William Shakespeares The Tempest

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William Shakespeares The Tempest

Contents

Introduction ........................................3

Settings................................................................................

Characters........................................................................... 3 Plot...................................................................................... 4 Themes................................................................................ 6

Bibliography............................................................ 7

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William Shakespeares The Tempest 1. Introduction The Tempest probably was written in 16101611, and was first performed at Court by the Kings Men in the fall of 1611. It was performed again in the winter of 16121613 during the festivities in celebration of the marriage of King Jamess daughter Elizabeth. The Tempest is most likely the last play written entirely by Shakespeare, and it is remarkable for being one of only two plays by Shakespeare (the other being Loves Labors Lost) whose plot is entirely original. The Tempest is a comedy with an atmosphere resembling that of a fairy tale. It is among Shakespeare's most mature and most admired plays. 2. Settings The Tempest begins at sea on a foundering ship. The rest of the action takes place on an island. Strong evidence suggests that the island Shakespeare had in mind was a fictionalized Mediterranean version of an island in the Bermudas. 3. Characters Prospero - The plays protagonist, and father of Miranda. Twelve years before the events of the play, Prospero was the duke of Milan. His brother, Antonio, in concert with Alonso, king of Naples, usurped him, forcing him to flee in a boat with his daughter. The honest lord Gonzalo aided Prospero in his escape. Prospero has spent his twelve years on the island refining the magic that gives him the power he needs to punish and forgive his enemies. Prospero is one of Shakespeares more enigmatic protagonists. He is a sympathetic character in that he was wronged by his usurping brother, but his absolute power over the other characters and his overwrought speeches make him difficult to like. In our first glimpse of him, he appears puffed up and self-important, and his repeated insistence that Miranda pay attention suggest that his story is boring her. Miranda - Prospero's daughter. Attractive and young at the tender age of fifteen years, Miranda has lived with her father in exile for twelve years. Aside from her father, she has seen few men in her life, and quickly enchants the shipwrecked Ferdinand. Ariel - Spirit of the air on the magical island who serves Prospero. Ariel first served a witch, Sycorax, who imprisoned him in a recess of a pine tree after he refused to do her bidding. He remained there to suffer great torment for twelve years, during which time Sycorax died. Upon his arrival on the island, Prospero freed Ariel but bound the sprite to his service. Ariel possesses protean power, enabling him to alter his appearance instantly. He can also travel to any part of the island in a split-second. Caliban - Savage half-man who serves as a slave on Prospero's island. He is the son of a witch, Sycorax. Caliban believes he is the rightful ruler of Prospero's island, having inherited it from his mother. Iris, Ceres, Juno: Spirits that appear by Prospero's will, Goddesses presented by the spirits. In classical mythology, Iris was a messenger goddess and goddess of the rainbow.

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William Shakespeares The Tempest

Characters who arrive at Prospero's Island by shipwreck:

Alonso - The King of Naples. When Prospero's brother Antonio, usurped (took) Prospero's dukedom, it was Alonso who recognized Prospero's brother, sealing Prospero's fate of living in exile. Ferdinand - The much-loved son of the King of Naples. Shipwrecked, but alive, Ferdinand falls instantly in live with Miranda, when he first sees her on Prospero's island. Sebastian - The brother of Alonso, the King of Naples. He plots to kill his king and take his title with the scheming Antonio. Antonio - The brother of Prospero, he took Prospero's title from him when Prospero trusted him to manage his affairs. Having replaced his brother, he now encourages Sebastian to do the same to his brother, Alonso. Gonzalo - An honest old counsellor. When Prospero was to have starved to death when exiled by boat, it was Gonzalo who provided food, clothing and books to comfort Prospero and the then three year old Miranda. Stephano - A drunken butler, he attempts to kill Prospero and take the island for his own. Trinculo and Caliban whom he fools into believing he is a God help him. Trinculo - A jester, who tries to kill Prospero. Master of a ship, Boatswains, Mariners - Sailors who fight Prospero's storm but are ultimately shipwrecked on his island. 4. Plot A storm strikes a ship carrying Alonso, Ferdinand, Sebastian, Antonio, Gonzalo, Stephano, and Trinculo, who are on their way to Italy after coming from the wedding of Alonsos daughter, Claribel, to the prince of Tunis in Africa. The royal party and the other mariners, with the exception of the unflappable Boatswain, begin to fear for their lives. Lightning cracks, and the mariners cry that the ship has been hit. Everyone prepares to sink. .... As a strange, fiery light illumines the ship, the king and his company jump overboard. All except Ferdinand wash ashore at the same location on an enchanted island. Ferdinand lands on another part of the island. Alonso thinks Ferdinand has drowned, and vice versa, and both mourn their losses. The ruler of the island is the magician Prospero. It was Prospero who caused the tempest. Aware of who was on the ship, thanks to his magical powers, he commanded the sea to deliver to him the king and his company to settle some unfinished business. Twelve years before, Prospero, the rightful Duke of Milan, had been set adrift to die at sea with his three-year-old daughter, Miranda, after his brother, Antonio, seized his dukedom with the connivance of King Alonso. However, the kindly counselor Gonzalo sneaked food and drink to Prospero, along with his books of magic. So it was that Prospero and his daughter survived and landed on the island to live in a cave. One of Prosperos first orders of business on the island was to free the sprites imprisoned by a witch named Sycorax. The chief sprite was Ariel, a spirit of the air. In exchange for his liberation, Ariel agreed to do Prosperos bidding. Sycorax posed no further threat, for she was Page 4

William Shakespeares The Tempest dead. However, she left behind an ugly, half-human offspring named Caliban. Although Caliban once tried to ravish Miranda, Prospero trains him to talk and perform menial chores, using magic to keep the beast-mans instincts in check. Ariel has proved a valuable servant. In fact, under Prosperos orders, it was Ariel who guided the tempest toward the island and set the kings ship ablaze by imitating fire. Sometimes Ariel would divide himself and become fire in several places at once: the topmast, bowsprit, and yards. In fright, the king and his company hurled themselves overboard. Miranda witnessed the terrible spectacle. In reporting on it to her father, she assumes he caused the tempest and begs him to calm the raging waters. She expresses sympathy for the ships crew and passengers..Prospero informs her, however, that no harm was done; for Ariel has preserved the ship in a hidden harbor and cast its crew into a deep sleep. Ariel allowed the rest of the fleet to survive the storm and resume the trip to Italy, supposing, as Ariel tells Prospero, that they saw the kings ship wrecked and his great person perish (1. 2. 277-278). After Alonso and the others arrive on the island, Prospero dispatches Ariel to bring the handsome young Ferdinand to the cave, where the beautiful Miranda is sleeping. He also sends Caliban to bring wood. When Ferdinand arrives, Miranda awakens and falls immediately in love with him. Love smites Ferdinand as well. Prospero pretends Ferdinand is a spy and takes him prisoner. Elsewhere on the island, King Alonso and most of his company are still asleep. The only two who remain awakethe evil Antonio and Alonsos brother, Sebastiansee an opportunity before them: If they kill the king, Naples will be theirs. But just as they draw their swords, King Alonso and Gonzalo awaken. Meanwhile, Caliban, who is bringing in the wood, curses Prospero, wishing upon him all the infections that the sun sucks up. (2. 2. 4). Caliban, after all, was the ruler of the island before Prospero arrived. Why should he now be carrying wood for Prospero? Trinculo happens upon Caliban and takes shelter with him from a threatening storm. Stephano, the kings butler, also shows up, drunk. It seems he had the good fortune to float ashore on a barrel of wine, which he put to good use after fashioning a flask out of tree bark. After he plies Caliban with wine, the monster-man dreams of being free of Prospero. Back near the cave, Ferdinand is gathering wood under orders from Prospero. When Miranda goes out to help him, the two lovers forget about the wood. Instead, they coo and woo, and talk of marriage. From a distance, Prospero watches and smiles approvingly. Caliban, suddenly possessed of a bold and persuasive tongue, convinces his new companions, Stephano and Trinculo, to help him murder Prospero so that they can all become the new rulers of the island. Their plan is to steal upon him while he is sleeping, brain him with a log or pierce him with a stake or a knife, then burn his books. Ariel, off working on Prosperos behalf, conjures up a magnificent banquet for King Alonso, Antonio, Sebastian, Gonzalo and the rest of the kings entourage. As they are about to eat, lightning flashes, thunder booms, and Ariel appears in the form of a harpy, a hideous bird. He claps his wings and the banquet vanishes. Then he rebukes Alonso, Antonio and Sebastian for their previous mistreatment of Prospero and Miranda years before. Page 5

William Shakespeares The Tempest After Ariel vanishes and Alonso, Antonio, and Sebastian leave the scene, the goodly Gonzalo, observing the reaction of the three men, says that they were desperate. Prospero, meanwhile, presents an entertainment for Ferdinand and Miranda in celebration of their forthcoming marriage. The entertainers are spirits in the form of three deitiesCeres, goddess of agriculture; Iris, goddess of the rainbow; and Juno, queen of the godswho sing to the betrothed couple. Then Nymphs and Reapers descend upon the island and perform a graceful dance. After the entertainment, Prospero uses his magic to thwart the murderous plots against him while Ariel spellbinds Alonso and the others with music and leads them to Prosperos cave. Ferdinand rejoices at the sight of his father, and Alonso rejoices at the sight of his son. Then every offender repents his wrongs, and even the beastly Caliban admits he was a thrice-double ass (5. 1. 328). Prospero, having regained his dukedom, renounces magic and prepares to return to Naples with Ferdinand, Miranda, and Alonso and his entourage after Alonsos shipthought wrecked and lostis found still afloat and seaworthy. Prospero commands Ariel to calm the seas, then frees him. Only Caliban remains on the island. 5. Themes Themes are the fundamental and often universal ideas explored in a literary work. Forgive and forget. Though Prospero has been wronged, he reconciles with his wrongdoers. Repent your sins. All of Prospero's wrongdoers repent at the end and achieve redemption. The New World (America) is a raw, untamed wilderness. Prospero's island may have symbolized America, or the islands off the coast of America, with Caliban representing the uncivilized native population. Exploration of new lands often results in mistreatment of native populations. It has been suggested that Caliban represents indigenous peoples exploited by Europeans during the Age of Discovery. The storms of life are followed by peace and calm. Friends in need are friends indeed. Thanks to his friend Gonzalo, Prospero and his daughter survive their ordeal at sea. Freedom must be earned. Everyone in The Tempest is a slave or a captivesocially, emotionally, geographically or otherwise. For example, Prospero and Miranda, victims of treachery, are captives of their environment. The shipwrecked adversaries of Prospero are captives of guilt, ambition or desire for revenge. Ariel, a free spirit of the air, is Prospero's slave. Caliban, a misshapen half-human, is a prisoner of unruly instincts. Only through ordeal, tribulation, and demonstrations of humanity do these characters redeem and liberate themselves.

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William Shakespeares The Tempest

Bibliography:
1. Shakespeare William: Teatru. Editura pentru Literatura Universala, Bucureti 1964 2. Gurr Andrew: Studying Shakespeare: an introduction Londra: Edward Arnold 1988. 3. Shakespeare William: The Tempest. Editura Penguin Books, Bucureti 2009 4. Informative Source web site , www. classiclit.about.com 5. Informative Source web site, www. william-shakespeare.info 3. Informative Source web site, www.wikipedia.org

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