Othello's ReputationWhere does this Shakespearean tragedy rank? This essay will explore the answer to this question by considering professional literary commentary. Francis Ferguson in “Two Worldviews Echo Each Other” places the play Othello at a rather high level among the Bard's tragedies: Othello, written in 1604, is one of the masterpieces of Shakespeare's “tragic period”. In the splendor of language and the sheer power of story, it belongs among the greatest. But some of his admirers find him too wild [. . .]. (131) Louis B. Wright and Virginia A. LaMar in “The Engaging Qualities of Othello” argue that the popularity of this work has been constant for about 400 years because it deals with emotions that are universal and persistent in human nature. His characters do not exist on a plane removed from ordinary life; we are not asked to witness the conflict between kings and conspirators beyond the experience of common people; we are not involved in the consequences of disasters on a cosmic scale; what we witness is a struggle between good and evil, the demonstration of love, tenderness, jealousy and hatred in humanly plausible terms. (126)The realistic aspect of the work presents a full range of characters, a full range of emotions, a full range of motivations, a full range of actions – just as they are present in real society. The concrete and realistic consideration is very important for the lasting popularity of Othello. The work is so citable; consider Desdemona's opening lines before the Council of Venice: "My noble father, / I perceive here a divided duty," or Othello's last words: "Kill me, to die after a kiss." Could...half the paper...d Nothing." Essays on Shakespeare. Ed. Gerald Chapmann. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1965.Heilman, Robert B. "The Role We Give to Shakespeare." Essays on Shakespeare. Ed. Gerald Chapmann. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1965. Levin, Harry. Shakespeare's Riverbank. Ed. G. Blakemore Evans. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co., 1974. Othello. In Electric Shakespeare. Princeton University. http://www.eiu.edu/~multilit/studyabroad/othello/othello_all.html No lines n. Wright, Louis B. and Virginia A. LaMar engaging readings of Othello." Readings on Tragedies. Ed. Clarice Swisher. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, 1996. Rpt. from Introduction to the Tragedy of Othello, the Moor of Venice by William Shakespeare. Np: Simon and Schuster, Inc., 1957.