Nathan the Wise

Lessing's 18th-century masterpiece, a passionate plea for religious tolerance.

Jerusalem, 1192. An uneasy stalemate exists between the Muslim forces of Saladin and the western Crusaders. Caught in the middle are the Jews. All sides respect Nathan for his wisdom and his wealth. But in a war-zone, no one is secure.

This acclaimed English version of Gotthold Ephraim Lessing's 1779 play Nathan the Wise by Edward Kemp was premiered at Chichester Festival Theatre in 2003, and was revived at Hampstead Theatre in 2005.

'This is a play whose time has come again... brilliantly lucid translation... eminently worth seeing... a seminal piece of world drama written in 1779 and banned by the Nazis in 1933, its theme speaks urgently and forcefully to us today' - Guardian

'An important work... even more eloquent today' - The Times

'Edward Kemp's fine translation... combines Germanic seriousness with a winning English wit... Not only is Nathan the Wise both relevant and resonant, it is also one of those rare plays where you genuinely want to know what will happen next' - Daily Telegraph

'Edward Kemp's terrific translation balances German gravitas with a comic deftness' - Financial Times

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Nathan the Wise

Lessing's 18th-century masterpiece, a passionate plea for religious tolerance.

Jerusalem, 1192. An uneasy stalemate exists between the Muslim forces of Saladin and the western Crusaders. Caught in the middle are the Jews. All sides respect Nathan for his wisdom and his wealth. But in a war-zone, no one is secure.

This acclaimed English version of Gotthold Ephraim Lessing's 1779 play Nathan the Wise by Edward Kemp was premiered at Chichester Festival Theatre in 2003, and was revived at Hampstead Theatre in 2005.

'This is a play whose time has come again... brilliantly lucid translation... eminently worth seeing... a seminal piece of world drama written in 1779 and banned by the Nazis in 1933, its theme speaks urgently and forcefully to us today' - Guardian

'An important work... even more eloquent today' - The Times

'Edward Kemp's fine translation... combines Germanic seriousness with a winning English wit... Not only is Nathan the Wise both relevant and resonant, it is also one of those rare plays where you genuinely want to know what will happen next' - Daily Telegraph

'Edward Kemp's terrific translation balances German gravitas with a comic deftness' - Financial Times

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Nathan the Wise

Nathan the Wise

Nathan the Wise

Nathan the Wise

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Overview

Lessing's 18th-century masterpiece, a passionate plea for religious tolerance.

Jerusalem, 1192. An uneasy stalemate exists between the Muslim forces of Saladin and the western Crusaders. Caught in the middle are the Jews. All sides respect Nathan for his wisdom and his wealth. But in a war-zone, no one is secure.

This acclaimed English version of Gotthold Ephraim Lessing's 1779 play Nathan the Wise by Edward Kemp was premiered at Chichester Festival Theatre in 2003, and was revived at Hampstead Theatre in 2005.

'This is a play whose time has come again... brilliantly lucid translation... eminently worth seeing... a seminal piece of world drama written in 1779 and banned by the Nazis in 1933, its theme speaks urgently and forcefully to us today' - Guardian

'An important work... even more eloquent today' - The Times

'Edward Kemp's fine translation... combines Germanic seriousness with a winning English wit... Not only is Nathan the Wise both relevant and resonant, it is also one of those rare plays where you genuinely want to know what will happen next' - Daily Telegraph

'Edward Kemp's terrific translation balances German gravitas with a comic deftness' - Financial Times


Product Details

ISBN-13: 9781788502238
Publisher: Hern, Nick Books
Publication date: 08/22/2019
Series: NHB Classic Plays
Sold by: Bookwire
Format: eBook
Pages: 96
File size: 697 KB

About the Author

Gotthold Ephraim Lessing was a German writer, philosopher, dramatist, publicist and art critic, and an outstanding representative of the Enlightenment era. His plays and theoretical writings substantially influenced the development of German literature.


Edward Kemp is a UK-based writer, theatre director, translator and dramaturg.

Table of Contents

Foreword

Preface

A Note about the Text and Translation

List of Illustrations


PART ONE
Introduction: Beyond Tolerance — Lessing, Nathan the Wise, and the Legacy of the Enlightenment

PART TWO
Nathan the Wise

PART THREE
Related Documents
1. Johann Andrea Eisenmenger, Jewry Revealed, 1700
2. Christian Wilhelm von Dohm, On the Civic Improvement of the Jews, 1781
3. François-Louis-Claude Marin, History of Saladin, 1758
4. Moses Mendelssohn, On Lessing, 1786
5. Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz, Theodicy, 1710

Appendixes
A Gotthold Ephraim Lessing Chronology (1729-1786)
Questions for Consideration
Selected Bibliography

Index

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