《奥瑟罗》开幕

《奥瑟罗（Othello）》是莎士比亚的四大悲剧之一，是莎士比亚大约于1603年所写作的。目前所知这出戏最早于1604年11月1日在伦敦的Whitehall Palace首演。

奥瑟罗是威尼斯公国一员勇将。他与元老的女儿苔丝狄梦娜相爱。因为两人年纪相差太多，婚事未被准许。两人只好私下成婚。奥瑟罗手下有一个阴险的旗官伊阿古，一心想除掉奥瑟罗。他先是向元老告密，不料却促成了两人的婚事。他又挑拨奥瑟罗与苔丝狄梦娜的感情，说另一名副将凯西奥与苔丝狄蒙娜关系不同寻常，并伪造了所谓定情信物等。奥瑟罗信以为真，在愤怒中掐死了自己的妻子。当他得知真相后，悔恨之余拔剑自刎，倒在了苔丝狄蒙娜身边。

ACT I

SCENE I

Venice. A street.

Enter RODERIGO and IAGO

RODERIGO

Tush啐! never tell me! I take it much unkindly
That thou, Iago, who hast had支配，使用 my purse
As if the strings当时钱袋用细绳收口 were thine, shouldst know of this指苔丝狄蒙娜私奔到奥瑟罗之事.

IAGO

'Sblood指以耶稣流的血起誓, but you will not hear me!
If ever I did dream of such a matter,

Abhorregard with disgust me.

RODERIGO

Thou told'st me thou didst hold him指奥瑟罗 in thy hate.

IAGO

Despise me, if I do not. Three great ones of the city,
In personal suit亲自请求 to make me his lieutenant,
Off-capp'd to him: and, by the faith of man,
I know my price, I am worth no worse a place.
But he, as loving his own pride and purposes,
Evades them, with a bombast原意为用棉絮填充 circumstance
Horribly stuffed with epithets of war,
And in conclusion,
Non-suits拒绝请求 my mediators. For 'Certes,' says he,
'I have already chose my officer.'
And what was he?
Forsooth实在（带有讽刺意味的）, a great arithmetician算数家,
One Michael Cassio, a Florentine —
A fellow almost damn'd in a fair wife以嘲弄的口气暗示凯西奥因为想娶漂亮的女人为妻，而几乎会毁了自己的一切 —
That never set a squadron in the field,
Nor the division of a battle knows
More than a spinsterunmarried woman — unless the bookish theoric,
Wherein the toged consuls身穿宽袍的参议员 can propose
As masterly as he. Mere prattle without practise,
Is all his soldiership. But he, sir, had th’election:
And I, of whom his eyes had seen the proof
At Rhodes, at Cyprus and on other grounds
Christian and heathen, must be belee'd and calmed帆船因无风停止不前
By debitor and creditor; this counter-caster,
He, in good time, must his lieutenant be,
And I — God bless the mark愿上帝祝福靶心，为射箭时咒语! — his Moorship's ancient扛旗的旗官.

RODERIGO

By heaven, I rather would have been his hangman.

IAGO

Why, there's no remedy. 'Tis the curse of service:
Preferment goes by letter and affection推荐信和偏爱,
And not by old gradation, where each second
Stood heir to the first. Now sir, be judge yourself,
Whether I in any just term am affined
To love the Moor.

(以上摘自《莎翁戏剧经典·奥瑟罗》）