Othello (Dover Thrift Editions)

Rating:
Summary: An excellent edition of one of Shakespeare's best tragedies.
Review: "Othello" is one of Shakespeare's most popular tragedies, and since most people, even those who have not read or seen the play before, probably already have a basic idea of the plot, I will keep my synopsis short. The military general Othello is a Moor, a black man, who has just married a Venetian woman, Desdemona. Theirs is a marriage of opposites in many respects - race, age, upbringing, etc. - and yet they have overcome all this and are happy with each other. But Iago, perhaps Shakespeare's most infamous villain, is determined to ruin Othello, who has promoted another man, Cassio, to the lieutenancy, a position Iago feels should have been given to himself. He therefore sets about poisoning Othello's mind against his chaste and loving wife, convincing the Moor that Desdemona has been unfaithful to him with Cassio. The events that follow lay out one of the most masterful and heartbreaking examples of dramatic irony.

While I am not usually one to go in for tragedies, I do thoroughly enjoy this particular play. The story is expertly woven, with each twist in the plot simultaneously wrenching the reader's / viewer's heart. We know exactly what is going on, even though the characters do not, and this is what makes "Othello" such a very tragic story. And yet, in the end we are left with a sense of resolution and justice, not merely empty sorrow, and perhaps this is what appeals to me about this play.

Nevertheless, I do not think the play is perfect (though my 4-star rating here is in comparison with Shakespeare's other works, and not drama in general; against most other drama I would award it a 5-star rating). While I do think Iago is a brilliant character, I cannot help thinking that his hatred for Othello seems rather disproportionate to the wrongs he thinks have been done against him. He is upset over not being given the lieutenancy, but is this reason enough to bring about so many deaths? There is also the fact that Iago suspects his own wife, Emilia, has been unfaithful with the Moor, but Iago has no actual proof of this. However, this disproportionality is one I am willing to overlook for the sake of enjoyment of the play. What bothers me slightly more is that Othello, presumeably a very intelligent man, would allow a mere suspicion to grow into such an intense state of jealousy when he has no definite proof of his wife's infidelity. One would think he would do some investigation for himself, rather than being content to have Iago feed him all the "facts."

I now wish to comment on the particular edition of this play that I read - the 1993 "New Folger Library" printing, edited by Barbara A. Mowat and Paul Werstine. I have read several of of the Folger versions of Shakespeare's plays, and have found them unbeatable as far as making Shakespeare's works accessible to the layman. The book is laid out with the text of the play appearing on the right-hand page of each two-page spread, while the left-hand page contains textual notes that are of tremendous help in understanding the play. Words and phrases that have become obsolete since Shakespeare's day are defined clearly, and any allusions that would not be obvious to a modern reader are also explained. The fact that one can access these notes without having to flip back and forth through the pages makes it much easier to maintain one's place and train of thought.

Another thing I like about this particular edition is that it contains the entire play. Two versions of "Othello" were published in Shakespere's day - a Quarto, which was a small and slightly condensed version, appeared in 1622, and the longer Folio version was published in 1623. Each version is slightly different, containing bits and pieces not present in the other. This printing of the play contains the entirety of both versions combined into one, with brackets around those words that appear in only one or the other of the original printings.

In addition to the play itself, this book contains an excellent introduction, with information about the play, the language of the time, drama in general, Shakespeare himself, theater in Shakespeare's day, a bit about his other works, and some editorial notes on this particular edition of "Othello." Thus, even the rankest newcomer to Shakespeare will not be at a loss here, though the book is equally suitable for those already familiar with Shakespeare and his works. At the end of the book is a brief but interesting and well-written essay entitled "Othello: A Modern Perspective" by Susan Snyder which offers further analysis of the play. I highly recommend the Folger editions of any of Shakespeare's plays to all readers. They are wonderful for use in the classroom, and also make it much easier to delve into Shakespeare on one's own.

Rating:
Summary: Shakespeare at His Best!
Review: Othello is by without a doubt my favorite of the plethora of Shakespeare's tragedies. Although Othello himself is quite an intricate character, it was funny and almost ironic how the character that grabbed my observance the most was the villain Iago. Iago, being perhaps Shakespeare's most consummate villain, directly or indirectly seemed to control the minds and hearts of almost everyone he interacted with. Bravery, loyalty, ambition, honesty, and chivalry are all issues addressed within the play, and when combined with a great deal of power struggles, they can create an intense whirlwind of emotions and confusion running high. Othello, even being a powerful and bold general, is easily deceived by Iago as well as are many of the other characters who soon come to find out what it means to be struck by Iago's wrath. All of these things considered, one can easily find themselves engulfed with all sorts of emotions, and be filled with empathy and rage toward the diverse array of characters, maybe even find a little piece of themselves in each one of them. The play can be compared to many of Shakespeare's plays, both comedy and tragedy, in different ways. If you enjoyed the plot of Much Ado About Nothing, or Romeo and Juliet, then you can not go wrong by reading this play. Also, if you like strong women roles and always find yourself identifying easily with those characters in Shakespeare's plays, one of the female characters in Othello, Emelia will be quite a delight. For me, by the last page and last quote of this play, I was literally holding back the tears, and that impact is no exaggeration. If you have yet to read Othello, don't wait another second. Go right now to the nearest bookshelf, dust it off and I promise the pages will just seem to simply turn themselves. Enjoy!

Rating:
Summary: A fine edition with many helps for the reader
Review: This edition is from the 3rd Arden Series and may have a more modern feel to readers than the previous series did. For example, modern scholars believe that Shakespeare's plays were performed without break between scene and act so this edition does away with the ACT I Scene 2 headings and instead merely inserts 1.2 in the text where the change occurs.

There is a fine introductory essay that gives important cultural information to help the reader understand the moral climate in Venice in Shakespeare's time and the context of the play in the author's career and times.

This edition has the many good notes one expects from Arden editions. The longer notes are moved to the back to avoid too great an interruption to the readability of the text. There is also music for the two songs in the play and an index.

A fine edition that I am glad to own and refer to.