Record Number: 21618
Reading Experience:
Evidence:
'I observed the great defect of the tragedy of "Othello" was, that it had not a moral; for that no man could resist the circumstances of suspicion which were artfully suggested to Othello's mind. JOHNSON. "In the first place, Sir, we learn from "Othello" this very useful moral, not to make an unequal match; in the second place, we learn not to yield too readily to suspicion. The handkerchief is merely a trick, though a very pretty trick; but there are no other circumstances of reasonable suspicion, except what is related by Iago of Cassio's warm expressions concerning Desdemona in his sleep; and that depended entirely upon the assertion of one man. No, Sir, I think "Othello" has more moral than almost any play".'
Century:1700-1799
Date:Until: 12 Apr 1776
Country:n/a
Timen/a
Place:n/a
Type of Experience(Reader):
silent aloud unknown
solitary in company unknown
single serial unknown
(Listener):
solitary in company unknown
single serial unknown
Reader / Listener / Reading Group:
Reader: Age:Adult (18-100+)
Gender:Male
Date of Birth:29 Oct 1740
Socio-Economic Group:Professional / academic / merchant / farmer
Occupation:writer and lawyer
Religion:n/a
Country of Origin:Scotland
Country of Experience:n/a
Listeners present if any:e.g family, servants, friends
n/a
Additional Comments:
n/a
Text Being Read:
Author: Title:Othello
Genre:Drama
Form of Text:Print: Book
Publication Detailsn/a
Provenanceunknown
Source Information:
Record ID:21618
Source:James Boswell
Editor:R.W. Chapman
Title:Life of Johnson
Place of Publication:Oxford
Date of Publication:1980
Vol:n/a
Page:745
Additional Comments:
n/a
Citation:
James Boswell, R.W. Chapman (ed.), Life of Johnson, (Oxford, 1980), p. 745, http://www.open.ac.uk/Arts/reading/UK/record_details.php?id=21618, accessed: 13 March 2025
Additional Comments:
Original date of publication 1791.
