to watch its bloomand jook, a swan song just before a nightwind comes to snuff it. That’s the kind of dayit’s been. Your Black & Mild, now, useles

      7 min read

    • Article

      Seven New Poems By Walt Whitman …

      Dec 3, 2018

      Sometimes I dream that I am not Walt Whitman,That I am an engineer, or an airplane pilot,Or a schoolteacher, or a soldier, or a traveling salesman,Not a poet living his afterlife through his poems. I enjoy those dreams. I enjoy waking to find they we

      3 min read

    • Article

      Family

      Jan 27, 2020

      “A father would do well, as his son grows up, and is capable of it, to talk familiarly with him; nay, ask his advice, and consult with him about those things wherein he has any knowledge or understanding. By this, the father will gain two things, bot

      3 min read

    • Article

      Two Poems

      Jul 1, 2022

      After centuries of deferralto the white sky cloud cover God, who kept me on orange alert,babbling for mercies that were batted away sloppilylike dustballs in the wake of a sock, I turned to the Divine Creatrix,who built the short night, I was convinc

      2 min read

    • Article

      The Art Of Conversation

      Nov 1, 2023

      The Art Of Conversation
      4 min read

    • Article

      On Love

      Mar 7, 2022

      On Love
      7 min read

    • Article

      The Woman At Home

      Jan 29, 2019

      From the journals of Samuel P. Perceval,bookseller: Covent Garden, Dec. 15, 1974 This spring, I found a curious letter sewn into the hem of a coat belonging to my late great-aunt Florence. Crudely enveloped in what appeared to be a page torn from

      5 min read

    • Article

      Be A Guard

      Feb 22, 2022

      Be A Guard
      6 min read

    • Article

      SCARS On The SOUL

      Jan 12, 2020

      I’m standing in a fiercely lit changing room, waiting for Joao-from-Portugal to bring me smaller jeans and a bigger top. I used to think ‘Joao’ was a totally exotic name until I visited Lisbon and realised that every second man in Portugal is called

      2 min read

    • Article

      Parent-child Fencing Class

      Jan 1, 2020

      Because I was too mean to make him a brother,my son has had to learn of hate alone.I told my friend I’d only ever wantedone child for reasons to do with the shapeof an arrow. But in truth I’m so disgustedby what I know of brothers, having given birth

      4 min read

    • Article

      The Essay On Faith

      May 1, 2022

      exordium While sound and seaworthy, I confess a life of false confessions, false hearts, ample contempt for bench warrants charging me with failures to appear. Let what interest death’s elbow grease won’t erase compound, judgments sealed in my ova, m

      4 min read

    • Article

      I Met Myself Coming Back

      Oct 6, 2022

      I Met Myself Coming Back
      6 min read

    • Article

      Let’s Say

      Oct 7, 2022

      I magine a sticky, early August morning, around three o’clock. It is dark, the moon blocked by clouds, no streetlights, a siren in the distance, medics running to a heart attack. Imagine a man out on a bike or walking a sick dog, or maybe a woman who

      10 min read

    Reviews for Othello

    4/5

    2,203 ratings50 reviews

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

    • 5/5
      The first of the third series of Arden Shakespeare, it feels a tad experimental. However, unlike some of the later output (such as the Sonnets), this doesn't feel like it has an agenda. It's more of an overview of criticism on "Othello" with copious notes, and that's what I really expect of the Ardens.
    • 4/5
      This is a nice edition, with a readable typeface, and appropriate notes and context, including descriptions of selected performances through 2001.
    • 4/5
      I read this seminal tragedy for the first time in anticipation of seeing it next week at The Globe. I'm ashamed to say I have read comparatively little Shakespeare and this is only the sixth complete play I have read. It remains a classic exposition of values of racism, revenge, jealousy and repentance. There are comparatively few characters, which makes it easy to focus on the main four or five and really get under the skin of their motivations.
    • 4/5
      Othello, believing the report of the lying Iago, believes his wife Desdemona was unfaithful to him. Much of the evidence rests on a handkerchief. It's definitely sad as are most tragedies. Sadly there are far too many people who tell lies with consequences just as devastating as the ones in this play. It also shows the consequences of jealousy.
    • 5/5
      Iago has to be one of the nastiest villains in all of literature. Good, old, Honest Iago. In a matter of hours, he takes a happily married man and a successful general and turns him into a jealous, vengeful caricature of his former self. Iago uses innuendo to sow the seeds of distrust, then sits back to watch what he's set in motion. When it looks like things are straying off course, a gentle nudge from Iago keeps things moving in the direction he's set. I'd love to believe that people like Iago exist only in fiction, but I fear that there are too many Iagos in the halls of power, intent on corrupting any whose nature is too trusting.
    • 3/5
      My first time reading Othello to completion and I discovered the play was more about Iago than it's titular character. I found Iago somewhat wanting in characterization and I couldn't make him out. I think that to fully understand this play, I'll have to watch a screen or stage adaptation of it. I don't understand how Iago would be played. He seemed to gain nothing from his desire to undo Othello, Desdemona, Cassio, and Roderigo. He did receive some riches from stealing from Roderigo, but this was offset by no political gains (and ultimately his discovery and the accidental murder of his wife).

      I've never been a huge Spakespearean and this hasn't changed. I think to really enjoy this novel, I'd need to further study it, but since I'm not in school anymore, I don't have a reason to. I wished that the place setting was stronger, I didn't really feel Venice in it. A worthwhile read just to say I have it under my belt (and recognize when it's plot is being used in other places), but I wasn't as impressed with this as with Titus or Romeo and Juliet.
    • 4/5
      A tale of all consuming jealousy versus virtue. Well presented by the company.
    • 4/5
      1603, claustrofobe tragedie, over jaloezie en roddelHuiselijke tragedie; de intrige is belangrijker dan de karakters. Een ??n-thema-drama.Grote eenheid van tijd en ruimte (behalve I), blind noodlot overheerst. -Othello: neger, nobel en simpel, krachtig, maar geen subtiliteit, beheerst door zijn obsessie (jaloersheid)-Jago: fascinerende, complexe schurk, type machtswellusteling, verstrikt in zijn eigen list, maar geen andere keuze, wel ijskoud monster
    • 4/5
      I don't think there is any point writing a formal review of Othello - there is nothing that a simple country boy such as myself can say that will add in any useful manner to the vast corpus of more worthy comment.It is, of course, marvellous, yet simultaneously repulsive. The manipulation of Othello by the scheming of Iago is dreadful to see. Othello contributes to, indeed almost collaborates in, his own downfall, while Desdemona is left prey to malign forces entirely beyond her control, or even her understanding.Quite frankly, I think I find it too dark and oppressive. There seems no let up, not even much in the way of Shakespeare's excruciating 'comic' roles. Iago may be my namesake (more or less) but, on balance, I think that when it comes to scheming, Machiavellian figures I prefer Bosola, Richard III or even Lorenzo from 'The Spanish Tragedy.
    • 4/5
      It is a bit difficult to read Shakespeare in English if it is not ones mother language, but it is still an enjoyable experience. Poor Othello, deceived by his 'honest, honest' Iago.
    • 5/5
      I have difficulty understanding and enjoying Shakespeare due to the archaic language. This edition ("The Oxford Shakespeare: Othello" by Oxford World's Classics) has extensive explanatory notes on the bottom every page. This clears up the language and makes the story much more interesting and enjoyable. I expected that reading these notes frequently would interrupt the flow of the story. Instead it adds to it. I recommend this edition to anyone who enjoys a good plot story but is hindered from completely enjoying it due to the language of Shakespeare.
    • 3/5
      Shakespeare has built thefoundation of modern drama. I can totally see in "Othello" the elements of Pinoy telanovellas. This one is a real tragedy (which Pinoy teleseryes lack - tehy always end in happy endings. Funny thing about this are the lines the characters say before they die which is very FIlipino. Characters in Shakespeare does not die easily. Cassio is also very smart, too bad he got a "too honest" wife - another common Pinoy plot but the wife is usually the bad one and the husband is not "too honest" but "too stupid". I still like "Romeo and Juliet", "AMND" and "Twelfth Night" than "Othello" and I believe that plays are better watched than read especially if its a Shakespeare play.
    • 4/5
      Love, jealousy, lust, revenge, ambition -- it doesn't get much better than this. Iago is the consummate villain, dripping in evil. Othello is, of course, an idiot -- albeit a noble one. Very tight plot and narrative. Holds up well after hundreds of years -- that still blows me away.
    • 5/5
      I love the rap of this! look it up on YouTube!
    • 4/5
      Oh how I hate this play! Desdemona is frustratingly naive, but Othello is driven mad with jealous ridiculously easily. The only character I like is Emilia. But it's a dense, rich play, and the right production can make me believe in it.
    • 4/5
      1603, claustrofobe tragedie, over jaloezie en roddelHuiselijke tragedie; de intrige is belangrijker dan de karakters. Een één-thema-drama.Grote eenheid van tijd en ruimte (behalve I), blind noodlot overheerst. -Othello: neger, nobel en simpel, krachtig, maar geen subtiliteit, beheerst door zijn obsessie (jaloersheid)-Jago: fascinerende, complexe schurk, type machtswellusteling, verstrikt in zijn eigen list, maar geen andere keuze, wel ijskoud monster
    • 4/5
      Huh. Well, I'll lay myself open to charges of philistinery and admit that Othello – the only one of the Big Tragedies that I'd not read until now — disappointed me. Our noble hero is even more easily duped regarding his “beloved's” faithfulness than Claudio (Much Ado about Nothing), and the true-hearted Desdemona is even more of a doormat than Viola (Twelfth Night). Given the references I've seen so often to the “noble Moor,” I expected Othello to be an intelligent, competent, stalwart sort of fellow, who would only be misled as to his wife's faithfulness through the most devious maneuvers and false evidence. All it actually took, though, was a dropped and stolen hankie. I mean, REALLY? If Othello had given it a moment's thought he'd have remembered that Desdemona pulled the handkerchief out to mop his grumpy brow after one of his (many, many) temper tantrums, and that he dropped the thing on the floor, complaining that it was too Small for his big, manly head. What a freakin' moaner. I was appalled by his self-absorption – his whole reason for “loving” Desdemona was that she hung on his every word and felt sorry for all the troubles he'd suffered. What he wanted was not a Wife, but a particularly devoted German Shepherd. And Desdemona, who initially was an appealingly spunky girl, gets slapped around in public and dissolves into a puddle of masochistic goo. Iago is plenty villainous, but his villainy is so all encompassing that it really seems pretty pointless. He's just mean. His scheming – the astute way he uses suggestion to arouse Othello's insecurities and jealousies – is impressive at first, but after a while his one-trick character gets dull. At least Thersites (Troilus and Cressida), another evil-for-no-reason character, offers astonishingly creative invective to liven his performance, whereas when asked to explain himself Iago just harumphs and says he has no intention of explaining anything. So, the play offers seemingly endless histrionics from Othello, who somehow earned the friendship of a nice fellow like Cassio and the love of the sweet Desdemona despite the fact that all we ever see from him are braggadocio and raging insecurities, and evil schemes to no particular end but the general misery by Iago. Not one of my favorites.I read this in the Oxford Shakespeare edition, which has nice heavy paper and dark print, but I have to say that the cheap paper and larger print (and less copious notes) of the Folger editions are easier reading. I listened to the Archangel recording, which is really, really excellent. Iago is just Perfectly done, and Desdemona is wonderful. Othello – well, the actor does a great job with what he had to work with; an insecure, egotistical, hysterical bully.
    • 4/5
      This is perhaps Shakespeare’s darkest play – featuring characters that are flawed and damaged, but which completely captivate us. Our title character – Othello, the Moor - is a highly regarded general. As the play opens he has recently eloped with the lovely Desdemona, to the consternation of her father and others who were hopeful suitors. Egged on by Iago (one of literature’s most reviled villains), they accuse Othello of somehow bewitching Desdemona, but the couple successfully convinces everyone that their love is true and pure.

      Iago is a true sociopath. Rules do not apply to him, and duplicity is second nature to him. His oily manner convinces everyone that he has only their own best interests at heart while he plants seeds of doubt everywhere, ensuring that everyone becomes suspicious and disheartened. Iago uses the other characters as his pawns some sort of game he plays for his own benefit. He particularly targets Othello, recognizes the chink in his armor is his relationship with Desdemona, and manages to turn this noble general into a homicidal, emotional wreck.

      I do wonder how Othello, Cassio, and Roderigo (among others) can be so easily swayed by Iago. Othello, in particular, should be able to see through this smarmy false friend. I’m completely perplexed by Emilia’s role in this tragedy. How can she abet her husband’s evil plans? Is she really so clueless?

      Shakespeare writes a true psychological drama, exploring the darkest human emotion and motivation.
    • 4/5
      I actually found Othello one of the easiest of Shakespeare's plays to read. I knew the basic plot, which probably helped -- when reading the histories like Henry V, I wasn't always sure what was going to happen -- but just in general I found it by far the easiest to follow. And very real: I actually know someone who was as easily lead as astray as Othello, about someone almost as blameless as Desdemona... luckily, it didn't end as badly as this play!

      I really enjoyed this, anyway -- I'm really glad I never had it ruined by having to study it too much. (Alas for Romeo and Juliet, which -- for me -- suffered that fate.)
    • 4/5
      Read this in preparation for seeing it on the Boston Common tonight. This is probably the third time I've read the thing, and there's something weird about it; I like it, but I keep failing to love it. I feel like this is a personal problem; Othello's one of the best, everyone says so, right? And it has some scenes that are incredibly powerful; the (uh, spoiler alert?) bit where Othello kills Desdemona is brutal. And, of course, it has Iago, the apotheosis of Shakespeare's "As evil as I wanna be" villains.

      Maybe it's Othello himself who throws me off. He's sortof a wimp, y'know? Awfully easily manipulated, anyway. I guess he's insecure, because there's no other explanation for his fall, but that's not really reflected in anything he says - just what he does.

      Everyone always focuses on his race: "As an outsider, he doesn't believe his position is secure; therefore he's all too ready to believe Iago's lies." But none of that is really in the play. Iago, Roderigo and Desdemona's dad engage in some vicious ranting right at the beginning, but that serves to set up Othello's introduction as an eloquent, respected general; the difference between their description and his reality simply establishes their villainy.

      Traditionally, the tragic hero must have flaws that lead inexorably to his downfall; here, I'm left guessing at what Othello's flaws might be. Despite some moving scenes and the presence of one of Shakespeare's best villains, Othello doesn't stand with Shakespeare's best plays.
    • 3/5
      I never thought I would give Shakespeare three stars out of five. There is something eerie about it. All I have to say is that Othello, being a wonderful general and seaman, becomes a very unbelievable character once he murders his wife. Such emotional and intellectual swings in this book!

      I did like Desdemona and Emilia's discussion about infidelity and femininity. That was probably the best part. Ah well.
    • 3/5
      Despite the great dramatic aspects of this famous play, I really struggled to maintain my interest. I don't know why the language here seemed so much more difficult than in Titus Andronicus… will have to reread this someday to see if it just my inability to concentrate or whether it was actually the play that is the cause.
    • 4/5
      A favorite since first read in 8th grade English (played the part of Cassio; the part when I got stabbed was epic). What can I say about Shakespeare? Just that Iago... wow, that Iago. And Othello... well, that Othello...
    • 4/5
      I've seen "Othello" performed before but never picked it up and read it through... and I'm glad I finally did. "Othello" has a reputation as one of Shakespeare's great tragedies and it is well deserved. The story is well-paced-- full of action and great passages of dialog that move the plot a long. This is one of his plays that never drags.In the play, the villainous Iago plots against the Moor Othello by driving a wedge into his marriage with Desdemonda by convincing Othello that his wife is cheating on him. Iago plays the other characters like chess pieces to achieve his aims and destroying them all in the process.Overall, this tragedy was a fun read... lots of good tidbits in the dialog to pour over, interwoven in a strong and compelling story.
    • 5/5
      Iago is EVIL! Just sayin'. Iago is the serpent of Genesis 3 in human form. He is possibly the most evil character of all of literature. Which is why this play is so amazing! I saw this performed on stage at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, but this is the first time I have ever read the play. It was good to have the visual picture of the blond haired Iago on the black background of the stage with the big, burly, black Othello contrasted on the white part of the stage, and the shift in the colors and lights when Iago gets a hold of Othello's ear. Chilling. I remember all of us who had attended the play sitting, unnerved at the end. It reaches to your heart . . . and rips it out.I think Shakespeare was meant to be heard. So, I listened to this unabridged dramatic version while following along on my Kindle. The host of actors in this were superb. Here is the cast: Othello, The Moor, a general in the service of Venice – Hugh QuarshieDesdemona, a daughter to Brabantio, and wife to Othello – Emma FieldingIago, his ancient, a villain – Anton LesserEmilia, wife to Iago – Patience TomlinsonCassio, his honourable lieutenant/2nd senator – Roger MayBianca, a courtesan, in love with Cassio – Alison PettitDuke of Venice/2nd Gentleman/Herald – Roy SpencerBrabantio, senator, father to Desdemona/3rd Gentleman/Gratiano, brother to Brabantio – Peter YappRoderigo, a Venetian gentleman/1st Gentleman/Sailor (I,iii) – John McAndrewLodovico, kinsman to Brabantio/1st Musician/1st Senator/Messenger (III) – Stephen ThorneMontano, Governor of Cyprus before Othello/Messenger (I,iii)/Clown – Jonathan Keeble
    • 5/5
      Othello, a moor from Africa, is a well-loved and respected Venetian nobleman. After the beautiful Desdemona falls in love with him, the two wed in secret. Their blissful existence is thrown into chaos as Iago, Othello's personal attendant, begins to plant doubts of Desdemona’s faithfulness in Othello’s mind. Iago is one of the most conniving and depraved characters I’ve ever read. His cold calculating nature is sociopathic. He feels that Othello has slighted him and sets his mind to destroying his life. He moves each pawn to further his plan, all the while maintaining his alleged devotion to Othello and poisoning his thoughts with rumors of jealousy. He does it in such a calm, unbothered way that it’s all the more disturbing. The worst part of the whole things is that Othello is in the thralls of newly-wedded happiness. He and his wife Desdemona are so incredibly in love and then he acts as the tool for his own destruction. He is manipulated by someone else, but no one truly forces his hand. He allows himself to be persuaded to believe that worst about his wife and causes his own downfall by his lack of faith and trust. I loved the character of Emilia. She’s Iago’s wife, but she’s also Desdemona’s hand maid. She asks as a conscience for the players, holding them accountable when they have committed a wrong. She stands up for her lady’s honor when others doubt it. Othello pulls no punches when it comes to the issues it touches on. It deals with marital abuse, racism, trust, jealousy and more. It gives readers a lot to chew on and would be a great book to discuss. I’ve never seen this one performed live, but I’m sure it would be incredibly powerful.  
    • 5/5
      Setting: This play reflects on the love Othello has for his wife on the island of CyprusPlot: Othello's jealous servant Iago schemes to come between the Moor and Desdemona and nearly succeeds.Characters: Othello (protagonist)- a Moor, general in Venice; Desdemona- Othello's wife; Iago (antagonist)- Othello's scheming servant; Cassio- a soldierSymbols: the handkerchiefCharacteristics: a major tragedyResponse: I understood better the performance by reading the play. I also appreciated Shakespeare's clever insights into human nature through all his characters especially Iago.
    • 3/5
      too much talking, not enough happening. This is definitely a play that's better watched than read.
    • 5/5
      Read this for A-Level English and really enjoyed it. I love the story of Othello - my favourite Shakespeare as of yet.Iago is one of the best villains I have ever read - I absolutely loathe him but he is so fascinating. People who can manipulate you psychologically like that, tap into people's weaknesses and use them against people - truly very fascinating.
    • 4/5
      This is a sad story.Everyone in this story is very poor.Without crying, you can't read this book.