Tragedies • c. 1603

Othello: Modern English Translation & Study Guide

Name: Othello
Author: William Shakespeare

The noble Moorish general Othello is manipulated by his envious ensign Iago into believing his loyal wife Desdemona has been unfaithful.

Read Othello Side by Side

Every scene pairs the public-domain original with a line-matched, original modern-English paraphrase. Choose a scene below to begin reading.

Act 1, Scene 1 line-by-line translation — SCENE I. Venice. A street.
Act 1, Scene 2 line-by-line translation — SCENE II. Another street.
Act 1, Scene 3 line-by-line translation — SCENE III. A council-chamber.
Act 2, Scene 1 line-by-line translation — SCENE I. A Sea-port in Cyprus. An open place near the quay.
Act 2, Scene 2 line-by-line translation — SCENE II. A street.
Act 2, Scene 3 line-by-line translation — SCENE III. A hall in the castle.
Act 3, Scene 1 line-by-line translation — SCENE I. Before the castle.
Act 3, Scene 2 line-by-line translation — SCENE II. A room in the castle.
Act 3, Scene 3 line-by-line translation — SCENE III. The garden of the castle.
Act 3, Scene 4 line-by-line translation — SCENE IV. Before the castle.
Act 4, Scene 1 line-by-line translation — SCENE I. Cyprus. Before the castle.
Act 4, Scene 2 line-by-line translation — SCENE II. A room in the castle.
Act 4, Scene 3 line-by-line translation — SCENE III. Another room In the castle.
Act 5, Scene 1 line-by-line translation — SCENE I. Cyprus. A street.
Act 5, Scene 2 line-by-line translation — SCENE II. A bedchamber in the castle: DESDEMONA in bed asleep;

Extend this play’s ideas through a connected subject lens.

Jealousy, bias & manipulation — Shake Up Psychology
Use Othello and Iago to investigate persuasion, mistrust, attribution error, and social bias.

Original text source: The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, MIT HTML edition. MIT states that its HTML versions of the plays are placed in the public domain.