Othello

William ShakespeareProject Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

4.7

Word count: 209K words
Chapters: 21

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.Othello by William ShakespeareAuthor: Shakespeare, William, 1564-1616,Language: French, Class: PR: Language and Literatures: English literature, Release Date: Apr 15, 2006

Editor's review

Othello is one of Shakespeare's four great tragedies, telling the story of a Moorish general driven to destruction by jealousy and slander. This entry is the electronic edition released by Project Gutenberg; its metadata lists the language as French, indicating it is a translated text of the work, and readers should bear this in mind when choosing it. The play's value needs little elaboration: it interweaves love, suspicion, racial identity, and the manipulation of power, and Iago's scheming is one of the most unsettling models of psychological manipulation in the history of drama. Shakespeare's language is richly layered, and the characters' self-justifications and self-deceptions leave enormous room for interpretation, making the play suitable for repeated reading and classroom discussion. As a public-domain electronic text, this edition is convenient for searching and citation, but it lacks the detailed annotations of a modern scholarly edition; readers are advised to use it alongside a reliable annotated edition or introductory guide so that key puns and metaphors are not lost to the language barrier.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Literature students and teachers who need to study Shakespeare's tragedies
Theatre enthusiasts interested in themes of jealousy, manipulation, and identity
Theatre practitioners preparing stage productions or script analysis materials
Researchers who wish to use a public-domain electronic text for textual searching

Not a good fit for

General readers who cannot read French and accept only Chinese or English versions
Beginners with no familiarity with the linguistic conventions of Shakespearean drama
Young readers expecting a modern plain-language retelling or simplified story version

Reading tips

Read through once to grasp the plot, then go back and closely read Iago's soliloquies and passages of instigation.
Read alongside annotated Chinese and English editions, focusing on the symbolic role of key props such as the handkerchief.
Watch a recorded stage production first to build an impression of the characters, then return to the text to savor the dialogue.
After finishing, write a short response on how much of Othello's tragedy stems from himself and how much from manipulation.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

Is this version in English or French? Will that affect my reading?

The metadata lists the language of this entry as French; it is a French translation of Othello. If you know only English or Chinese, you will face clear obstacles in reading, and it is advisable to choose the original English version or an annotated Chinese translation instead; if you are learning French or studying translations, you can use it as comparative material.

Can I understand Othello without annotations?

Shakespeare's plays make extensive use of puns, allusions, and period idiom, and without annotations it is easy to misread characters' intentions. The Gutenberg version is convenient for searching the original text, but it is advisable to read it alongside an annotated edition, especially for Iago's soliloquies and key dialogue passages.

What should I focus on when reading this play?

You can read along three threads: how Iago gradually manufactures suspicion, how Othello's self-perception is dismantled, and Desdemona's situation and scope for speech in the play. Grasping these three threads will let you appreciate the structural power of the tragedy better than simply following the plot.

Is it suitable for middle school students?

Othello involves adult themes such as jealousy, violence, and marital conflict, and the language is also quite difficult. For middle school students, reading excerpts or adaptations under a teacher's guidance is more appropriate; reading the unannotated French or English original directly would be too heavy a burden for most middle school students.

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About the author

William Shakespeare Author · English · 1564–1616

William Shakespeare (1564–1616) was the greatest playwright, poet and actor of the English Renaissance. Born in Stratford-upon-Avon, England, he is known as the "Bard of Avon." He wrote roughly thirty-seven to thirty-nine plays, one hundred and fifty-four sonnets and narrative poems. His representative works include Hamlet, Othello, King Lear, Macbeth and Romeo and Juliet. His works span tragedy, comedy and history play, distinguished by rich, poetic language and profound characterization. His explorations of human nature, power, love and fate have had a lasting influence, and his works have been translated into many languages and circulated widely around the world.