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 enlarge | Author: William Shakespeare
Publisher: Washington Square Press
Category: Book
List Price: $5.99
Buy Used: $0.98
You Save: $5.01 (84%)
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Rating:  46 reviews
Sales Rank: 39754
Media: Mass Market Paperback
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 368
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.4
Dimensions (in): 6.7 x 4.2 x 1.2
ISBN: 0743477553
Dewey Decimal Number: 822.33
EAN: 9780743477550
ASIN: 0743477553
Publication Date: January 1, 2004
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Shipping: Expedited shipping available
Shipping: International shipping available
Condition: Standard used condition.
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| Customer Reviews:
 The tragedy of the Moor May 25, 2007
Othello is one of Shakespeare's strongest plays. Certainly Iago is one of his strongest villains. This story is about the differences between good and evil and the struggle that goes on within any persons soul when choices have to be made. Iago is so masterfully portrayed that I felt strangely disturbed when I finished this play. Other characters in the play are also wonderfully portrayed. This is certainly one of Shakespeare's greatest tragedies.
Helpful August 13, 2006
This book is great for people that have a difficult time understanding Shakespeare. The side notes are more elaborate than most of the other editions and they include an act by act summary so that you know exactly what's going on and don't get lost in all the wording.
 Absurd and Overrated July 14, 2006
For the most part, I really do like Shakespeare's plays. But this is one play I consider an utter flop. It would seem that any time romance is involved, people tend to make more of the material than it is. Sometimes it works, but other times it fails miserably. The most annoying thing about this play is that except for Iago, all of the characters are major simpletons. And while this may work in some plays like "Comedy of Errors," it does NOT work here.
The story revolves around Othello, who marries Desdemona to the disapproval of many parties, including Roderigo who wanted Desdemona for himself. Basically Iago (the so called villain) is willing to help destroy Othello, while supposedly helping Roderigo. While Iago is the so called villain, the truth is any reasonable person in his shoes would have been angered. (1) He has been turned down for promotion in favor of Cassio. And everything in the play indicates that Cassio is Iago's inferior. (2) Iago has reason to suspect that his wife Emilia has been messing around with not only Othello, but Cassio as well.
While some people have tried to write this off as more lies from Iago, we must remember that Iago expresses these frustrations in soliloquys where there is no point in telling lies. One of the major annoying things about this play is that everyone keeps saying how 'noble' Othello is, but nothing in the play really justifies this, and as the term 'noble' keeps repeating, it sounds more and more sarcastic.
Anyway, it does not take Othello long to show his hypocrisy. He claims to love Desdemona, yet his actions would indicate that he is merely attracted to her. (He's not unlike Calvin's character in "The Titanic." And the truth is I have more sympathy for Calvin. Rose's mother was trying to use him for financial gain, and then Rose ran around with Jack. But moving on, Jack DID love Rose, and he sacrificed his life for her.) I think "Romeo and Juliet" is overrated, but at least Romeo LOVED Juliet. If Othello loves Desdemona, why is he so ready to jump to conclusions without gathering Desdemona's side of the story?
Iago manipulates Othello so much it is laughable, and the devil would have a GREAT time confronting Othello with his hypocrisy here. (Iago has reason to believe Othello has been having an affair with his wife. Also, even in "Dante's Inferno," adultery is one of the LEAST punished sins in hell.)
Iago continues to walk Othello to damnation until Othello is guilty of the unforgivable murder of someone he claimed to love, for something she didn't even do. Othello proves himself to be the most repulsive and unsympathetic of any of Shakespeare's protagonists.
By the way, in "EXCALIBUR" King Arthur SAW his wife sleeping with Lance a Lot, and he could not bring himself to kill them. In "King Lear," Albany's wife Goneril is plotting his death, and having an affair with Edmund, and Albany remains calm, and doesn't just kill his wife. In "The Scarlet Letter," Roger Chillingworth KNEW his wife Hester had an affair and he remained more respectable: "Even if I imagine a scheme of vengeance, what could I do better for my object than to let thee live...Live therefore and bear about thy doom with thee in the eyes of men and women in the eyes of him who thou didst call thy husband."
I find it most fitting to conclude with a quote from "Slayer" to Othello: "Hell Awaits."
Deliciously villainous. January 4, 2006
0 out of 2 found this review helpful
Out of all the villains Shakespeare has crafted, Iago and Richard III take the cake. What I love about Iago is his passion for evil. While Richard III is evil because he wants something, it's sort of detached while simultaneously sexual. Iago's brand of evil is passionate and emotional. Some might say that Othello was Shakespeare's greatest hero, and therefore his downfall was the greatest tragedy in Shakespeare. Whatever the case may be, it's a riveting read and a definite must for anybody even remotely interested in Shakespeare.
 hmmm December 21, 2005
I am 14 years old, and had to read Othello for my english class. It looked and sound really boring, but once you get into it and understand what is going it it's not that bad. It is kind of entertaining. It can be quite confusing like many of shakespears's works, and it takes a while to read. But overall it was pretty good. The movie would help you understand it, but it is long and boring, so I would advise you to just read the book.
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