Download or read book Two Jewish Plays written by Gotthold Lessing and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2002-02-27 with total page 259 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Gotthold Lessing (1729-81), playwright, critic, humanist philosopher and polemicist was a leading figure of the German enlightenment era. From his immense literary output two plays stand out - The Jews and Nathan the Wise - for the passion of the writing and the timeless urgency of the message. Though differing greatly in form and content, both plays are eloquent pleas for human beings to desist from mutual persecution on racial or religious grounds. The relevance of Lessing's thinking in today's world is all too clear. They are published here in new English versions by the award-winning translator, Noel Clark.