A few months ago, I listened to an audiobook on eloquence. Throughout the book, author routinely mentioned the superior writing style of William Shakespeare. Having heard this before, I knew I had to make a foray into the world of Shakespeare. Now, I am not familiar with most of his plays. I get the idea of Romeo and Juliet. I know people die in Macbeth. Other than that, I am ignorant. One day, I was perusing Barnes and Noble and I stumbled upon the Shakespeare section. I discovered their books with hundreds of footnotes and comments to help clarify the text. Once I made the purchase, I was ready to go!
Being ready to go was a good start. However, Shakespeare is not an easy read. I ultimately decided that I would check the notes sparingly, so I would not kill the momentum of the story. This was a good decision. I should have known this, but the introduction to the book basically told me the end of the story. I think it was helpful, however.
I am not sure if it was because I knew some of the end, but this story was like watching a slow-motion car collision. As lies were continually woven together, I became more drawn in, expecting everyone to come to their senses. But they don’t. At the end of the story, the hero is nowhere to be found. Self-interest, dishonesty, and mistrust are prevalent for all of the characters. If Othello and Desdemona had gone through marriage counseling, things would have turned out much differently! Another marriage suffering from lack of communication. As the story ended, I was hoping that like in the Disney movies, the resurrection was coming. Here’s a tip: don’t wait too long.
Othello gets a 3.5/5. There is much more for me to glean from Shakespeare and even Othello. It was enjoyable as my first Shakespearean read. And it is definitely a tragedy. Nobody wins. Everyone loses. It was sad. Read it and enjoy! Ha.