SparkNotes: The Tempest: Analysis of Major Characters Analysis of Major Characters Themes, Motifs & Symbols Prospero Prospero is one of Shakespeare’s 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. Once Prospero moves on to a subject other than his absorption in the pursuit of knowledge, Miranda’s attention is riveted. The pursuit of knowledge gets Prospero into trouble in the first place. By neglecting everyday matters when he was duke, he gave his brother a chance to rise up against him. His possession and use of magical knowledge renders him extremely powerful and not entirely sympathetic. His punishments of Caliban are petty and vindictive, as he calls upon his spirits to pinch Caliban when he curses. He is defensively autocratic with Ariel. For example, when Ariel reminds his master of his promise to relieve him of his duties early if he performs them willingly, Prospero bursts into fury and threatens to return him to his former imprisonment and torment.

He is similarly unpleasant in his treatment of Ferdinand, leading him to his daughter and then imprisoning and enslaving him. Despite his shortcomings as a man, however, Prospero is central to The Tempest’s narrative. Prospero generates the plot of the play almost single-handedly, as his various schemes, spells, and manipulations all work as part of his grand design to achieve the play’s happy ending. Watching Prospero work through The Tempest is like watching a dramatist create a play, building a story from material at hand and developing his plot so that the resolution brings the world into line with his idea of goodness and justice. Many critics and readers of the play have interpreted Prospero as a surrogate for Shakespeare, enabling the audience to explore firsthand the ambiguities and ultimate wonder of the creative endeavor. Prospero’s final speech, in which he likens himself to a playwright by asking the audience for applause, strengthens this reading of the play, and makes the play’s final scene function as a moving celebration of creativity, humanity, and art. Prospero emerges as a more likable and sympathetic figure in the final two acts of the play.

In these acts, his love for Miranda, his forgiveness of his enemies, and the legitimately happy ending his scheme creates all work to mitigate some of the undesirable means he has used to achieve his happy ending. If Prospero sometimes seems autocratic, he ultimately manages to persuade the audience to share his understanding of the world—an achievement that is, after all, the final goal of every author and every play. Miranda Just under fifteen years old, Miranda is a gentle and compassionate, but also relatively passive, heroine. From her very first lines she displays a meek and emotional nature. “O, I have suffered / With those that I saw suffer!” she says of the shipwreck (I.ii.5–6), and hearing Prospero’s tale of their narrow escape from Milan, she says “I, not rememb’ring how I cried out then, / Will cry it o’er again” (I.ii.133–134). Miranda does not choose her own husband. Instead, while she sleeps, Prospero sends Ariel to fetch Ferdinand, and arranges things so that the two will come to love one another.

After Prospero has given the lovers his blessing, he and Ferdinand talk with surprising frankness about her virginity and the pleasures of the marriage bed while she stands quietly by. Prospero tells Ferdinand to be sure not to “break her virgin-knot” before the wedding night (IV.i.15), and Ferdinand replies with no small anticipation that lust shall never take away “the edge of that day’s celebration” (IV.i.29). In the play’s final scene, Miranda is presented, with Ferdinand, almost as a prop or piece of the scenery as Prospero draws aside a curtain to reveal the pair playing chess. But while Miranda is passive in many ways, she has at least two moments of surprising forthrightness and strength that complicate the reader’s impressions of her as a naïve young girl. The first such moment is in Act I, scene ii, in which she and Prospero converse with Caliban. Prospero alludes to the fact that Caliban once tried to rape Miranda. When Caliban rudely agrees that he intended to violate her, Miranda responds with impressive vehemence, clearly appalled at Caliban’s light attitude toward his attempted rape.

She goes on to scold him for being ungrateful for her attempts to educate him: “When thou didst not, savage, / Know thine own meaning, but wouldst gabble like / A thing most brutish, I endowed thy purposes / With words that made them known” (358–361). These lines are so surprising coming from the mouth of Miranda that many editors have amended the text and given it to Prospero. This reattribution seems to give Miranda too little credit. In Act III, scene i comes the second surprising moment—Miranda’s marriage proposal to Ferdinand: “I am your wife, if you will marry me; / If not, I’ll die your maid” (III.i.83–84). Her proposal comes shortly after Miranda has told herself to remember her “father’s precepts” (III.i.58) forbidding conversation with Ferdinand. As the reader can see in her speech to Caliban in Act I, scene ii, Miranda is willing to speak up for herself about her sexuality.

Caliban Prospero’s dark, earthy slave, frequently referred to as a monster by the other characters, Caliban is the son of a witch-hag and the only real native of the island to appear in the play. He is an extremely complex figure, and he mirrors or parodies several other characters in the play. In his first speech to Prospero, Caliban insists that Prospero stole the island from him. Through this speech, Caliban suggests that his situation is much the same as Prospero’s, whose brother usurped his dukedom. On the other hand, Caliban’s desire for sovereignty of the island mirrors the lust for power that led Antonio to overthrow Prospero. Caliban’s conspiracy with Stephano and Trinculo to murder Prospero mirrors Antonio and Sebastian’s plot against Alonso, as well as Antonio and Alonso’s original conspiracy against Prospero. Caliban both mirrors and contrasts with Prospero’s other servant, Ariel.

While Ariel is “an airy spirit,” Caliban is of the earth, his speeches turning to “springs, brine pits” (I.ii.341), “bogs, fens, flats” (II.ii.2), or crabapples and pignuts (II.ii.159–160). While Ariel maintains his dignity and his freedom by serving Prospero willingly, Caliban achieves a different kind of dignity by refusing, if only sporadically, to bow before Prospero’s intimidation. Surprisingly, Caliban also mirrors and contrasts with Ferdinand in certain ways. In Act II, scene ii Caliban enters “with a burden of wood,” and Ferdinand enters in Act III, scene i “bearing a log.” Both Caliban and Ferdinand profess an interest in untying Miranda’s “virgin knot.” Ferdinand plans to marry her, while Caliban has attempted to rape her. The glorified, romantic, almost ethereal love of Ferdinand for Miranda starkly contrasts with Caliban’s desire to impregnate Miranda and people the island with Calibans. Finally, and most tragically, Caliban becomes a parody of himself.

In his first speech to Prospero, he regretfully reminds the magician of how he showed him all the ins and outs of the island when Prospero first arrived. Only a few scenes later, however, we see Caliban drunk and fawning before a new magical being in his life: Stephano and his bottle of liquor. Soon, Caliban begs to show Stephano the island and even asks to lick his shoe. Caliban repeats the mistakes he claims to curse. In his final act of rebellion, he is once more entirely subdued by Prospero in the most petty way—he is dunked in a stinking bog and ordered to clean up Prospero’s cell in preparation for dinner. Despite his savage demeanor and grotesque appearance, however, Caliban has a nobler, more sensitive side that the audience is only allowed to glimpse briefly, and which Prospero and Miranda do not acknowledge at all. His beautiful speeches about his island home provide some of the most affecting imagery in the play, reminding the audience that Caliban really did occupy the island before Prospero came, and that he may be right in thinking his enslavement to be monstrously unjust.

Caliban’s swarthy appearance, his forced servitude, and his native status on the island have led many readers to interpret him as a symbol of the native cultures occupied and suppressed by European colonial societies, which are represented by the power of Prospero. Whether or not one accepts this allegory, Caliban remains one of the most intriguing and ambiguous minor characters in all of Shakespeare, a sensitive monster who allows himself to be transformed into a fool. More Help The Tempest Act IV Summary and Analysis | GradeSaver Buy Study Guide Summary of Act IV Prospero stops Ferdinand 's punishment, and decides to finally give Miranda to him, since he has proven his love for her through his service. Prospero accepts the union, but issues them a warning; if Ferdinand takes Miranda's virginity before a ceremony can be performed, then their union will be cursed. Ferdinand swears to Prospero that they shall wait until the ceremony to consummate their marriage, and then Prospero calls upon Ariel to perform one of his last acts of magic.

A betrothal masque is performed for the party by some of Prospero's magical spirits; Juno, Ceres, and Iris are the goddesses who are represented within the masque, and the play speaks about the bounties of a good marriage, and blesses the happy couple. This act of magic so captivates Prospero that he forgets Caliban 's plot to kill him; for a moment, he almost loses control, but manages to pull himself out of his reverie and take action. Caliban, Stephano , and Trinculo come looking for Prospero, and swipe a few garments of Prospero's on their way. Caliban still wants very much to kill Prospero, and carry out this plot; however, Trinculo and Stephano are very drunk, as usual, and prove completely incapable of anything but petty theft. Prospero catches themnot difficult, since they are making a huge amount of noise--and sends Ariel after them as they flee.

Analysis of Act IV Prospero tries to dismiss his tyrannical demands for Ferdinand's service as "trials of thy love"but also makes mention in this first scene that he has "punished" Ferdinand, which implies a need for retribution for a wrongdoing (IV.i.6). The word "punished" that he uses recalls the fabricated charges Prospero raises against Ferdinand in the first act, of Ferdinand being a spy or a potential usurper; and the irony is that Prospero heaps his suspicion on Ferdinand, who has no such designs, while forgetting the very real plots of Caliban and his brothers. Prospero's actions, however, were unfair and ungrounded; he uses the couple's love to try to excuse himself in this instance, but Prospero is not the just judge he would have himself appear to be. Ironically, Prospero's decision to let Miranda and Ferdinand marry was made even before Ferdinand came to the island, and was made because the marriage would secure Prospero's position back home, and would make his daughter queen as well.

The work Prospero made Ferdinand do, coupled with the enchantment that he put his daughter and Ferdinand under so they would fall in love, merely assured that Prospero's plan would succeed, as it finally does. But, be wary of the difference between the way Prospero's character appears, and the machinations and plans lying beneath the appearance he would like to project, especially in instances such as this one. However, just as Prospero begins to promise a blessing upon their union, his tone again becomes threatening. It is so important to Prospero that they not consummate their marriage before "full and holy rite be ministered," that he would wish them "barren hate" if they do, and continues with enough bitter, harsh-toned rhetoric to hopefully drive his point home (IV.i.17-20). Prospero conjures up a frightful image of disdain, personified as being "sour-eyed"; and, in meaningful contrast with the traditional flower-strewn marriage bed, an image of hateful weeds symbolizing the downfall and pollution of the marriage.

Prospero's language, heavy with unpleasant images and symbols, does yield some result; Ferdinand, in earnest, forswears his "worser genius," or any possible influence of lust and dishonor within him. Prospero seems preoccupied with Miranda's virginity because it is inextricably bound up with Prospero's own power. Her virginity is their prime bargaining chip in winning an advantageous marriage that will secure both of their positions; and if she does marry Ferdinand, their power back in Italy is secured for both of them. Virginity was often an important bargaining pointmost notably, for Queen Elizabeth, who used her eligibility to gain a great deal of power throughout her reign. If Miranda's virginity is thrown away, then Prospero's greatest hope for regaining his estate and position is gone too; so Prospero tries his best to keep Miranda well-informed of her importance, and keep Ferdinand warned as to the potential consequences of his actions.

Prospero's great concern foreshadows the importance of this theme in the betrothal masque; in the masque, Iris makes mention that the couple cannot be together "till Hymen's torch be lighted," her language parallel to that in Prospero's earlier entreaty to the lovers. Prospero reduces his daughter, who is intelligent and worthy, to a mere object, wrapping her with the language of exchange when speaking of her to Ferdinand. Prospero refers to his daughter, not by her name, but as a "rich gift," "compensation" for Ferdinand's pains; he says his daughter has been "worthily purchased" as an "acquisition," further building up his metaphor of his daughter as a thing of exchange. Prospero's metaphors, and overstatement of his daughter's perfection ("she will outstrip all praise") could be meant to distract Ferdinand from what Prospero and Miranda are getting in the bargain. Indeed, Prospero never makes mention of the power and position that he and his daughter are regaining because of this "rich gift," or the true purchase price of his daughter's hand.

It is strange to think of the "liver," as Ferdinand mentions it, as having anything to do with love; but, in Shakespeare's time, the organ was a symbol of lust and passion, just as these emotions are associated with the heart today. The heart was also related to love, but was thought to be more pure and honorable in the feelings originating there. We know now, of course, that feelings originate in the brain, and that these relations of organs and emotions are quaint in their backwardness; but, the heart remains a symbol related to love, and despite our modern medical knowledge, this ancient literary device continues to be used. Though the marriage rites to be performed are Christian, allusions to ancient pagan mythology abound. Prospero invokes Hymen, god of marriageand a figure uniquely opposed to his wish for "holy rites" for his daughter. Ferdinand mentions "Phoebus' steeds," as symbols of day-time and the sun, and the characters in Prospero's masque originate in classical myths as well.

Allusions to Greek and Roman myth were common in Elizabethan literature, but especially common in the first few court masques that were performed, which often featured the same goddesses as characters that appear in this masque. Prospero calls upon Iris, the messenger of the gods and also the goddess of the rainbow, to perform a betrothal masque for Ferdinand and Miranda. A betrothal masque also appears in As You Like It that is presided over by Hymen; but otherwise, the spectacle was mostly reserved for weddings of state and almost exclusively for court functions. In this respect, the masque does confirm that the wedding is an important oneeleven were actually performed at the court of King James, and some of these for occasions of the marriage of rich and important people. Masques were special ritual-type plays in which the monarch was always the protagonist, and the subject was how royalty made things harmonious and resolved tensions between people. Although Shakespeare's masque took some inspiration from earlier ones, thematically it is entirely innovative.

Royal power is displayed as power over nature, and the idea of the masque as the projection of a royal vision first appeared in this masque in The Tempest , and were to appear again in Jonson's court masques of later years. Within the masque are a few parallels to events within the play. Ceres presides over the play, because she symbolizes order and plenty; Ceres is credited with teaching men agriculture, thus civilizing them and stopping their wild hunter-gatherer ways. Prospero's mission parallels this, as Prospero also sought to civilize and bring order to the island, and to the wild Caliban, though he did not manage to succeed. Also, Ceres mentions "dusky Dis," meaning Pluto, the god who abducted Ceres' daughter Proserpine, inspired by Cupid and Venus. Caliban is reminiscent of the dark figure of Pluto, in his attempts to abduct and rape Miranda; and the story also recalls the plot Caliban later fosters, to get Miranda for Stephano.

The parallels might be faint, but it is, after all, Prospero who has "called [them] to enact [his] present fancies"; the inclusion of the Pluto/ Proserpine story is so tangential to the concerns of the masque, that it must have been included by Prospero on purpose, as some sort of reminder to himself (IV.i.121-122). Once again, Prospero almost loses control because he is absorbed by his art; but here, he is able to shake himself from his reverie, and becomes conscious of time again. The moment is important because Prospero is in real danger of losing control, and almost gives up his chance to act because of the pull of his magic. The moment is a humanizing one for Prospero, as he realizes his mortality and his forgetfulness, as well as the limits of his magic. The masque, which he created from his own power, disappears in an instant; and finally, Prospero realizes that his works of magic are all in vain, as they are made of "baseless fabric" and will not last.

He sees that "we are such stuff as dreams are made on," and at last realizes that his mind has aged and his powers are fragile and faltering (IV.i.166-167). It is a sobering moment for Prospero, to admit his "weakness" and "infirmity"; and this marks the beginning of his surrender of his magic. It is not Caliban and his drunken friends, whom Ariel describes in a simile as being "like unbacked colts," that Prospero has to worry about (l. 176). Indeed, the thought of Caliban upsets Prospero more than the plot, as Prospero again curses the one "on whose nature nurture can never stick" (188-89). Prospero thinks that Caliban is bad because he has not adopted the "civilized" ways of thinking that Prospero has, and must be bad natured because of this; but Prospero fails to realize that Caliban's relative goodness has been more spoiled by the way Prospero treats him than by any refusal to adopt foreign ways of thinking.

Prospero, for all his learning, still espouses a haughty, colonial point of view when it comes to Caliban, and lets this prejudiced treatment corrupt a potentially good man's nature. Shakespeare’s The Tempest - Crisis Magazine Crisis Magazine A Voice for the Faithful Catholic Laity Subscribe Mitchell Kalpakgian Magic (art) is a part of daily life. Whenever parents raise children, teachers educate students, or rulers govern societies, they require the knowledge of the arts that teach these skills. They become magicians or artists by the masterpieces of their craft that evoke wonder and admiration for the beauty, goodness, or perfection their handiwork achieves. Man as magician who sees how to bring out the image of God in human beings, how to lead the mind to the discovery of truth, and how to bring civilization out of chaos imitates God’s creative activity in the world that brings light out of darkness and good out of evil. Prospero, the magician in The Tempest, plays many parts in the drama that demonstrate these arts. He refines and educates Miranda, the beautiful daughter that Ferdinand beholds as love’s contemplative.

Prospero, overthrown as the duke of Milan by his usurping brother, survives on a barbaric island that he transforms into a lush paradise that astonishes upon first sight. Prospero, a master or teacher who studies the liberal arts, improves his two apprentices or servants, the invisible spirit Ariel and the primitive savage Caliban, son of a witch. As a magician whose art derives from his knowledge of the liberal arts and the books he cherishes, Prospero produces glorious miracles, beautiful works of art–not the sorcery of black magic to do evil used by the witch Sycorax in the play. While black magic—whether in the form of alchemy, astrology, or temptation—deceives with half-truths and riddles that lure a person with false promises, white magic is the art of bringing out the potential that inheres in nature, seeing the form in matter, and creating masterpieces from the “givenness” of things. The art of Prospero’s magic resembles God’s work in the world as he “plays” God in The Tempest, that is, imitates God in the way an actor plays a part and assumes a role.

With his vestments and wand Prospero performs his magic like an actor on the stage and then retires after the performance: “Our revels now are ended.” Prospero’s first work of art on the island where he narrowly escapes from drowning on the sea is the release of Ariel from the tree where he has been impaled by the witch. Prospero sees the form of Ariel in the matter of the tree just as Michelangelo announced that he saw a David in the hunk of rock. Prospero’s knowledge sees the spirit camouflaged in the tree, and his art frees Ariel’s potential, his great creative energy. Another of Prospero’s masterpieces is his daughter Miranda whose name means miraculous (“she who ought to be wondered at”) and derives from the Latin miror (I am amazed). The epitome of purity, goodness, and beauty, Miranda implores her father to stop the tempest and spare the lives of the shipwrecked crew. Sensitive to human suffering and grateful for kindness, she wishes she might personally thank Gonzalo for saving their lives–for providing Prospero with books and rations in his desperate escape from Milan in a boat when besieged by enemies (“Would I might/ But ever see that man”).

A beautiful soul and a lovely woman, Miranda moves Ferdinand to rapt contemplation: “Admired Miranda! / Indeed the top of admiration!”). Educated and civilized with manners and morals by her father, Miranda radiates the divine image of man that Prospero’s art has fashioned. As the ruler of an island Prospero uses the same magic, finding a primitive island ruled by diabolical forces and transforming it into a civilized society governed by the light of reason and justice. The island “prospers” under Prospero’s government that brings the rule of law out of the barbarism of witchcraft and creates abundance out of scarcity. Like a philosopher-king who contemplates the ideal of justice and then governs according to this vision, Prospero renders decisions that temper justice with mercy and never resorts to revenge: “The rarer action is/ In virtue than in vengeance.” The conspirators who usurped his kingdom and put him adrift in a boat to perish are subjected to the fury of the tempest and his righteous anger but never harmed or killed.

When first discovering the island after the tragedy of shipwreck, Gonzalo marvels at being alive: “But for the miracle–/ I mean our preservation—few in millions/ Can speak like us.” He is amazed at the lushness of the grass, the sweetness of the air, and the transfigured whiteness of their garments. Prospero’s magic this time brings good out evil just as he released Ariel from the tree and educed the divine image from Miranda’s human nature. Prospero uses magic in his role as master or teacher of his two servants, Ariel and Caliban, whose natures vary as greatly as air and earth. Freed from the tree, Ariel travels all over the island utilizing earth, air, fire, and water to follow Prospero’s orders to cause a storm and lead all the members of the ship safely to land. Prospero does not grant Ariel freedom from his service until the spirit perfectly follows Prospero’s exact instructions and tends to every detail of the magician’s work of art—rewarding or punishing everyone according to his just deserts and perfectly balancing justice and mercy.

The master curbs the apprentice’s undisciplined energy and demands obedience and excellence in finishing the work of art he is perfecting on the island. Likewise, Prospero punishes and disciplines the willful Caliban whose uncontrollable urges reduce him to savage or animal until Prospero refines him by teaching him speech and taming his wildness. As the magician-teacher, Prospero uses the art of checking the impulsive, whimsical Ariel and rousing the slothful, plodding Caliban. He brings out Ariel’s excellence and improves Caliban by respecting their God-given natures and seeing the possibilities they possess. Prospero’s white magic, then, is art, the art of parenting, ruling, teaching, and creating—the art of releasing potential, eliciting the best and highest in human nature, awakening the latent powers that inhere in nature, and fashioning works of art and masterpieces that evoke wonder and contemplation. In this way Prospero imitates or “plays” God who brings light out of darkness, good out of evil, and comedy out of tragedy.

Prospero’s love of justice, mercy, beauty, and human wisdom all reflect the attributes of God who is all-good, all-merciful, all-beautiful, and all-knowing. Editor’s note: The image above is an engraving by James Heath, Engraver to his Majesty and his RH the Prince of Wales, after a painting by Thomas Stothard. This print of a scene from the Tempest was published in August 1803. The Tempest - Wikiquote The Tempest Jump to: navigation , search By my prescience I find my zenith doth depend upon a most auspicious star, whose influence if now I court not, but omit, my fortunes will ever after droop. The Tempest is a play, often described as a comedy or romance, by William Shakespeare . It is believed to have been written ca. 1610 - 1612. See also: With those that I saw suffer! The hour's now come; The very minute bids thee ope thine ear. What seest thou else In the dark backward and abysm of time? Antonio: Where is the master, boatswain? Boatswain: Do you not hear him?

You mar our labour: keep your cabins; you do assist the storm. Gonzalo: Nay, good, be patient. Boatswain: When the sea is. Hence! What cares these roarers for the name of king? To cabin! silence! Trouble us not. Gonzalo: Good, yet remember whom thou hast aboard. Boatswain: None that I more love than myself. You are counsellor; — if you can command these elements to silence, and work the peace of the present, we will not hand a rope more. Use your authority; if you cannot, give thanks you have liv'd so long, and make yourself ready in your cabin for the mischance of the hour, if it so hap. Scene i I have great comfort from this fellow. Methinks he hath no drowning mark upon him; his complexion is perfect gallows. Gonzalo, scene i A pox o' your throat, you bawling, blasphemous, incharitable dog! All lost! to prayers, to prayers! All lost!

Mariners, scene i Now would I give a thousand furlongs of sea for an acre of barren ground — long heath, brown furze, anything. The wills above be done, but I would fain die a dry death. Gonzalo, scene i 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, Dashes the fire out. O, I have suffered With those that I saw suffer! A brave vessel, Who had, no doubt, some noble creatures in her, Dash'd all to pieces! O, the cry did knock 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 e'er It should the good ship so have swallow'd, and The fraughting souls within her. 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. Scene ii Begun to tell me what I am; but stopp'd, And left me to a bootless inquisition, Concluding, Stay; not yet. Prospero: The hour's now come; The very minute bids thee ope thine ear. Scene ii In the dark backward and abysm of time? Prospero, scene ii The government I cast upon my brother, And to my state grew stranger, being transported And rapt in secret studies. Prospero, scene ii I, thus neglecting worldly ends, all dedicated To closeness, and the bettering of my mind Prospero, scene ii Who having unto truth, by telling of it, Made such a sinner of his memory, To credit his own lie. Prospero, scene ii Knowing I lov’d my books, he furnish’d me, From mine own library, with volumes that I prize above my dukedom.

Prospero, scene ii By accident most strange, bountiful Fortune — Now my dear lady — hath mine enemies Brought to this shore; and by my prescience I find my zenith doth depend upon A most auspicious star, whose influence If now I court not, but omit, my fortunes Will ever after droop. All hail, great master! grave sir, hail! I come To answer thy best pleasure; be't to fly, To swim, to dive into the fire, to ride On the curl'd clouds. To thy strong bidding task Ariel, and all his quality. I will be correspondent to command, And do my spriting gently. Ariel, scene ii Caliban : As wicked dew as e'er my mother brush'd With raven's feather from unwholesome fen, Drop on you both! a south-west blow on ye, And blister you all o'er! Prospero: For this, be sure, to-night thou shalt have cramps, Side-stitches that shall pen thy breath up; urchins Shall, for that vast of night that they may work, All exercise on thee; thou shalt be pinch'd As thick as honeycomb, each pinch more stinging Than bees that made 'em.

Scene ii This island's mine, by Sycorax my mother, Which thou tak'st from me. When thou cam'st first, Thou strok'st me and made much of me, wouldst give me Water with berries in't, and teach me how To name the bigger light, and how the less, That burn by day and night; and then I lov'd thee, And show'd thee all the qualities o' the isle, The fresh springs, brine-pits, barren place and fertile. Curs'd be I that did so! All the charms Of Sycorax, toads, beetles, bats, light on you! For I am all the subjects that you have, Which first was mine own king. Caliban, scene ii You taught me language, and my profit on't Is, I know how to curse. The red plague rid you, For learning me your language! Caliban, scene ii Is the third man that e'er I saw; the first That e'er I sigh'd for.

If thou neglect'st, or dost unwillingly What I command, I'll rack thee with old cramps, Fill all thy bones with aches, make thee roar, That beasts shall tremble at thy din. Prospero, scene ii Come unto these yellow sands, And then take hands; Curt'sied when you have and kiss'd, The wild waves whist, Foot it featly here and there, And, sweet sprites, the burden bear. Ariel, scene ii Full fathom five thy father lies; Of his bones are coral made; Those are pearls that were his eyes; Nothing of him that doth fade, But doth suffer a sea-change Into something rich and strange. Sea-nymphs hourly ring his knell: Ding-dong. Hark! now I hear them — Ding-dong, bell. Ariel, scene ii The fringed curtains of thine eye advance, And say what thou seest yond. Prospero, scene ii Is the third man that e'er I saw; the first That e'er I sigh'd for.

Miranda, scene ii There’s nothing ill can dwell in such a temple: If the ill spirit have so fair a house, Good things will strive to dwell with ’t. Miranda, scene ii My spirits, as in a dream, are all bound up. My father's loss, the weakness which I feel, The wreck of all my friends, nor this man's threats, To whom I am subdu'd, are but light to me, Might I but through my prison once a day Behold this maid. All corners else o' th' earth Let liberty make use of; space enough Have I in such a prison. Ferdinand, scene ii Misery acquaints a man with strange bedfellows. Gonzalo: Here is everything advantageous to life. Antonio: True; save means to live. Scene i Alonso: You cram these words into mine ears against The stomach of my sense. Would I had never Married my daughter there! for, coming thence, My son is lost; and, in my rate, she too, Who is so far from Italy remov'd I ne'er again shall see her. O thou mine heir Of Naples and of Milan, what strange fish Hath made his meal on thee?

Francesco: Sir, he may live: I saw him beat the surges under him, And ride upon their backs; he trod the water, Whose enmity he flung aside, and breasted The surge most swol'n that met him; his bold head 'Bove the contentious waves he kept, and oar'd Himself with his good arms in lusty stroke To the shore, that o'er his wave-worn basis bow'd, As stooping to relieve him; I not doubt He came alive to land. Scene i Sebastian: Well, I am standing water. Antonio: I'll teach you how to flow. Scene i We all were sea-swallow'd, though some cast again: And, by that destiny, to perform an act, Whereof what's past is prologue, what to come In yours and my discharge. Antonio, scene i, While you here do snoring lie, Open-ey'd Conspiracy If of life you keep a care, Shake off slumber, and beware. Awake, awake! All the infections that the sun sucks up From bogs, fens, flats, on Prosper fall, and make him By inch-meal a disease!

His spirits hear me, And yet I needs must curse; but they'll nor pinch, Fright me with urchin-shows, pitch me i' the mire, Nor lead me, like a firebrand, in the dark Out of my way, unless he bid 'em; but For every trifle are they set upon me; Sometime like apes, that moe and chatter at me, And after, bite me; then like hedgehogs, which Lie tumbling in my barefoot way, and mount Their pricks at my footfall; sometime am I All wound with adders, who, with cloven tongues, Do hiss me into madness. Caliban, scene ii A very ancient and fish-like smell. Trinculo, scene ii Misery acquaints a man with strange bedfellows. Trinculo, scene ii The master, the swabber, the boatswain, and I, The gunner, and his mate, Lov'd Mall, Meg, and Marian, and Margery, But none of us car'd for Kate; For she had a tongue with a tang, Would cry to a sailor Go hang!

She lov'd not the savour of tar nor of pitch, Yet a tailor might scratch her where'er she did itch. Then to sea, boys, and let her go hang! This is a scurvy tune too; but here's my comfort. [Drinks] Stephano, scene ii Stephano: Here; swear then how thou escapedst. Trinculo: Swam ashore man, like a duck; I can swim like a duck, I'll be sworn. Stephano: Here, kiss the book. Though thou canst swim like a duck, thou art made like a goose. Scene ii Caliban: Hast thou not dropp'd from heaven? Stephano: Out o' th' moon, I do assure thee; I was the Man i' th' Moon, when time was. Caliban: I have seen thee in her, and I do adore thee. My mistress show'd me thee, and thy dog and thy bush. Scene ii I prithee, be my god. Caliban, scene ii 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. There be some sports are painful, and their labour Delight in them sets off; some kinds of baseness Are nobly undergone; and most poor matters Point to rich ends. This my mean task Would be as heavy to me as odious, but The mistress which I serve quickens what's dead, And makes my labours pleasures. Ferdinand, scene i I have ey'd with best regard; and many a time The harmony of their tongues hath into bondage Brought my too diligent ear; for several virtues Have I lik'd several women, never any With so full soul, but some defect in her Did quarrel with the noblest grace she ow'd, And put it to the foil; but you, O you, So perfect and so peerless, are created Of every creature's best! Miranda: Do you love me? Ferdinand: O heaven! O earth! Bear witness to this sound, And crown what I confess with kind event, If I speak true! If hollowly, invert What best is boded me to mischief!

I, Beyond all limit of what else i' the world Do love, prize, honour you. Scene i Miranda: At mine unworthiness, that dare not offer What I desire to give, and much less take What I shall die to want. Scene i 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. Miranda, scene i Ferdinand: Here ’s my hand. Miranda: And mine, with my heart in ’t. Scene i Servant-monster! the folly of this island! They say there's but five upon this isle: we are three of them; if th' other two be brain'd like us, the state totters. Trinculo, scene ii How does thy honour? Let me lick thy shoe. I'll not serve him, he is not valiant. Caliban, scene ii Caliban: Thou liest, thou jesting monkey, thou: I would my valiant monster would destroy thee: I do not lie.

Stephano: Trinculo, if you trouble him any more in's tale, by this hand, I will supplant some of your teeth. Scene ii Why, as I told thee, 'tis a custom with him I' the afternoon to sleep; there thou mayst brain him, Having first seiz'd his books; or with a log Batter his skull, or paunch him with a stake, Or cut his wezand with thy knife. Remember, First to possess his books; for without them He's but a sot, as I am, nor hath not One spirit to command: they all do hate him, As rootedly as I — burn but his books. Caliban, scene ii Flout 'em and scout 'em, and scout 'em and flout 'em; Thought is free. He that dies pays all debts: I defy thee. Mercy upon us! Stephano, scene ii Be not afeard. The isle is full of noises, Sounds, and sweet airs, that give delight, and hurt not.

Sometimes a thousand twangling instruments Will hum about mine ears; and sometimes voices, That, if I then had wak'd after long sleep, Will make me sleep again; and then, in dreaming, The clouds methought would open and show riches Ready to drop upon me, that, when I wak'd, I cried to dream again. Caliban, scene ii Alonso: Give us kind keepers, heavens! What were these? Sebastian: A living drollery. Now I will believe That there are unicorns; that in Arabia There is one tree, the phoenix' throne, one phoenix At this hour reigning there. Antonio: I'll believe both; And what does else want credit, come to me, And I'll be sworn 'tis true; travellers ne'er did lie, Though fools at home condemn 'em. Scene iii You are three men of sin, whom Destiny, — That hath to instrument this lower world And what is in't, —the never-surfeited sea Hath caus'd to belch up you; and on this island Where man doth not inhabit, you 'mongst men Being most unfit to live.

I have made you mad; And even with such-like valour, men hang and drown Their proper selves. [Alonso, Sebastian, etc., draw their swords] You fools! I and my fellows Are ministers of Fate; the elements, Of whom your swords are temper'd may as well Wound the loud winds, or with bemock'd-at stabs Kill the still-closing waters, as diminish One dowle that's in my plume. Ariel, scene iii O, it is monstrous, monstrous! Methought the billows spoke, and told me of it; The winds did sing it to me; and the thunder, That deep and dreadful organ-pipe, pronounc'd The name of Prospero; it did bass my trespass. Therefore my son i' the ooze is bedded; and, I'll seek him deeper than e'er plummet sounded, And with him there lie mudded. Alonso, scene iii The strongest oaths are straw To th' fire i' the blood. Be more abstemious, Or else good night your vow!

Prospero, scene i Ceres: Hail, many-coloured messenger, that ne'er Dost disobey the wife of Jupiter; Who, with thy saffron wings, upon my flow'rs Diffusest honey drops, refreshing show'rs; And with each end of thy blue bow dost crown My bosky acres and my unshrubb'd down, Rich scarf to my proud earth; — why hath thy Queen Summon'd me hither to this short-grass'd green? Iris: A contract of true love to celebrate, And some donation freely to estate On the blest lovers. Our revels now are ended. These our actors, As I foretold you, were all spirits, and Are melted into air, into thin air; And, like the baseless fabric of this vision, The cloud-capp'd towers, the gorgeous palaces, The solemn temples, the great globe itself, Yea, all which it inherit, shall dissolve, And, like this insubstantial pageant faded, Leave not a rack behind. We are such stuff As dreams are made on; and our little life Is rounded with a sleep.

Prospero, scene i Pray you, tread softly, that the blind mole may not Hear a foot fall; we now are near his cell. Caliban, scene i Trinculo: Ay, but to lose our bottles in the pool — Stephano: There is not only disgrace and dishonor in that, monster, but an infinite loss. scene i How many goodly creatures are there here! How beauteous mankind is! O brave new world, That has such people in't! Though with their high wrongs I am struck to the quick, Yet, with my nobler reason 'gainst my fury Do I take part; the rarer action is In virtue than in vengeance.

Prospero, scene i Ye elves of hills, brooks, standing lakes, and groves; And ye that on the sands with printless foot Do chase the ebbing Neptune, and do fly him When he comes back; you demi-puppets that By moonshine do the green sour ringlets make, Whereof the ewe not bites; and you whose pastime Is to make midnight mushrooms, that rejoice To hear the solemn curfew; by whose aid — Weak masters though ye be — I have be-dimm'd The noontide sun, call'd forth the mutinous winds, And 'twixt the green sea and the azur'd vault Set roaring war. To the dread rattling thunder Have I given fire, and rifted Jove's stout oak With his own bolt; the strong-bas'd promontory Have I made shake, and by the spurs pluck'd up The pine and cedar. Graves at my command, Have wak'd their sleepers, op'd, and let 'em forth, By my so potent art.

But this rough magic I here abjure; and, when I have requir'd Some heavenly music — which even now I do, — To work mine end upon their senses that This airy charm is for, I'll break my staff, Bury it certain fathoms in the earth, And, deeper than did ever plummet sound, I'll drown my book. Where the bee sucks, there suck I; In a cowslip's bell I lie; There I couch when owls do cry. On the bat's back I do fly After summer merrily. Merrily, merrily, shall I live now, Under the blossom that hangs on the bough. Ariel, scene i How many goodly creatures are there here! How beauteous mankind is! O brave new world, That has such people in't! Miranda, scene i It is this statement by Miranda which provided Aldous Huxley the title of his dystopian novel, Brave New World , in which "The Savage" quotes this passage.

Now my charms are all o'erthrown, And what strength I have's mine own, Which is most faint: now, 'tis true, I must be here confin'd by you, Or sent to Naples. Let me not, Since I have my dukedom got And pardon'd the deceiver, dwell In this bare island by your spell; But release me from my bands With the help of your good hands. Gentle breath of yours my sails Must fill, or else my project fails, Which was to please. Now I want Spirits to enforce, art to enchant; And my ending is despair, Unless I be reliev'd by prayer, Which pierces so that it assaults Mercy itself, and frees all faults. As you from crimes would pardon'd be, Let your indulgence set me free. "The Tempest" - Shakespeare: Father? Daughter? Relationship? This Blog is for my class on Shakespeare where we were each given a play by Shakespeare to blog about. Wednesday, November 3, 2010 Father? Daughter? Relationship? In the Shakespeare's play The Tempest the relationship isn't shown as one of much love from the father Prospero.

After being trapped on an island for twelve years, he waits until the information is beneficial to himself as well as his daughter Miranda before telling her about her heritage and why they are on the island. He could have told her years before in order to calm her curiosity as to why her father was the only person she's even seen that she remembers. But Prospero waits until by happenstance, his enemy's ship was blown off course near the island that Prospero and Miranda are stuck on. It is then, in Act one, Scene 2, that Prospero tells Miranda that he was once the Duke of Milan and a Prince of power until his brother Antonio betrayed him and took his position. After their conversation Miranda "falls" asleep when really Prospero put her to sleep with his magic "Will ever after droop. Her cease more questions./ Thou art inclined to sleep. 'Tis a good dullness,/ And give it way. I know thou canst not choose" so that she is out of the way until he needs her. Throughout the play he seems to be thinking about her happiness by wanting her to fall in love with and marry Ferdinand, the son to the King of Naples.

But in reality it was his way of using them to get of the island and possibly get his position back "Ay, with a heart as willing/As bondage e'er of freedom. Here's my hand." Throughout the Play it seems as though all Prospero cares about is getting off the island and not about what will happen to his daughter. Although in the beginning it says, "You have often/Begun to tell me what I am, but stopped/ And left me to a bootless inquisition,/Concluding, "Stay, not yet." Showing that he was waiting for the right time not caring that Miranda was a little lost and confused because it is in a child to know who they are and he wasn't ready to share that information. As to say the this particular father/daughter relationship isn't one of much love and devotion, unless that devotion is veered towards the use of one's daughter to benefit for yourself. Although in the end they all win Prospero was more focused on himself but in that he wanted love to form between Miranda and Ferdinand would show that he does love his daughter and wants her to be happy but only if things go his way and he can get off the island.

This shows that Prospero's love for his daughter isn't a traditional one. To gain from the use of others seems to be Prospero's "thing", which is what he does to get what he wants, through his own daughter and his magic. The traditional father/daughter relationship is usually one of love and the daughter being spoiled and the father being OVER protective. Prospero and Miranda don't fit this traditional mold. Posted by The Tempest Jeopardy Template What city is the city that Prospero and Miranda returned to? 400 Who fell in love with Miranda? 400 What is the Globe Theator? Where did he perform his plays? 400 The Tempest: Entire Play The Tempest SCENE II. The island. Before PROSPERO'S cell. Enter PROSPERO and MIRANDA SCENE I. Another part of the island. Enter ALONSO, SEBASTIAN, ANTONIO, GONZALO, ADRIAN, FRANCISCO, and others SCENE II. Another part of the island. Enter CALIBAN with a burden of wood. A noise of thunder heard SCENE I. Before PROSPERO'S Cell.

Enter FERDINAND, bearing a log SCENE II. Another part of the island. Enter CALIBAN, STEPHANO, and TRINCULO SCENE III. Another part of the island. Enter ALONSO, SEBASTIAN, ANTONIO, GONZALO, ADRIAN, FRANCISCO, and others SCENE I. Before PROSPERO'S cell. Enter PROSPERO, FERDINAND, and MIRANDA SCENE I. Before PROSPERO'S cell. Enter PROSPERO in his magic robes, and ARIEL I'll drown my book. Solemn music Re-enter ARIEL before: then ALONSO, with a frantic gesture, attended by GONZALO; SEBASTIAN and ANTONIO in like manner, attended by ADRIAN and FRANCISCO they all enter the circle which PROSPERO had made, and there stand charmed; which PROSPERO observing, speaks: The Tempest Characters | GradeSaver Buy Study Guide Prospero The rightful Duke of Milan, though his kingdom and title were usurped by his brother Antonio.

Prospero was able to survive a plot on his life, and he and his daughter Miranda were set aboard a wrecked craft, but managed to land safely on the island. Prospero is able to gain control of the spirits of the island, and uses his vast knowledge and control over the spirits to direct acts of magic as he pleases. He is ruler of the island, after taking control of it from its rightful heir, Caliban, and he makes sure that Alonso's ship wrecks on the island, so he can get his revenge on his brothers for their wrongdoing. Alonso, King of Naples Was involved in a plot to overthrow Prospero, and gave Prospero's dukedom to Antonio. Has a son, Ferdinand, who is also heir to the kingdom. Alonso may have been corrupt in his dealings with his brothers, but he does not prove to be an evil-natured man; he is a flawed politician, but is a highly regarded king and is not a villain. Sebastian Brother to Alonso, Sebastian is easily infected by a plot for the crown made by Antonio, and impressed upon him by the magic of the spirit Ariel. He is also not evil, but has a flawed nature.

Antonio Usurped the dukedom of Milan from his brother Prospero, while Prospero was absorbed in study. Antonio is probably the least scrupulous character in the play, and he is the originator of another plot to take the throne from Alonso through more murdersthough this plot is engineered by Prospero, and made possible by Ariel's magical powers. He is typically sarcastic and remote, and unrepentant of his crimes. Miranda Prospero's only daughter, and so young that she cannot remember anyone she knew before she came to the island. She is intelligent and headstrong, having learned a lot from her father; but, when under Ariel's enchantment, she follows her father's plan, and falls in love with Ferdinand willingly. She and Ferdinand end up together, bound by their mutual infatuation. Ferdinand Alonso's son, and heir to the kingdom of Naples. Prospero arranges, through his magic, for Ferdinand to fall in love with Prospero's daughter, Miranda; Prospero's plot to have Miranda and Ferdinand married is his key to reclaiming his power in Italy.

For the brief span of the play, Ferdinand is completely lovelorn and presumed dead by his father because they are separated during the shipwreck; out of his infatuation with Miranda, he agrees to become Prospero's servant for a span. Prospero finally declares him worthy, and the engagement is at last approved by both Prospero and Alonso. Ariel A spirit of the island, over whom Prospero becomes master after ousting Sycorax. He is the source of Prospero's magical powers, causing the tempest and many of the conspiracies in the play, and works for Prospero somewhat against his will. He is an intelligent, capable servant, and is finally freed by Prospero for his devoted service. Gonzalo The councilor to the king, and an honest man as well; he is the one who helps Prospero and Miranda survive Antonio's plot to have them murdered. Gonzalo is optimistic, good-tempered, and loyal; he is one of the unquestionably good characters in the play, with no apparent dark side in him. Adrian and Francisco Noblemen, and companions of Alonso who are shipwrecked with the rest.

Adrian tries his best to console Alonso when Alonso believes that his son is dead; and Francisco also tries to be helpful to the king. Neither play a very important role within the play, but they do appear to be good-tempered men, and Adrian at least is taunted by the very sarcastic pair of Antonio and Sebastian. Caliban A native of the island on which Prospero lands, and the one from whom Prospero steals control of the island. He becomes Prospero's only subject, doing all of his dirty work; Caliban tries to rape Miranda, and is shunned by both Miranda and Prospero because of this. All who encounter Caliban regard him as sub-human, or reprehensible, because of his different looks and strange ways. However, Caliban has a capacity for poetry and understanding beauty, as shown by a speech in Act III, which is one of the most poetic, beautiful, and descriptive of the play. Gonzalo is the only one within the play who even tries to evaluate Caliban and his kind fairly; the others, blinded by prejudice, mistreat him to various extents. Trinculo A consistently drunken jester, who is a servant of Alonso's, and brought ashore in the shipwreck.

He is a dull fool mostly, not capable of any real action, and providing a good deal of comic relief. When Caliban meets him, he immediately dislikes him and his inebriated insults; but, Trinculo does become a part of Caliban's plan to murder Prospero and take over the island, though Trinculo proves completely ineffective in this. Stephano Trinculo's friend, a consistently drunken butler. He is jolly, inebriated, and somehow Caliban takes him on as a new master, thinking that he has some magical powers. He agrees to Caliban's plot to make him ruler of the island, and gain him the favors of Miranda. However, like Trinculo, he is not cunning, and is completely incapable of carrying out the plan. Master of a Ship, Mariners Appear only in Act 1, scene 1. The master tries to hearten the sailors, and get them to sail the boat through the storm; but, one of Ariel's spells makes them lose heart and abandon ship. They are whisked safely away, and will take the party back to Italy at the play's end.

Boatswain Right hand to the ship master, in control of the workings of the ship. Antonio and Sebastian try their best to pick a fight with him in the first act, and basically keep him from doing his job. The boatswain reappears in the last act, and tells about what happened to the ship's crew after the tempest. Iris, Ceres, Juno, Nymphs, Reapers Figures that appear in Prospero's betrothal masque for Miranda and Ferdinand in Act IV. Iris, Ceres, and Juno are goddesses from Roman myth; Iris is goddess of the rainbow, Ceres presides over agriculture, and Juno is queen of the gods. The parts are all performed by spirits, with Ariel performing the part of Ceres.

Question: In The Tempest, what is the name of Prospero's daughter?
Answer: MIRANDA