The women in The Tempest.

Without a doubt, Miranda is one of the main characters in Shakespeares play The
Tempest. She takes a big part on the plot developed in the play; one of her biggest
contributions to it is helping characterize his father Prospero: thanks to their relationship
we get to really know him. By their encounters we can tell he is a person who wants
power, and especially power over his daughter.
Miranda was clearly a subordinate of Prospero and we could think that due to the nature of
their relationship, it was her duty as daughter to obey. It is hard to argument that Miranda
was a victim of a patriarchal environment when Prospero was not her husband or lover, he
was her parent. But in different parts of the play we can notice that his words towards her
were more than a father looking up for his daughter, he talked to her like she was not in his
level.
MIRANDA If by your art, my dearest father, you have
Put the wild waters in this roar, allay them.
The sky, it seems, would pour down stinking pitch,
But that the sea, mounting to the welkin's cheek,
Against my very heart. Poor souls, they perish'd.
Had I been any god of power, I would
Have sunk the sea within the earth or ere
It should the good ship so have swallow'd and
The fraughting souls within her.
PROSPERO Be collected:
No more amazement: tell your piteous heart
There's no harm done.
MIRANDA O, woe the day!
PROSPERO No harm.
I have done nothing but in care of thee,
Of thee, my dear one, thee, my daughter, who
Art ignorant of what thou art, nought knowing
Of whence I am, nor that I am more better
Than Prospero, master of a full poor cell,
And thy no greater father.
(Act I Scene 2)

This scene is important to understand Prosperos plans, whose Miranda does not share
because of her piteous heart. Prospero explained it to her like she could not understand
him easily. Throughout this act he asked her several times if she is hearing him, almost as
compelling her to do it. With these demonstrations we could assure that Miranda was a
victim of his fathers power. Miranda, on the other hand, is showed as an innocent, nave
young woman. But she behaves completely different with the presence of Caliban, she
somehow reflects the harm made by his father with him. It takes time to identify that
Caliban is the ultimate victim.
Later in the play, we can see that Miranda becomes the principal part in Prosperos
revenge. Miranda could seem just like a property of Prospero, or an object to exchange.
But after he arranges the marriage between Miranda and Ferdinand, Prospero has no
control over the feelings of his daughter and almost for the first time, we can see Miranda
does have her own independence. Thats when Prospero feels threatened and does not
like the idea of the marriage anymore. As Miranda, she is a changed person at this point.
MIRANDA I am your wife, if you will marry me;
If not, I'll die your maid: to be your fellow
You may deny me; but I'll be your servant,
Whether you will or no.
FERDINAND My mistress, dearest;
And I thus humble ever.
MIRANDA My husband, then?
FERDINAND Ay, with a heart as willing
As bondage e'er of freedom: here's my hand.
MIRANDA And mine, with my heart in't; and now farewell
Till half an hour hence.
(Act 3 Scene 2)

In this passage, she does some things that we wouldnt have imagined she would. She
disobeys Prospero by seeing her lover, and more important and surprising, asks
Ferdinand to marry her, even after knowing his father would not agree.
It could be a mistake to judge Miranda and even Prospero from our perspective,
considering the time the play was written. But comparing it to earlier Shakespearean
works, like Hamlet, we can see that the status of female characters is very different.
As the character Ariel, described as an airy spirit, we cant be sure if it is a male or a
female, but we can be sure that this spirit is a significant part of Prosperos power. Even
so, there is someone whose power can be compared with Prosperos, and who can be
consider as his direct rival: Sycorax. She is a magic being just like Prospero, and the
analogy of their powers could be Ariel: Sycorax was the one who locked Ariel in a tree for
its disobedience, representing the evil side of the magic, and Prospero was the one who
liberate it as a reward for its help, representing the good side of the magic. Although
Sycorax does not appear in the play, she is an important part of the events that happen
there.
When talking about women in The Tempest, there are not many characters to name. We
could say that women do have important roles in the play, but did not show power or much
independence. But, somehow they represent the suppression experienced at the time, and
more important, the freedom from it. Sycorax symbolize the heart of the island, the
freedom of its natives, maybe things that her son could not experience. Miranda, on the
other hand, represents the purity and innocence but also the will and the passion.