Othello vs The Great Gatsby: Which Should You Read?
Both live on shelves: Drama
Othello
Othello, a successful Moorish general in the service of Venice, elopes with Desdemona, the daughter of a Venetian noble. His evil lieutenant Iago works on his jealousy and persuades him that his wife is unfaithful.…
1 film adaptation
vs
The Great Gatsby
“In my younger and more vulnerable years my father gave me some advice that I've been turning over in my mind ever since.”
Here is a novel, glamorous, ironical, compassionate – a marvelous fusion into unity of the curious incongruities of the life of the period – which reveals a hero like no other – one who could live at no other time and…
1 film adaptation
The verdict
- Ratings are close across the board — any is a safe pick by score.
- Othello is the quickest read — about 5 hours vs 7 for The Great Gatsby.
- The Great Gatsby has the widest readership — 6120259 ratings behind its score.
- The Great Gatsby reaches further in scholarship and criticism — cited 24 times.
- The Great Gatsby runs the darker storyline; Othello stays the lighter read.
How to choose
Want a one-evening read?
Othello
≈ 5h vs 7h for The Great Gatsby
Want the crowd-tested pick?
The Great Gatsby
6120259 ratings vs 447687 for Othello
New to the genre?
The Great Gatsby
Moderate vs Demanding for Othello
In the mood for something dark?
The Great Gatsby
a darker storyline than Othello
Want something lighter?
Othello
an easier tone than The Great Gatsby
Scores by source
| Othello | The Great Gatsby | |
|---|---|---|
| Goodreads | 3.9 (447687) | 3.9 (6120259) |
| Hardcover | 3.8 (498) | 4.5 (2) |
| Google Books | — | 5.0 (1) |
| Apple Books | 3.5 (19) | 4.5 (806) |
| LiveLib | — | 4.0 (5) |
Reception
| Othello | The Great Gatsby | |
|---|---|---|
| Ratings | 447687 | 6120259 |
| Editions | 125 | 1179 |
| Citations | 17 | 24 |
| Film adaptations | 1 | 1 |
| Want to read | 42 | 2127185 |
| Reading it now | 12 | 85180 |
| Written reviews | 3 | 138625 |
| Wikipedia attention | 54373 | 94574 |
| Pages | 274 | 431 |