Othello: The Moore of Venice

by William Shakespeare

Overview

"Othello: The Moor of Venice" by William Shakespeare is a timeless tragedy that delves into themes of jealousy, manipulation, and racial prejudice. Set against the backdrop of Venetian society, the play follows the noble Moorish general Othello as he navigates the treacherous waters of love and betrayal. Othello's marriage to the beautiful Desdemona becomes the target of manipulation by the villainous Iago, who exploits Othello's insecurities and doubts to sow seeds of jealousy. As tensions escalate and trust erodes, Othello's tragic downfall becomes inevitable. Shakespeare's masterful portrayal of human emotion and psychological complexity makes "Othello" a compelling exploration of the destructive power of jealousy and the fragility of love.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9791041999026
Publisher:	Culturea
Publication date:	04/20/2024
Pages:	188
Product dimensions:	7.44(w) x 9.69(h) x 0.40(d)

About the Author

William Shakespeare

Date of Death:

2018

Place of Birth:

Stratford-upon-Avon, United Kingdom

Place of Death:

Stratford-upon-Avon, United Kingdom

Table of Contents

Foreword
 
Introduction
 
 
From the First Folio
 
To the Reader

Title page
 
To the great Variety of Readers
 
The Names of the Principall Actors
 
The Tragedie of Othello, the Moore of Venice

Editorial Reviews

More than a retelling, this aptly termed "reconceptualization" provocatively modernizes Shakespeare's play. As in the original, the middle-aged general Othello the ``moor'' and young European noblewoman Desdemona fall in love and marry secretly. But Lester (To Be a Slave; John Henry) transplants the action from Venice and Cyprus to Elizabethan England and turns Iago and Emily into Africans like Othello, so that the three of them share a distinctly non-European point of view. Iago's envy of Othello and ability to whip him into a jealous rage at Desdemona are thus cast in a new light, though the tragic outcome remains the same. While the ending feels abrupt, Lester's novel succeeds in holding up a mirror to contemporary society. Phrases and passages directly based on Shakespeare's language are printed in a different typeface, a device that may distract the reader but eases comparisons with the original work. Ages 8-12. (Apr.)

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

Gr 8 Up-In this beautiful and powerful novelization of Shakespeare's play, Lester has kept the plot intact but made some other changes crucial to his purpose. He shifts the setting from Venice to England and, most significantly, makes Othello, Iago, and Iago's wife all definitively black. They share a three-way friendship that originated in their native Africa. It is important that Iago is black and thereby released from any racist intent; the author is then able to maintain the focus of the tragedy on the weaknesses of the human soul and on problems of perception versus reality. But through the enhanced character development afforded by the novel form, Lester has also explored problems of racial alienation. His prose is an incredibly skillful blend of his own words and Shakespeare's, both paraphrased and quoted directly, interwoven seamlessly into a narrative that transmutes the musical feeling of Shakespeare's language into modern English. This is a book to be enjoyed on its own but is sure to send many readers back to the original with a heightened understanding of and appreciation for it. This wonderful achievement is a must for all libraries.-Margaret Cole, Oceanside Library, NY

School Library Journal

"[Each volume] offers the feel of how the play would perhaps have been first experienced by early readers of Shakespeare."

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