Othello | Folger Shakespeare Library (2024)

Table of Contents
Introduction to the play The Folger Shakespeare Buy From the audio edition of Othello Othelloin our collection Essays and resources from The Folger Shakespeare Othello Shakespeare and his world Related blog posts and podcasts Q&A: John Douglas Thompson on playing Othello at the Royal Shakespeare Company Fred Wilson Installation Draws in Visitors Fred Wilson on His New Work for the Folger Re-thinking "Honest Iago" Excerpt: "The Great White Bard" Farah Karim-Cooper on The Great White Bard Teaching Othello The Key to Getting ALL Students Understanding and Interpreting Complex Texts Lessons from the Folger Guide to Teaching Othello Pairing Texts Across Time, Place, and Experience Exploring Gender: Shakespeare’s Take on Chaste, Silent, and Obedient “Officers and Torches: Race and the Editing of Othello” with Patricia Akhimie Text Set: AMERICAN MOOR Talks Back to OTHELLO Historical Characterization of Othello Paired Texts: Boy Willie from The Piano Lesson and Othello 1.3 3-D Shakespeare: Othello 1.1 Choral Reading: Othello 3.4 Handkerchief Scene Pre-reading Othello: Tossing Words and Lines Understanding Race and Religion through Othello Pre-reading: A Snapshot of Othello Is Othello Shakespeare’s American Play? Editing Shakespeare: Word Choice in Othello Cutting a Scene: Othello 1.1 Who is the Moor? Choral Reading American Moor and Othello Dr. Kim Hall’s lecture “Othello Was My Grandfather: Shakespeare in the African Diaspora” Master Class: Teaching Othello Early printed texts

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Othello | Folger Shakespeare Library (1)

Introduction to the play

InOthello, William Shakespeare creates powerful drama from a marriage between the exotic Moor Othello and the Venetian lady Desdemona that begins with elopement and mutual devotion and ends with jealous rage and death. Shakespeare builds many differences into his hero and heroine, including race, age, and cultural background. Yet most readers and audiences believe the couple’s strong love would overcome these differences were it not for Iago, who sets out to destroy Othello. Iago’s false insinuations about Desdemona’s infidelity draw Othello into his schemes, and Desdemona is subjected to Othello’s horrifying verbal and physical assaults.

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The Folger Shakespeare

Our bestselling editions of Shakespeare's plays and poems

O, beware, my lord, of jealousy!
It is the green-eyed monster

Iago
Act 3, scene 3, lines 195–196

… Then must you speak
Of one that loved not wisely, but too well

Othello
Act 5, scene 2, lines 403–404

From the audio edition of Othello

Full recording available fromSimon & Schuster Audioon CD and for download.

Othelloin our collection

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Essays and resources from The Folger Shakespeare

Othello

Learn more about the play, its language, and its history from the experts behind our edition.

About Shakespeare’s Othello
An introduction to the plot, themes, and characters in the play

Reading Shakespeare’s Language
A guide for understanding Shakespeare’s words, sentences, and wordplay

An Introduction to This Text
A description of the publishing history of the play and our editors’ approach to this edition

Shakespeare and his world

Learn more about Shakespeare, his theater, and his plays from the experts behind our editions.

Shakespeare’s Life
An essay about Shakespeare and the time in which he lived

Shakespeare’s Theater
An essay about what theaters were like during Shakespeare’s career

The Publication of Shakespeare’s Plays
An essay about how Shakespeare’s plays were published

Related blog posts and podcasts

View all related blog posts and podcasts

Othello | Folger Shakespeare Library (7)

Shakespeare and Beyond

Q&A: John Douglas Thompson on playing Othello at the Royal Shakespeare Company

Posted

John Douglas Thompson, who is playing the title role in Othello in the Royal Shakespeare Company production, shares his insights about the character and the play.

Fred Wilson Installation Draws in Visitors

Othello | Folger Shakespeare Library (8)

Folger Story

Fred Wilson Installation Draws in Visitors

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Author

Andrea Boston

As visitors enter the Folger’s Shakespeare Exhibition Hall from the west lobby, before discovering the playwright’s stories and related artifacts in the interactive galleries, a majestic black mirror centered on a scarlet wall beckons them to take a closer look.

Fred Wilson on His New Work for the Folger

Othello | Folger Shakespeare Library (9)

Shakespeare Unlimited

Fred Wilson on His New Work for the Folger

Posted

The contemporary artist reflects on his new piece for the Folger’s Shakespeare Exhibition and how his work uses museums’ collections to explore their histories.

Re-thinking "Honest Iago"

Othello | Folger Shakespeare Library (10)

Shakespeare and Beyond

Re-thinking "Honest Iago"

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Author

Austin Tichenor

Austin Tichenor grapples with the larger question of whether Iago deserves the sympathetic re-evaluation found in Iago: The Green Eyed Monster.

Excerpt: "The Great White Bard"

Othello | Folger Shakespeare Library (11)

Shakespeare and Beyond

Excerpt: "The Great White Bard"

Posted

Author

Shakespeare & Beyond

Farah Karim-Cooper explores the way that race is represented by Desdemona in Shakespeare’s Othello, in this excerpt from her new book, The Great White Bard.

Farah Karim-Cooper on The Great White Bard

Othello | Folger Shakespeare Library (12)

Shakespeare Unlimited

Farah Karim-Cooper on The Great White Bard

Posted

Can we love Shakespeare and be antiracist? Farah Karim-Cooper’s new bookexplores the language of race and difference in plays such as Antony and Cleopatra, Titus Andronicus, and The Tempest.

Teaching Othello

Use the Folger Method to teach Othello. Become a Teacher Member to get exclusive access to lesson plans and professional development.

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The Key to Getting ALL Students Understanding and Interpreting Complex Texts

Teaching Resource

The Key to Getting ALL Students Understanding and Interpreting Complex Texts

Free resource

Tags:

  • Professional development
  • Shakespeare and race
  • Video

Lessons from the Folger Guide to Teaching Othello

Teaching Resource

Lessons from the Folger Guide to Teaching Othello

Tags:

  • Othello
  • Professional development
  • PDF
  • Video

Pairing Texts Across Time, Place, and Experience

Teaching Resource

Pairing Texts Across Time, Place, and Experience

Tags:

  • August Wilson
  • Shakespeare
  • Fences
  • Othello
  • Professional development
  • PDF
  • Video

Exploring Gender: Shakespeare’s Take on Chaste, Silent, and Obedient

Teaching Resource

Exploring Gender: Shakespeare’s Take on Chaste, Silent, and Obedient

Tags:

  • Macbeth
  • Othello
  • Romeo and Juliet
  • Professional development
  • Video

“Officers and Torches: Race and the Editing of Othello” with Patricia Akhimie

Teaching Resource

“Officers and Torches: Race and the Editing of Othello” with Patricia Akhimie

What’s the connection between race and the power and uncertainty of editing? Get the inside scoop of Patricia Akhimie’s findings and process as she discusses her experience while editing a scholarly edition of Shakespeare’s Tragedy of Othello, the Moor of Venice. This lecture was recorded on March 9, 2022.

Tags:

  • Othello
  • Professional development
  • Shakespeare and race
  • Video

Text Set: AMERICAN MOOR Talks Back to OTHELLO

Teaching Resource

Text Set: AMERICAN MOOR Talks Back to OTHELLO

Tags:

  • American Moor
  • Othello
  • Lesson plan
  • Shakespeare and race
  • PDF

Historical Characterization of Othello

Teaching Resource

Historical Characterization of Othello

Tags:

  • Othello
  • Lesson plan
  • PDF

Paired Texts: Boy Willie from The Piano Lesson and Othello 1.3

Teaching Resource

Paired Texts: Boy Willie from The Piano Lesson and Othello 1.3

What interesting ideas might students unearth when they have two characters speak across time and region?

Tags:

  • August Wilson
  • Othello
  • The Piano Lesson
  • Lesson plan
  • PDF

3-D Shakespeare: Othello 1.1

Teaching Resource

3-D Shakespeare: Othello 1.1

Get the whole class working together to put a scene on its feet as they question the text and cite evidence--sneaky close reading!

Free resource

Tags:

  • Othello
  • Free resources
  • Lesson plan
  • PDF

Choral Reading: Othello 3.4 Handkerchief Scene

Teaching Resource

Choral Reading: Othello 3.4 Handkerchief Scene

Let your students discover for themselves the drama and tension of this moment from Othello.

Tags:

  • Othello
  • Lesson plan
  • PDF

Pre-reading Othello: Tossing Words and Lines

Teaching Resource

Pre-reading Othello: Tossing Words and Lines

Set the tone for a language-focused, student-driven study of Othello.

Tags:

  • Othello
  • Lesson plan
  • PDF

Understanding Race and Religion through Othello

Teaching Resource

Understanding Race and Religion through Othello

What can this tragedy teach us about race and religion?

Free resource

Tags:

  • Othello
  • Shakespeare and race
  • Video

Pre-reading: A Snapshot of Othello

Teaching Resource

Pre-reading: A Snapshot of Othello

Introduce the language and story of Othello and prepare your students for courageous conversations about race and power. A twist on 20-minute plays.

Tags:

  • Othello
  • Lesson plan
  • PDF

Is Othello Shakespeare’s American Play?

Teaching Resource

Is Othello Shakespeare’s American Play?

Might Othello be the best Shakespeare play for discussing race, sexuality, and status in America?

Free resource

Tags:

  • American Moor
  • Othello
  • Shakespeare and race
  • Video

Editing Shakespeare: Word Choice in Othello

Teaching Resource

Editing Shakespeare: Word Choice in Othello

A world of "sighs" or "kisses"? How does word choice affect what a line--maybe even a play--means?

Free resource

Tags:

  • Othello
  • Video

Cutting a Scene: Othello 1.1

Teaching Resource

Cutting a Scene: Othello 1.1

Ask students to cut the opening scene of Othello in half, and be amazed at what happens.

Free resource

Tags:

  • Othello
  • Free resources
  • Lesson plan
  • PDF

Who is the Moor? Choral Reading American Moor and Othello

Teaching Resource

Who is the Moor? Choral Reading American Moor and Othello

What does a black actor at an audition in today's world have to say to Shakespeare's Othello? This choral reading mashup will ignite bold discussion.

Tags:

  • American Moor
  • Othello
  • Lesson plan
  • Shakespeare and race
  • PDF

Dr. Kim Hall’s lecture “Othello Was My Grandfather: Shakespeare in the African Diaspora”

Teaching Resource

Dr. Kim Hall’s lecture “Othello Was My Grandfather: Shakespeare in the African Diaspora”

Find out what's wrong with calling Shakespeare "universal."

Free resource

Tags:

  • Othello
  • Shakespeare and race
  • Podcast

Master Class: Teaching Othello

Teaching Resource

Master Class: Teaching Othello

What matters most when we teach Othello? How can all students grapple with the language of race, religion, gender, and power?

Tags:

  • Othello
  • Professional development
  • Video

Early printed texts

The textual history of Othello is opaque. The play was first published in 1622 as a quarto (Q1) and then, a year later, in a different version in the 1623 First Folio (F1). F1’s version of the play is about 160 lines longer than Q1, with some of those lines clustering into distinct passages that do not have an equivalent in Q1. There are also different readings of hundreds of words including, most famously, the discrepancies between Q1’s Othello reporting that Desdemona rewarded him with a “world of sighs” while F1 has a “world of kisses” (Act 1, scene 3). There is no scholarly consensus on the origins of these differences or on which text to use as the basis for an edition. The Folger edition is based on Q1, indicating Q-only words with pointed brackets and F-only lines with square brackets.

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