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The Tempest is different from many of Shakespeare's plays in that it does not derive from one clear source. The play does, however, draw on many of the motifs common to Shakespeare's works. These include the painful parting of a father with his daughter, jealousy and hatred between brothers, the usurpation of a legitimate ruler, the play-within-a-play, and the experiences of courtiers transplanted to a new environment. It is commonly classified with Pericles, The Winter's Tale, and in a small group of plays called "romances." These plays contain elements of comedy and, to a lesser extent, tragedy, but do not wholly belong to either category. Common elements in Shakespearean romances include experiences of loss and recovery, as well as imaginative realms in which magic can play an important role.

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The Tempest is different from many of Shakespeare's plays in that it does not derive from one clear source. The play does, however, draw on many of the motifs common to Shakespeare's works. These include the painful parting of a father with his daughter, jealousy and hatred between brothers, the usurpation of a legitimate ruler, the play-within-a-play, and the experiences of courtiers transplanted to a new environment.

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Plot summary of and introduction to William Shakespeare's play The Tempest, with links to online texts, digital images, and other resources.

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....... 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 climax of a play or another narrative work, such as a short story or a novel, can be defined as (1) the turning point at which the conflict begins to resolve itself for better or worse, or as (2) the final and most exciting event in a series of events. The climax in ....... During the European Renaissance between 1400 and 1600, great thinkers began advocating the betterment of civilization by emphasizing the study of classical culture and literature and by promoting the cultivation of such ennobling qualities as compassion, generosity, friendship, wise judgment, and prudence. In

Cummings Guides Home .. | .. Contact This Site .. | .. Shakespeare Books
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Study Guide Prepared by Michael J. Cummings ... © 2003
Revised in 2010 ©
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....... 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.

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Date Written: Probably 1611.
First Performance: Probably November 1, 1611, at Whitehall (the English royal palace) by the Kings Players.
First Printing: 1623 as part of the First Folio, the first authorized collection of Shakespeare's plays.

....... The main sources for the play have not been fully established. Possible sources include an account of the wreck of the Sea Venture in the Bermudas in 1609; A Discovery of the Bermudas (1610), by Sylvester Jourdain; A True Repertory of the Wracke and Redemption of Sir Thomas Gates upon and from the Islands of the Bermudas (written in 1610 and published in 1625), by William Strachey; Comedy of the Beautiful Sidea (circa 1600-1605), a German drama by Jacob Ayer; New and Large Discourse of the Travels of Sir Anthony Shirley, Knight (1601), by William Parry; essay by Montaigne (1533-1592).

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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.
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Miranda: Fifteen-year-old daughter of Prospero. She has lived with her father on his island since she was three years old and has never seen a man except for her father and the half-human Caliban. The name Miranda is derived from the Latin word mirandus, meaning wonderful, strange, and admired.

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. Plot Summary By Michael J. Cummings .. © 2003 . Ariel has proved a valuable servant. In fact, under Prospero's orders, it was Ariel who guided the tempest toward the island and set the king's 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 ship's crew and passengers, telling her father that
I have suffered
With those that I saw suffer: a brave vessel,
Who had, no doubt, some noble creature 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 ere
It should the good ship so have swallow'd and
The fraughting souls within her. (1. 2. 6-14)

Lingering perdition-worse than any death
Can be at once,-shall step by step attend
You and your ways. . . ." (3. 3.93-95)

All three of them are desperate: their great guilt,
Like poison given to work a great time after,
Now 'gins to bite the spirits." (3. 3. 124-126)
Prospero, meanwhile, presents an entertainment for Ferdinand and Miranda in celebration of their forthcoming marriage. The entertainers are spirits in the form of three deities-Ceres, goddess of agriculture; Iris, goddess of the rainbow; and Juno, queen of the gods-who 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 Prospero's 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 Alonso's ship-thought wrecked and lost-is found still afloat and seaworthy. Prospero commands Ariel to calm the seas, then frees him. Only Caliban remains on the island.
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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 captive-socially, 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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...... The Tempest is among Shakespeare's finest plays in terms of its musicality. Shakespeare scholar G. B. Harrison has written the following appraisal of the language of the play:

Shakespeare, like all Elizabethan dramatists, used four kinds of speech in his plays: blank verse, rhymed verse, prose and song. Each kind has its uses, and the whole play, especially in his maturity, is conceived as a kind of verbal symphony, each scene or episode being composed as part of a complete harmony. The Tempest in its poetical scenes is the finest example of the musical use of words in all Shakespeare's plays." (Major British 53)
The Tempest occurs, according to the first definition, in Act III, Scene III, when Ariel (appearing as a Harpy, a mythological monster with the head of a woman and the body of a bird) reveals Antonio, Alonso, and Sebastian as sinners who conspired to remove Prospero from his dukedom. According to the second definition, the climax occurs at the end of Act V when Ferdinand and his father are reunited, and all the enemies in the play become friends. Among the passages that best exhibit musicality are the poems, such as the following
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:
Hark! now I hear them,-ding-dong, bell. (1.2.456)
Ariel, while invisible, sings this poem to Ferdinand, telling the lad that his father lies under thirty feet of water. The poem has a rhyme scheme of ababccdd.
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 confined 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 relieved 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. (epilogue)

Figures of Speech: Types
......Following are examples of figures of speech from the play.

Antithesis

Good wombs have borne bad sons. (1. 2. 141)
Contrast of good wombs and bad sons. The statement is also a paradox.
Alliteration
................ Hast thou The forgot
foul w itch Sycorax,W as grown into ah oop? (1.2.259-260)wh ow ith age and envy

F ull f athom f ive thy f ather lies (.2.394)

He that d ies pays all d ebts. (3.2.143)

Hyperbole
Your tale, sir, would cure deafness. (1.2.106)
This line also contains a metaphor comparing the tale to a remedy.
Metaphor
My library
Was dukedom large enough. (1.2.128)
Comparison of a dukedom to a library.
................. The king's son, Ferdinand,
With hair up-staring,-then like reeds, not hair,
Was the first man that leap'd; cried, 'Hell is empty
And all the devils are here.' (1.2.213-216)
Comparison of Prospero's island to hell

You taught me language; and my profit on't
Is, I know how to curse. (1. 2. 430-431)
Comparison of knowledge to profit.

The winds did sing it to me, and the thunder,
That deep and dreadful organ-pipe, pronounced
The name of Prosper: it did bass my trespass.(3.3.97-99)
Metaphor (and personification) comparing the winds to a singer
Metaphor comparing thunder to the sound made by an organ pipe

No sweet aspersion shall the heavens let fall
To make this contract grow. (4.1.18-19)
Comparison of heaven's approval to rain (aspersion) that promotes the growth of a seed

We are such stuff
As dreams are made on, and our little life
Is rounded with a sleep. (4.1.168-170)
Comparison of humans to the immateriality of a dream

Paradox
What's past is prologue. (2.1.261)

....... Did you notice in your reading of The Tempest that the name of the beast-man, Caliban, is an anagram for cannibal (except for a missing n)? Did you also notice that name of Prospero's servant, Ariel, sounds like aerial, meaning in the air, of the air, high flying, ethereal, and fanciful-words which all describe Ariel? Other characters also have names suggestive of their qualities and lot in life: Prospero (a name that derives from the Latin prosperare, meaning to cause to prosper), who prospers through his magic and intelligence; Miranda (a name that derives from the Latin mirandus, meaning strange, wonderful, miraculous), who is wonderful to behold and is indeed strange-that is, exotic; and Ferdinand (a name that derives from Germanic words meaning bold traveler), who has traveled on the high seas and survived a roaring tempest.

....... Shakespeare's plays frequently present characters in settings far removed from urban centers. However, they generally are creatures of the city, the court, the vibrant life where people throng. Consider the following observation:

Shakespeare's characters are . . . dubious of rusticity. Valentine [in The Two Gentlemen of Verona] does not rejoice in his woodland life as head of an outlaw band; the lovers ofA [Midsummer Night's] Dream find their woodland adventure unnerving, and mountain life seems rude to the characters inCymbeline who are forced to endure it. Although Florizel [inThe Winter's Tale] dreams of spending his life with Perdita in a cottage, she knows that pastoral bliss is only a dream; true content lies in Leontes' court, to which all the characters . . . return. Even Prospero [inThe Tempest], who has no great desire to see Milan again, knows that he and Miranda must leave their island, which is as much prison as refuge to them. Although critics can idealize the pastoral experiences of Shakespeare's characters as renewing contacts with nature, that experience is often somewhat harrowing.-Shakespeare's Comedies From Roman Farce to Romantic Mystery. Newark: U of Delaware, 1986 (Page 144).
The Tempest and Humanism .
Shakespeare is perhaps the perfect expression of Renaissance humanism. His profound sympathy for humanity enabled him to pierce to the very core of his characters; his unexcelled gifts as a poet made his men and women unforgettable creatures of flesh and blood. This may be said as much of the best of his earliest plays as of The Tempest, where Prospero is himself a kind of incarnation of the best of what the Renaissance had extended to mankind. (Grebanier, Bernard D., et al. English Literature and Its Backgrounds. New York: Holt, 1950, page 242)

Prospero's Island as The New World
.......Shakespeare sets the scene in a far-off, isolated island. Whether he intended the setting to symbolize the New World is arguable, but it certainly resembles it. Like America, it is wild and undeveloped, with strange sights, sounds, and creatures. It has a "colonial" overseer, Prospero, who exploits the native population-the savage beast-man, Caliban, and the sprite, Ariel-turning them into servants, or slaves. Prospero's daughter, Miranda, knows no other world but her father's island. In this respect, she is like the real-life Virginia Dare, the first English child born in the Americas (on Roanoke Island, off the coast of present-day North Carolina).
The Tempest, Prospero exhibits those qualities. He does not seek to retaliate against those who wronged him; he seeks only to bring them out of the darkness of hatred and revenge. In this respect, he is like the Renaissance humanist who builds a bridge for the Dark Ages to cross into the enlightenment of a new age in which humankind renounces its old barbarity and savagery. In discussing this idea, Shakespeare scholar Bernard D. Grebanier wrote:
Shakespeare's Grab Bag of Marvels

.......To give his play a wondrous, fairy-tale atmosphere, Shakespeare set it on a remote island with an exotic landscape, then populated the island with a sorcerer (Prospero), a monster (the beast-man Caliban, son of a witch), a mischievous sprite, a beautiful maiden (Miranda), a young prince who loves her (Ferdinand, son of the King of Naples), and mythological deities--including Ceres, goddess of agriculture; Iris, goddess of the rainbow; and Juno, queen of the gods. Perhaps Shakespeare was capitalizing on stories about the New World across the seas--a world that was mostly terra incognita to the English and therefore a ripe subject for speculation about wonders there that awaited discovery. ....... There were, of course, published reports about the Americas and the islands near the mainlands. These reports included several about Bermuda, including an account of the wreck of the Sea Venture in the Bermudas in 1609; A Discovery of the Bermudas (1610), by Sylvester Jourdain; A True Repertory of the Wracke and Redemption of Sir Thomas Gates upon and from the Islands of the Bermudas (written in 1610 and published in 1625), by William Strachey. The Spanish navigator Juan Bermúdez is credited with discovery of the Bermuda Islands, and they first appeared on Spanish maps in 1511. It may well be that the wreck of the Sea Venture inspired Shakespeare to write about the wreck of King Alonso's ship.

Caliban as an Exploited Native

.......In The Tempest, Caliban suffers the same fate as many New World natives: He loses control over a domain he thought he ruled, becoming a virtual slave of Prospero. Although Prospero teaches him language, Caliban complains that the only benefit of this experience is that he learned how to curse. Caliban's encounter with Prospero resembles the encounter of real-life native Americans with Europeans seeking riches in the New World wilds while spreading their culture. The natives learned bad habits, acquired alien diseases, and lost control of their domains. Of course, The Tempest centers on the wrong done to Prospero by his brother, who usurped Prospero's dukedom. But did not Prospero usurp Caliban's domain?

Study Questions and Essay Topics

Write an essay explaining how closed, isolated environments like Prospero's island in The Tempest, Elsinore Castle inHamlet, and the forest of Arden in As You Like It affect the characters.

Shakespeare uses allusions to mythology in The Tempest. What is an allusion? Where do allusions take place in Acts 3 and 4?

Lust for power, a theme in other Shakespeare plays, manifests itself in The Tempest in two independent conspiracies? What are these conspiracies and who is involved in them?

Would you consider Prospero's island an example of a microcosm? Write a short essay that explains your answer. In the essay, be sure to define microcosm as a literary device.

To whom does Shakespeare address the epilogue at the end of the play?

What was Prospero's wife like? (See lines spoken by Prospero in Act I.)

Do you despise or pity Caliban. Explain your answer.

Do you approve of the way Prospero treats Miranda?

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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.

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Plot Summary:A quick plot review of The Tempest including every important action in the play. An ideal introduction before reading the original text.

Commentary:Detailed description of each act with translations and explanations for all important quotes. The next best thing to an modern English translation.

Characters:Review of each character's role in the play including defining quotes and character motivations for all major characters.

Characters Analysis: Critical essay by influential Shakespeare scholar and commentator William Hazlitt, discussing all you need to know on the characters of The Tempest.

The Tempest Essay: Samuel Taylor Coleridge's famous essay on The Tempest based on his legendary and influential lectures and notes on Shakespeare.

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the tempest shakespeare tempest  summary quote note criticism character analysis

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Shakespeare's The Tempest essay, summary, quotes and character analysis.

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Plot Summary:A quick plot review of The Tempest including every important action in the play. An ideal introduction before reading the original text. Commentary:Detailed description of each act with translations and explanations for all important quotes. The next best thing to an modern English translation.

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Introduction

This study guide is intended for GCE Advanced level students in the UK, but is suitable for university students and the general reader who is interested in Shakespeare's plays. Please use the hyperlinks in the table above to navigate this page. If you have any comments or suggestions to make about this page, please contact me by clicking on this link.

Preparing to study

This guide is written to support your study of The Tempest. The guide indicates the terms in which GCE examiners will expect you to understand the play. It should be used in conjunction with study of The Tempest in performance, as far as possible, and of the text in one or more editions designed for study at your level.

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What other resources should you use? This depends on your own aptitude and readiness for study. But any serious "A" level student should expect to use at least some of the following:

Editions of the play: the most authoritative version is the Arden edition (ISBN 0-416-10190-9). Most students will find this challenging, although the introduction is well worth reading. Sound editions are published by Longman and Heinemann. For critical writing about the play, you should use the Casebook anthology. At a more basic level the Brodie's Notes and York Notes (Longman) may help you. For general background information about Shakespeare, Ms. Marchette Chute's Shakespeare and his Stage (University of London, 1953) is hard to beat.

Literature reference: useful handbooks for the general study of English literature include The Cambridge Guide to Literature, The Oxford Guide to Literature, J.A. Cuddon's Dictionary of Literary Terms (Penguin, 1982) and Richard Gill's Mastering English Literature (Macmillan, 1985).

Use these books effectively: do not try to read them for extended periods like a story (unless you have unusual intellectual powers!) Study for short periods, then write down simple statements of what you want to remember, or questions to raise in class discussion.

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Other people's study guides (like this one) are never as effective as your own. You may wish to use any or all of the following ways of "owning" your study of this play:

"Customise" books/guides with pencil markings, icons, inserts or highlighting.

If you have access to suitable computer software, ask for copies of files, and adapt them for your learning.

Make audio tapes of parts of the play and your comments on them, as well as recording spoken "essays".

Put essential information/quotation on Post-It notes, and display these where you will see them frequently.

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Introduction to the play

The Tempest is the last complete play which Shakespeare is believed to have written. In many ways it is unlike any other of his works. It is the only play which faithfully observes the "unities" (time [less than 24 hours], place and plot-structure) described by Aristotle in his Poetics. In depicting a remote island, peopled by spirits and a monster, reflecting the strange tales of contemporary travellers, Shakespeare anticipates some of the features of what is now called speculative fiction or science fantasy. The play conforms to the pattern of comedy in its happy resolution but is more sentimental than the earlier comedies. Some students of the play have identified the character of Prospero with Shakespeare. The masque in Act IV corresponds to various performances-within-plays (you will find these, among others, in Love's Labours Lost, Hamlet, A Midsummer Night's Dream and The Winter's Tale). The masque (in which spirits appear as goddesses in a celebration both of love and of harvest and nature's fertility) is one of the reasons why The Tempest is classed as a pastoral play.

At this point, it makes sense to consider whether you know what a comedy is. If you don't know, find out!

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Tragedy, comedy and history

As a term to describe a category (kind) of play, tragedy (which means "goat song" in classical Greek!) originates in Athens in ancient times. Aristotle (a philosopher and scientist, but no playwright) describes rules or principles for the drama which tragedians should follow. These rules have proved helpful as a working description, but should not be seen as absolute: Shakespeare, in practice, ignores them more or less. Comedy is a term applied to the humorous plays of Greek (e.g. Aristophanes) and later Roman (e.g. Terence) dramatists. For Shakespeare, a comedy is a play with a happy ending - it may or may not be comical in the modern sense of being humorous.

In trying to arrange Shakespeare's work into categories (as for publication in book form) editors have produced a third category, of histories. More recently critics have noted that Shakespeare's latest plays do not fit any of these categories easily. Thus we have problem plays (or tragi-comedies) in Measure for Measure and All's Well that Ends Well and pastoral plays or romances in Pericles, Cymbeline, The Winter's Tale and The Tempest.

You should know that these labels were not consistently or even commonly applied in Shakespeare's time. Plays classed as tragedies (such as Macbeth) may have a clearly historical subject. Some of our "histories" (such as Richard II and Richard III) were advertised as tragedies at the time of their performance.

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Studying the play

Shakespeare wrote plays to be seen in a complete performance which would, for The Tempest, last about two hours. The play would be performed by daylight (between about two and four o'clock) in the purpose-built open air theatres, or with artificial light (lanterns and candles) in private houses of wealthy patrons ( The Tempest may well have been originally written for private performance: many of the special effects work best indoors and under artificial light; both Hamlet and A Midsummer Night's Dream show plays-within-the-play which are performed indoors, at night).

The plays were not written to be read or studied and (hand-written) copies of the text were originally made only for the use of the performers. It is important to remember this when you study the play as a text (with extensive editorial comment) on which you will be examined.

Shakespeare's company was the most successful of its day, and his plays filled the theatres. Many (most?) of the audience in a public performance would lack formal education and be technically illiterate (this does not mean that they were unintelligent). But these were people for whom the spoken word was of greater value than is the case today: they would be more attentive, more sensitive in listening to patterns of verse and rhyme, and aware of imagery (word pictures).

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The intervals between Shakespeare's "scenes" represent changes in time or place, but not of scenery, which would be minimal or non-existent. Basic stage furniture would serve a variety of purposes, but stage properties and costume would be more elaborate and suggestive. A range of gestures and movements with conventional connotations of meaning was used, but we are not sure today how these were performed.

In order to understand a play, we have to work harder than did the Elizabethan or Jacobean audience. To see a play entire (in the theatre or on film), without interruption apart for the interval, may be needed for us to appreciate Shakespeare's strong sense of narrative drive, and to see how the text is not the play but a (loose) blueprint for performance. On the other hand, study of text and editors' notes may be necessary for us to appreciate some of the attitudes the contemporary audience brought into the theatre. Such notes may explain images and highlight patterns or structures which otherwise we might not "hear". They may explain semantic change (changes of meaning) in words or phrases used by the playwright to convey important ideas to his audience.

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In watching Shakespeare in performance we are not likely ever to enjoy the instant pleasure of experiencing a work of art (like a feature film or soap-opera or first-person novel) which uses conventions and a range of cultural references which we at once understand. What is amazing is that so much is still accessible, and that by adapting the delivery of lines, and giving some visual clues, performers can make the plays work today.

The division of plays into five acts is more apparent to the dramatist (to whom it gives an idea of how the play's narrative structure will appear in performance) than to the audience (though modern audiences often know act and scene numbers). For the student (you), the numbering of acts and scenes is of enormous importance in identifying a given point in the narrative. When quoting a passage, always give act and scene number, while line numbers are helpful, too.

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A Map of the play

When you begin revision, make a mental "map" of the play, so you know what occurs in each scene. List the scenes down the page. After the scene number write no more than ten words about what happens. Follow this with a phrase from a notable speech. e.g.

I, ii: "Come unto these yellow sands"

III, iii: "You are three men of sin"

V, i: "Oh, brave new world"

These are only suggestions. Choose a speech which is a clue to you.

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The structure of the play in acts

This is not rigid or mechanical, but there is a fairly simple scheme one can see in the organization of the play.

In the first act we discover who the principal characters are, and why Prospero has created the storm. We see Ferdinand led to his cell, but may not understand Prospero's treatment of him.

In Acts II and III we see how three groups of characters pursue their own agendas, under Prospero's and Ariel's scrutiny: while Alonso is penitent and Gonzalo supportive, Antonio and Sebastian plot their murder; a comic parallel to this appears in the drunken plotting of Stephano, Trinculo and Caliban, and, finally, Ferdinand passes the test which Prospero has set for him.

In Act IV the masque provides both a spectacular interlude and comment on proceedings, which is amplified by Prospero's explanation, and we see the routing of the drunkards.

Act V shows us Prospero wholly in command, with all his enemies at his mercy; having overcome the "tempest" in his own mind, he forgives the offenders and is reconciled to Alonso, who rejoices to find his son alive and betrothed to Miranda.

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The small number of scenes in this play (2 + 2 + 3 + 1 + 1 = 9) makes it very easy to recall the mental map you have made (see above).

Finally it is worth making a plan of what happens within each act, identifying episodes/speeches in which the principal themes are addressed.

None of this is a guarantee of success in an exam. It is essential preparation, to give you the material you need to succeed.

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Beginning to study the play:
summary of plot, comment and questions

Act I - comment | Act II - comment | Act III - comment | Act IV - comment | Act V - comment

Act I

I,i | I, ii | Questions

Act I; scene i

A captain, boatswain and sailors are trying to save their ship from a terrible storm. A number of noblemen shout at them: Antonio and Sebastian swear at them but Gonzalo is cheerful. The ship appears to be sinking, and those on board prepare for the worst.

Act I; scene ii

We are surprised to learn from Miranda, that her father, Prospero, (with whom she lives on a remote island) is responsible for the storm. He says he has important information which he has never told her till now: twelve years ago he was not a poor man living on an island, but the Duke of Milan, a great Italian city-state, and Miranda was a princess (not a duchess, who is a duke's wife). Because he loved to study, he spent all of his time in his library, trusting his brother, Antonio, to rule as his deputy. Treacherously, Antonio plotted against him, with help from Alonso, the powerful King of Naples. One night, Prospero and Miranda (then only three) were seized, taken out to sea, and set adrift in an open boat. Gonzalo, a servant of Alonso, was in charge of the operation, but made sure that the boat contained food, drink and Prospero's magic books.

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On the island he found Ariel, an airy spirit, imprisoned in a tree, where the evil witch Sycorax had left him. Ariel was set free by Prospero's magic, and became his servant, for a time which is almost up; Caliban, the son of Sycorax, an ugly and monstrous creature, was befriended by Prospero, who taught him how to talk, but when he tried to rape Miranda, Prospero made him a slave, to chop wood and do other odd jobs. All this has happened before the start of the play; having Prospero tell Miranda, means Shakespeare does not have to show it on stage. He knows the scene may be a little boring (Miranda is repeatedly told off for not paying attention), but he has caught our attention with the explosive opening, and saved time which might be taken up in later explanations!

Prospero causes Miranda to sleep before he speaks to Ariel. Having made the storm, Ariel has split up the survivors from the ship into several groups. He is now sent to bring Ferdinand, Alonso's son, to Prospero's cell (cave). He thinks he is the only survivor and that his father is drowned. Miranda has seen no man other than her father, and believes Ferdinand is a spirit (there are many on the island); he thinks she is a goddess, and is amazed that she speaks his language. They fall in love, but Prospero is rude to Ferdinand, calls him a spy, and uses his magic to make him a prisoner.

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Act I: questions for discussion

I, i: How, in the play's opening scene, does Shakespeare effectively engage the audience's attention? Comment on the balance between what we find out, and what we wish to know. How would performing this scene stretch the resources of the contemporary (16th century) actors?

I, ii: How does I, ii cast light on the previous scene? In what different ways does Shakespeare use this scene to give us information about Prospero's and Miranda's past, how they came to the island and how they have lived on it since? What is the advantage of Prospero's narrating (to Miranda) the story of Antonio's usurpation of this throne, rather than the playwright's directly presenting it? (In The Winter's Tale there is also a long interval of time [sixteen years], but in this play it comes between the third and fourth acts). In The Tempest we start with Prospero's problems, but most of the play shows their resolution.

How, according to Prospero, has Miranda benefited from her unusual education (lines 172-4)? We can judge for ourselves, in the rest of the play, if he is right. What do we learn in this scene of the characters of Ariel and Caliban? In theatrical terms, why are these two so interesting? How do they challenge our ideas about rational beings, spirits and human nature? What is your view of Prospero's manipulation of Ferdinand in the final part of the scene?

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Act II

II,i | II, ii | Questions

Act II; scene i

On another part of the island, Alonso is sad because he thinks his son Ferdinand has drowned. Gonzalo tries to comfort him (this leads to some exchanges of verbal humour which challenge the modern audience, as we are unfamiliar with the obscure cultural and historical references here). But Sebastian (Alonso's brother) and Antonio blame him. We learn that the reason for the voyage was the wedding in Tunis (north Africa) of Claribel, Alonso's daughter. On the way back from the wedding, the ship was struck by the tempest. The invisible Ariel plays music which lulls to sleep everyone except Sebastian, and Antonio, who now persuades him that, since Ferdinand is drowned (he isn't, in fact) and Claribel is in Tunis, they should kill Alonso (and Gonzalo), so that Sebastian can become king. Antonio believes he can control the weak Sebastian more easily than Alonso. But just as they are about to strike, Ariel wakes the sleepers, and the guilty pair have to explain why their swords are drawn.

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Act II; scene ii

On yet another part of the island, Caliban, gathering firewood, sees Trinculo, Alonso's jester, and thinks this is a spirit, come to punish him, so he hides under his coat. Trinculo, fearing a rainstorm, joins Caliban under this same garment. Stephano, Alonso's drunken butler, thinks he has found a monster with a head and pair of feet at each end! But Trinculo recognises Stephano's voice and greets him. Caliban is given strong drink by Stephano, and at once decides to worship him, and desert Prospero.

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Act II: questions for discussion

II, i: How do Alonso and Antonio, as they appear in this scene, compare with the enemies Prospero has described in I, ii, 66-132? What is revealed of Antonio and Sebastian in their mockery of Gonzalo, Sebastian's rebuke of Alonso (114-126) and their plotting as the others sleep? What is Prospero's reason for causing all but these two to sleep? Given their situation, why is the attempted murder of Alonso and Gonzalo not only evil but pointless? How might we expect the plotters to react to the uncanny thwarting of their plans? (We will see in III, iii how they do react.) What differences (if any) can you detect between the two villains? Comment on the part played by the invisible Ariel in this scene.

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II, ii: Given the serious character of the previous episode, this scene brings a welcome helping of comic action. What does Caliban think when he sees Trinculo? (Compare this with the reactions of both Miranda and Ferdinand when each sees the other first, in I, ii.) In what way does Trinculo's speech on seeing Caliban recall the serious contemporary debate about the human status (or otherwise) of non-European peoples encountered by sea-travellers? How is Stephano's mistake, on seeing the other two together, partly understandable? In what ways does Caliban's worship of the keeper of the bottle provide a comic enactment of the historical corruption of American Indians, and others, by means of European liquor? How does the conclusion of this scene provide a comic parallel to what happened to Prospero twelve years previously, and even more to the events of the preceding scene? How serious a threat do these three unlikely conspirators pose to Prospero's sovereignty on the island? Do Trinculo's and Stephano's occupations have any bearing on our view of this supposed threat? How is this scene interesting in terms of theatrical performance? How does Stephano's bawdy song about Kate provide an interesting contrast with Ariel's beautiful music, and with the noble ideal of romantic love depicted in Ferdinand's courtship of Miranda?

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Act III

III,i | III, ii | III, iii | Questions

Act III; scene i

To test Ferdinand's character, Prospero has ordered him to pile up logs (normally Caliban's job). Miranda tries to help but he will not allow it. She tells him her name, and he asks her to marry him. Prospero, watching unseen, is overjoyed.

Act III; scene ii

Stephano, Trinculo and Caliban are all very drunk. Caliban tells them of Prospero, and they decide to kill him; Stephano is to be king of the island and marry Miranda. Ariel, watching, speaks in Trinculo's voice and makes the others quarrel with him. When the invisible Ariel causes music to appear from nowhere, the two men are terrified; but Caliban, in an unusually beautiful speech, tells them not to be afraid, because the isle "is full of noises". They go off, to do their worst.

Act III; scene iii

Tired of looking for Ferdinand, Alonso and his companions sit down to rest. Prospero and Ariel cause the spirits of the island to appear in strange shapes and prepare a banquet. The hungry men are at first frightened but then decide to try the food out. As soon as they do this, Ariel appears like a gigantic harpy, the food vanishes, and Ariel accuses the "three men of sin" (Alonso, Antonio and Sebastian) of their crimes against Prospero and his innocent child. They learn that they will suffer a lingering death on the island unless they are truly sorry and live "a clear life" in future. Alonso admits his guilt but the other two remain defiant.

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Act III: questions for discussion

III, i: How does Ferdinand reveal his character in this scene, and what is revealed? How effective is this scene in depicting young people in love (as compared with, say, the balcony scene in Romeo and Juliet)? Comment on the way in which the language of the scene formally resembles a ceremony (of betrothal or marriage, even). In what way is Prospero's grand design served by what he sees and hears here?

III, ii: Explain how this scene is not strictly necessary to the plot (or not at such length) but is welcome for its low comedy. How does it serve as a commentary on other events in the play? Comment on the nature of Ariel's intervention here, compared to his activity elsewhere. What is unusual about Caliban's speech beginning "Be not afeard"? (Clue: does he normally speak so appreciatively about beauty?)

III, iii: In what way does this scene tax the resources of the contemporary (Jacobean, early 17th century) theatre? The audience knows, by now, the explanation of these seeming-bizarre events, but those on stage do not: comment on the reactions of the principal characters in this scene (Gonzalo, Antonio, Sebastian, Alonso) to what they see. How does Ariel here appear (and speak) in a manner quite different from anything we have witnessed earlier in the play? (It may be worth comparing this with his account, in I, ii, of how he raised the tempest).

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Act IV

IV,i | Questions

Act IV; scene i

Prospero tells Ferdinand that his punishment was only meant as a test. He gives him Miranda's hand in marriage, but tells him they must not make love until the ceremony takes place (after they leave the island). As a gift for their engagement he makes the spirits perform a masque (a kind of play, in which they are dressed as someone else: in this case, the goddesses Juno, Ceres and Iris). When this is almost done, Prospero, remembering what Ariel has told him about Caliban's plot, becomes agitated. He reassures Ferdinand, who leaves with Miranda, and he waits for the plotters. Ariel has led them on a wild goose chase, ending up in a smelly pool. He has left some colourful, but cheap, clothes hanging on a line; Caliban knows these are worthless but the two men think it is fine clothing and start to try it on. Immediately, they are attacked by the spirits, in the form of dogs, and run away from their barking.

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Act IV: questions for discussion

IV, i: Though Miranda is on stage at the start of the scene, she hardly speaks in it. Why is this? Comment on Prospero's conversation with Ferdinand, paying close attention to the younger man's responses. What is the purpose of the masque, and what does its content signify? Comment on the structure of this scene. How is the ceremonial character of the masque reflected in the extreme formality of verse form and diction (is this Shakespeare's natural voice, do you think, or is he affecting a somewhat artificial and inflated style?) What is your opinion of the long speech beginning "Our revels now are ended"? (Comment on what it means in its context and more generally, as well as on the theatrical imagery). How does the arrival of the three drunkards change the mood? Comment on the informality of language here, and the low comedy which precedes the routing of the would-be assassins.

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Act V

V,i | Questions

Act V; scene i

Prospero now has Alonso, Antonio and Sebastian in his power. He has them imprisoned, in a trance, in a magic circle. He releases them from the spell and slowly they regain their senses. He has put on his Duke's clothing, and wears his sword, and he promises Ariel that he will soon be free. When the men wake, they recognise Prospero but are amazed to see him in this strange place. Alonso is deeply ashamed, Gonzalo is overjoyed that Prospero is alive, while Antonio is still defiant. Prospero forgives Alonso, and tells him that he has lost his daughter, just as Alonso has lost his son - but he means, in marriage! Then he draws back a curtain, to reveal the two lovers playing chess. Caliban and his fellow plotters have to clean out Prospero's cell. The Captain and Boatswain bring news that the ship is safe, and all prepare for the return to Naples, for the wedding of Ferdinand to Miranda, save for Ariel, who is given his freedom, and Caliban, who will stay on the island.

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Act V: questions for discussion

V, i: Comment on the structure of this scene, paying especial regard to its changes of mood. What features of this scene would be interesting in terms of theatrical performance? How, in this scene, does Shakespeare examine themes of reconciliation and forgiveness? Comment on the part played by Alonso in this scene. What is interesting about Sebastian's reaction on seeing Ferdinand alive ("a most high miracle")? Comment on Ferdinand's remark on seeing his father alive ("Though the seas threaten etc.") and Miranda's amazement on seeing so many "goodly creatures". What is the purpose of the Epilogue, and why is it fitting that Prospero speak it?

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Key scenes explored

Act I, scene ii | Act II, scene i | Act II, scene ii | Act III, scene i | Act III, scene ii | Act III, scene iii | Act IV, scene i | Act V, scene i

General comment on all scenes of the play appears above. The following section deals more extensively with the most critical parts of the play. The importance of each scene (and, thus, its likely appeal to examiners) is indicated by the star (*) rating: the more stars, the more important!

Act I; scene ii ***

Relationship with the play and its general themes:

The play's opening immediately poses questions for the audience: who are these people (the nobles) and why have they gone to sea? Will they survive, and where might they find themselves if they do? We are surprised by the suggestion that the storm is not natural, and wonder what kind of person can raise a tempest. Prospero explains to Miranda who they are, and why they are on the island; who are the people who have abandoned the ship, and what are his plans for them. Having met Miranda and Prospero, we are also introduced to Caliban and Ariel, and later Ferdinand. We also have an indication that the business Prospero and Ariel are to accomplish is to be achieved in a brief space of time.

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Theatrical presentation:

This scene contains long passages of narration by Prospero, which risk boring the audience. The benefit for the playwright is that he does not have to present directly (as in other late comedies, such as The Winter's Tale or Cymbeline) the principal characters' earlier experiences, but has more time to depict the resolution of their problems. The potential problem is also minimized in these ways:

the play's explosive opening scene will enlist our attention more effectively than mere conversation;

Prospero is aware that he may lose Miranda's attention, so he several times reminds her to or rebukes her for inattention;

the story he tells is intrinsically interesting as it explains what we saw in the last scene;

as he concludes his speech, Prospero sends Miranda to sleep and summons up his familiar spirit, Ariel.

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From this point on, the danger of losing our interest has been passed, as we meet Ariel, Caliban and Ferdinand. As Ariel is an "airy spirit" and Caliban a "salvage and deformed slave", their actions and gestures must suggest this to the audience. The pacing and structure of the scene are evident as it concludes with the arrival of Ferdinand, led to Prospero's cell by Ariel and his music. There is no doubt that this music will be played here, and frequently throughout the play to accompany the action. Prospero's power is shown in his summoning Ariel and his control of Miranda's sleeping: he may well use his staff for the exercise of this power - the staff and the book, from which he has earned his Art, are important properties throughout the play.

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Language:

The scene contains a joke about language (repeated later by Trinculo) as Ferdinand is amazed that the goddess-like creature he has met in this remote place speaks his tongue: "My language! Heavens!". Generally, we note how the informal (prose) of the first scene is replaced by a dignified and measured blank verse. Even Caliban (he has been taught by Prospero) habitually uses verse, though he attempts to render his speech ugly by repeated (powerless) cursing. In later scenes he will speak in prose, because he descends to the informality of Stephano and Trinculo (at the end of the play he returns to this propriety of speech).

The versatility of this basic verse form appears in Ariel's account (195-214) of how he "performed" the tempest - the description embodies the frenetic action it depicts. Like Puck in A Midsummer Night's Dream Ariel can alter his voice or mimic others. Although he speaks directly (blank verse) to Prospero, to whom he also appears, he has different appearances or becomes invisible, and has different voices for others. He is able to lead or manipulate people by means of his songs, two of which are heard in this scene: these should be performed as beautiful lyrical airs - here Ferdinand remarks on the music's power: "Allaying both (the waters') fury and my passion/With its sweet air".

One key symbol running through the play is to be noted in the dialogue here and subsequently - the sea. Note how the word is used in compounds ("sea-sorrow", "sea-storm", "sea-change") as well as on its own. The references at first seem merely literal and commonplace but Shakespeare builds up gradually an idea of the elements generally, or nature, but especially the sea, as embodying the principles of justice, retribution and forgiveness which lie at the heart of the play: this becomes explicit in Ariel's "three men of sin" speech in III, iii, and in the play's last act.

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Act II; scene i ***

Relationship with the play and its general themes:

This scene introduces us properly to the people we have first seen in I, i, where their status is clear but not their identities. Prospero's story of his past in I, ii enables us to identify the various characters. Much the most important is Alonso, whose distress at the loss of his beloved Ferdinand, and whose getting of wisdom with age, enable him (later) to repent of his part in Prospero's overthrow. Gonzalo, of whom Prospero has spoken so well, appears superficially to be foolish - his speech is meant to divert Alonso (whose jester, Trinculo, is elsewhere) but appears inappropriate in the circumstances. His manner may be tedious, but his ideas deserve better than the scorn of Antonio and Sebastian.

These seem to be soul-mates in their sarcasm towards Gonzalo and Adrian. Later, as these two conspire against Alonso and Gonzalo, it seems otherwise: Antonio's cynical wit conceals a sharp and scheming mind, while Sebastian is a weaker character, whom he is able easily to corrupt.

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The plot on the lives of the king and his friend show us that Antonio has not changed, that he does not yet see any kind of warning in what has befallen him, and that he seeks to extend his power even when there seems little chance ever to exercise it. The seriously evil scheming of these two can be compared to the very silly plotting of Caliban, Stephano and Trinculo, and to Ferdinand's and Miranda's wholly good plotting (to get round Prospero's seeming disapproval): Prospero is, of course, aware of all of these schemes, to which his responses are well-judged. It is worth noting that Ariel has ensured that the nobles' garments are unharmed by the salt water: this is a clue that the shipwreck is not all it seems, but Antonio and Sebastian are unimpressed, nor do they see the sleepiness of the others as anything but an opportunity for wickedness.

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Theatrical presentation:

This scene readily divides into two parts - in the first, the stage is crowded with characters, and the exchanges are very open and public. When sleep falls on all but the plotters, the dialogue becomes intimate, the action confined to a small part of the stage. After Gonzalo's attempt to comfort Alonso, the dialogue is characterized by the kind of verbal fencing known as stichomythia: this is usually set out as single pentameter lines (statement and repartee) but here the speaking is informal, in prose (which is not an indication simply of social class but of lack of formality).

In the second part of the scene, you should note how Antonio manipulates Sebastian: he is fairly sure of his man, but cannot reveal too much of his own mind until he is sure he is no danger of betrayal: hence, much is hinted, rather than stated at first. The supernatural elements in the scene are (relatively) few, but notable: apart from Ariel's restoration of the nobles' clothes, there is the strange sleep (which we have already seen befall Miranda in the previous scene). Unlike the plotters, the audience is aware of Ariel's vigilance, and we are not surprised by his rescuing the intended victims, to the embarrassment of the plotters who try unconvincingly to explain the drawn weapons in their hands.

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Language:

The dialogue varies enormously in this scene. The conventional rhetoric of Gonzalo's (verse) attempt to comfort Alonso gives way to prose dialogue, and a series of feeble puns and obscure references to the classical world (often cut in modern production). Alonso's speech ("You cram these words into mine ears...") introduces a more serious tone, maintained by Sebastian, Gonzalo and Francisco, but the informal prose returns before the nobles sleep: thus, when Antonio begins his temptation, he changes his manner of speech, adopting a precise and delicate poetic turn. This is the Antonio whom Prospero has described as able to "set all hearts...to what tune pleas'd his ear". There are some notable images, but what is most striking is the organization of Antonio's argument, and his use of hint and unspoken suggestion: "What might/Worthy Sebastian? O, what might? - No more:-/And yet methinks I see it in thy face,/What thou shouldst be."

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Act II; scene ii **

Relationship with the play and its general themes:

This scene should be considered in relation to III, ii which follows from it more or less continuously. In terms of the play's whole structure we see how Prospero's action in raising the tempest has brought to the island various characters, whose actions he and Ariel oversee, making three strands of the drama. Ferdinand we have already met, followed by Alonso and his court; but Trinculo and Stephano are not part of Prospero's original scheme: their anarchic presence is a comic parallel to the more serious malice of Antonio and Sebastian; their meeting with Caliban forms a further connection.

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We see two rebellions plotted, but our view of each is made clearer by the other. Caliban, Stephano and Trinculo can also be seen as "three men of sin" (if Caliban be a man). Like Iago, Antonio is skilful in manipulating others, but he lacks wisdom and his political aims are short-sighted: trapped on the island with (as far as he knows) no mariners, no ship and no hope of these, he still aspires to an ascendancy which has no meaning if he cannot return to Italy. Caliban's apparently more modest aspiration is surprisingly more realistic - to serve Stephano, who (this appears in III, ii) will usurp Prospero's rule over the island. We note also Caliban's naturally servile tendency (he was like this when he met Prospero) and his mistaken belief that the island is Prospero's chosen domain: because Prospero has been exiled from Milan, his authority is exerted over this little island. But he is as ready as Caliban to let it go. Caliban's enjoyment of strong drink is a comic analogy to the serious topical theme of corruption and enslavement of Indians (and others) by means of liquor.

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Theatrical presentation:

The rebellious intention of the fool, the butler and the monster is mirrored in the knockabout anarchy of their actions. The scene has many opportunities to improvise from the usual script, and this may be seen in modern productions as is Shakespeare's time. Trinculo's hiding under Caliban's gaberdine (one of many episodes in which clothes figure prominently) is a comic version of another theme of the play - concealment leading to discovery and reunion.

Here Stephano thinks he has discovered an even stranger creature than the simple monster Trinculo has found. His and Trinculo's joy on finding each other anticipates the reunion of Ferdinand and his father in Act V. The combination of gaberdine, multiple limbs and Stephano's drunkenness makes possible the audience's enjoyment of his evident incomprehension. Caliban's awe at the strangers reminds us of Miranda's reaction to Ferdinand - indeed Caliban makes the same mistake, as he supposes Trinculo to be a "spirit". After the gaberdine, the most important prop in this scene is Stephano's bottle; for Caliban this acquires a magical authority as great almost as Prospero's staff, while Stephano blasphemously likens it to the scripture: "kiss the book" (the reference is to kissing the Bible in making an oath).

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Language:

The scene is notable for parallels to other parts of the play, for the variety of language forms and for reiteration (repetition) which produces running gags. Obvious references to other parts of the drama come in Caliban's calling Trinculo a "spirit", in Trinculo's and Stephano's joy on being reunited, and in Trinculo's account of his swimming ashore "like a duck" (in contrast to Francisco's dignified and eloquent description of Ferdinand's swimming, in II, i). Several terms are chosen for repetition and comic development - such as Trinculo's "duck", leading to a joke about a goose. In Trinculo's first speech the noun "fish" combines the ideas of Caliban's monstrous form, his lack of hygiene and the ever-present sea.

Later in the scene, Trinculo will repeat the term "monster" - suggesting Caliban's strange and inhuman nature, but ringing the changes by prefacing it with different epithets: "weakcredulousperfidious and drunkenpuppy-headedscurvy abominableridiculoushowling" and (damning with faint praise) "brave". Finally, note how varied the forms of theatrical speech are in this scene. Caliban's habitual speech (as in the opening soliloquy) taught him by Prospero, is blank verse which would be eloquent were it not so full of cursing (he has already told us in I, i, that his curses have no power).

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Trinculo's monologue is rather like that of the Porter in Macbeth. It barely advances the plot but shares with the audience a shrewd comic meditation on the play's themes (here the nature of man and the islander; the wonder excited by such creatures in England, and its commercial possibilities). But the speech is also a loose blueprint for banter and exchanges with the audience, improvisation or addition of highly topical material (for obvious reasons not in the surviving text). At first Caliban joins, with Stephano and Trinculo, in prose dialogue: this indicates the informality of the episode (one is a fool and two are drunk) as much as the men's status. Later in the scene, he reverts to the poetic line, as he seeks to impress his new master.

Stephano's song about Kate is as different as can be from the play's characteristic ethereal music, provided by Ariel, the "airy spirit". Learned no doubt, at sea from the sailors who would welcome the friendship of the butler (it may be a shanty, with its rollicking metre) this song, about good times ashore, is as earthy as can be. In its euphemistic reference to sexual pleasure it is worth contrasting with Ferdinand's praise of chastity in IV, i. A different kind of contrast can be found in Caliban's defiant rhyme with which the scene ends - where Ariel is delicate, lyrical, melodic, this is heavily metrical (tub-thumping), a distinction evident in popular music of our own time: Caliban could be a punk-rocker or a rapper.

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Act III; scene i ***

Relationship with the play and its general themes:

This short scene is the central part of that strand in the drama which follows Ferdinand and his courtship of Miranda (see I, ii; IV, i and V, i,). Here we see and hear how the lovers declare their feelings and exchange promises. The sequel to this will be a celebration in the Masque, Alonso's (and Gonzalo's) blessing in V, i, and the solemnisation of the marriage in Naples, which will at last unite the once rival states.

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Theatrical presentation:

After the intrigue of II, i and the frenetic excesses of II, ii, this scene is an oasis (because very brief) of calm in the play. There is action, but the heart of the scene is in the dialogue. As the scene opens, we see Ferdinand bearing a log, one of many which he must bring in. We already know that this is Caliban's "mean" task, but the 17th century audience will also know that this is menial work, unsuited to a prince (the problem lies not in physical difficulty - it is all right for a prince to fight in a battle, after all - but in its servility). Prospero has already brought up Miranda not to be vain, and she amazes Ferdinand by trying to take the log from him. He explains that his love for her has taught him to endure the humiliation: once more we see dramatized the idea of control, especially of self and strong passions. Her own remark tells us that Miranda weeps in her happiness at Ferdinand's declaration of love.

Later, he kneels as he makes his proposal of marriage, an obvious gesture of submission and fealty (frequently in Shakespeare the gesture is insincere). In this play, occasions of kneeling are many, and we have just seen Caliban prostrate himself and kiss Stephano's foot. Where the one action is grotesque, this is subtle and moving, precisely because the one who kneels is dignified and shows self-control.

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Language:

Here language is throughout understated, and we might think that little is going on. In fact, Shakespeare achieves a tension between showing of powerful emotion and the self-restraint which continually checks or disciplines it. At the same time, the scene is like a liturgy, almost a ceremony of betrothal. In the absence (as far as they know) of any witnesses or celebrant, the lovers enact their own ritual and exchange promises. There is of course, both the unseen Master of Ceremonies (Prospero) on-stage, and the audience's understanding that we are the public before whom the lovers plight their troth.

The most important exchange in the scene is surely Miranda's "Do you love me" and Ferdinand's very formal reply: he invokes heaven and earth as witnesses, with power of curse or blessing on his answer, in which each strong verb is stressed in the speaking: "Love, prize, honour". In a scene of mostly short speeches the longer utterances of the lovers about their past (lines 37-59) are worth noting, as is Prospero's closing comment.

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Act III; scene ii **

Relationship with the play and its general themes:

These are mostly the same as in II, ii, (see comments on this scene). Some time (not much) has passed. This has enabled the plotters to move away from the place of their meeting, on the way to Prospero's cell. Caliban knows the way, but they will be re-directed by Ariel. The interruption has enabled Shakespeare to return to Ferdinand and Miranda, while he will show us Alonso and his entourage before we find out how the comic plotting of these three is to be frustrated. Caliban suggests ways of killing Prospero, noting the danger of his books. Stephano imagines his state as ruler of the isle, and the unseen Ariel shows how disunited the plotters really are by setting Stephano against Trinculo.

Caliban's response to Ariel's strange music shows a sense of beauty which surprises us, and makes him, for the first time, seem a rather pathetic figure. The conclusion of the scene anticipates that of III, iii: in both, three sinners, confused by Ariel's magic, are led away to a deserved judgement; in both cases one of the three only (Caliban and Alonso) is more receptive to the hints he is given than the other two. The scene returns us to the play's central theme of rule, and why Prospero is the lawful ruler.

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Theatrical presentation:

The scene relies heavily on physical action, from the drinking and mock fealty at the start to the slapstick of Stephano's beating Trinculo for his supposed insolence. Ariel's music is important in its influence on the plotters, though the intrusion of spectacular magical effects is slight compared to the next two scenes. Caliban is required to kneel, an act of fealty as he makes his suit to Stephano, who stands, as "ruler", as does his "viceroy", Trinculo. Ariel's mimicry of Trinculo's voice is seen as an affront to the dignity of the "court".

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Language:

In variety of verse and prose forms, this scene repeats in part the pattern of II, ii. Here Caliban reiterates the key word "book" as he stresses the danger of Prospero's magic. In the central part of the scene we have a parody of a court, as Caliban renews his "suit" to the gracious ruler Stephano. The request is made, the suit is granted, and Caliban's advice sought on how his design is to be "compassed". Caliban also provides us with an honest tribute to Miranda's beauty and a self-deceiving (but false) suggestion that the spirits which serve Prospero do so out of fear, because they hate him.

The speech beginning "Be not afear'd" is among the most celebrated in all of Shakespeare's works. The speech moves us because we see how confused Caliban is: he resents his servitude of the tyrant, and provokes physical punishment by his defiance, but he enjoys the beautiful melodies which "give delight, and hurt not". They bring him dreams in which he glimpses things so wonderful he cries "to dream again". Stephano's belief that he will have his music "for nothing" (having removed its source) is an error so obvious, it shows how stupid he is. Perhaps Caliban could see the mistake, but he says nothing to this effect. II, i, II, ii, this scene and III, iii all end with an instruction to characters to "lead" on or "follow" - here we have both: "Lead, monster, we'll follow". In fact, they will follow the "taborer", Ariel (the source of the music).

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Act III; scene iii ****

Relationship with the play and its general themes:

This is the pivotal moment of the play; a lot of stage business is accomplished in a fairly brief scene, where nothing is wasted. Having searched fruitlessly for Ferdinand, Alonso accepts that his son is drowned. Prospero now reveals to Alonso, Antonio and Sebastian why they have been shipwrecked on the island, and how they are to amend their ways. The appearance of "strange shapes" (spirits in the service of Prospero) amazes the nobles. Their natural suspicion of the banquet they see laid out is outweighed by their hunger, and they attempt to "set to".

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This is the cue for Ariel, in the guise of a Harpy, to condemn the "three men of sin" and tell them how they are to atone for their crimes. While Alonso recognises his guilt, and sees that the loss of his son is a just punishment, Antonio and Sebastian remain defiant. Antonio never shows remorse, and he has already (Act II, scene i) explained that he cannot feel it, as he has no conscience; at the end of the play he must yield to Alonso's authority and Prospero's power, but he is not reconciled to his brother. Sebastian appears ready to join in the general rejoicing in Act V, and he is evidently happy to see his nephew alive - "A most high miracle" - even though this means he has no hope of succeeding Alonso. The judgement in this scene follows both recent (II, i) and distant past events; its sequel is the penitence and forgiveness of Alonso in Act V.

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Theatrical presentation:

This is among the most spectacular scenes in a play filled with spectacle. The entry of the nobles here represents the end of a journey, on foot, across the island. They barely have time to sit down before the spirits appear; though we do not know exactly what these shapes look like we can infer from Gonzalo's "monstrous shape" that they are grotesque. Unlike the Masque in the following scene, the spirits here perform a dumb show of which the meaning seems very clear: "gesture...expressing...a kind of excellent dumb discourse". They produce a banquet, and gesture to the tired and hungry onlookers to eat it. All this is done to the accompaniment of "marvellous sweet music" - usually in this play a signal to the audience of magical or supernatural business afoot. The "quaint device" in the stage direction indicates some trickery or illusion (perhaps the opening of a trap door) for which Ariel's wings give a cover (now you see it; now you don't). Before Ariel speaks (one of few places - compare III, ii - where he is heard by anyone other than Prospero or the audience) Prospero (unseen by those on stage) appears, to oversee the passing of sentence; having heard it, he commends Ariel - we have a sense of Prospero wholly in control, and his enemies wholly in his power.

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Language

Gonzalo's words establish the sense of the distance the company has walked: "Here's a maze trod, indeed,/Through forth-rights and meanders!" Note also how Alonso (anticipating Ariel) attributes intention to the "sea" which "mocks our frustrate search on land". The response of the nobles to the shapes is to consider that the most exotic travellers' tales are to be believed - this passage is reminiscent of much in Othello, especially Othello's speech before the Venetian council, in which he recalls the stories with which he wooed Desdemona. Othello's "Anthropophagi and men whose heads/Do grow beneath their shoulders" are surely the same as the men of whom Gonzalo speaks here, "Whose heads [stand] in their breasts".

But the most interesting speech is Ariel's. We may suppose this to be Prospero's lines, which Ariel delivers. Ariel refers repeatedly to the sea and the other elements as serving Destiny, which has caused the sea to "belch" up these three sinners. As the men draw their swords, Ariel contemptuously suggest that they have as much hope of wounding the wind and waters as of harming him. The "men of sin" are rebuked because they "did supplant" Prospero - we recall that Stephano has applied the same verb, in the previous scene, to Trinculo's teeth (he will "supplant" these, he says, if Trinculo continues to abuse Caliban).

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This leads to an eloquent statement of a central theme of the play, which recalls (Act I, scene ii) "bountiful Fortune" and the "most auspicious star, whose influence" Prospero must court. The natural world is seen as an agent of "powers" which delay, but do not forget the offences of the "men of sin". It is clear that Prospero himself has delayed but not forgotten, but he appears throughout the play to exercise great power because he works in sympathy with the fundamental powers of the universe. In recognizing his sin, Alonso draws his metaphor from music (one of many musical references in the play): the thunder is the "organ-pipe" which "did bass [Alonso's] trespass". Gonzalo expresses the idea of delayed retribution by the image of "poison given to work a great time after" - the "poison" is a simile for the "great guilt" of the "three men of sin".

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Act IV; scene i ****

Relationship with the play and its general themes:

The first part of this scene is discussed at length in the section on the Masque. In theatrical terms it is a clearly organized scene. Prospero is reconciled to Ferdinand (an anticipation of the next scene) and explains his purpose, and the importance of self-control. To celebrate the lovers' betrothal he will show a "vanity" of his "art". His recollection of the plot on his life betrays Prospero into showing his own "passion" but he reassures Ferdinand that the masque has really ended, and though he is indeed "vexed" he will "still (his) beating mind" presently. Once the lovers retire to his cell (as he recommends and as we find them to have done in the next scene) he and Ariel can rout the plotters.

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Theatrical presentation:

Click here for comments on the Masque. The opening of the scene has the formal character of III, i. After the Masque, the lovers will be able to remain still while Prospero delivers his famous speech. In the second half of the scene we see Prospero and Ariel make preparations before the would-be rebels try vainly to sneak up on their prey, who is in any case more than ready. As their ambition is to rule, Prospero has had Ariel display some flashy but worthless garments outside his cell (either on a clothes line or a lime [="line" in C17th] tree - there is textual support for both readings, and both can work in performance).

In putting these on, Stephano and Trinculo suppose they are assuming the dignity of office. Caliban points out that they are mistaken even about the wardrobe ("It is but trash"). Note again, the importance of clothes (see comment below in The Language of the Play). The plotters are chased by spirits in the form of dogs. In the modern theatre this usually done by sound effects, but Shakespeare, too, would not have brought real dogs on stage. Either, as today, the dogs would be presented in the sound of their barking and baying, or actors would appear as the spirits, in a stance or with actions suggestive of hounds. In any case, what is important is not what the audience is shown but what we know the plotters to think they have seen and heard, and this is clear in their terrified reaction.

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Language

There is enormous variety here. We begin with the stylized and (necessarily) artificial verse of the masque. Since Shakespeare wants this to be a performance for those in the play, its language must be to theirs, as blank verse is to everyday speech. For those who want to know how this formal style works, it is largely a matter of rhymed couplets; end-stopped lines; invocations of characters; an abundance of adjectives, of which many are hyphenated compounds; esoteric "classical" vocabulary, non-standard word-order (moving the main verb to later in a sentence) and stress of terminal -ed on verbs.

Next comes the more usual eloquence of Prospero's long speech at line 146. This could be a description (admittedly a very beautiful one) of how theatre creates an illusion for the imaginative audience, as the spirits have just done. It has acquired greater resonance because critics have assumed that Shakespeare suggests here that, for him, the making of theatrical illusion is at an end - that it is a kind of cryptic leave-taking. This may be so, but the speech makes obvious sense in its context: the Masque is over and the sprits have disappeared back into their element of "air". All theatrical illusions disappear when the play is over.

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Ariel's account of his leading the plotters to the cell is like his account of the tempest in I, ii: active verbs describe what could barely be shown directly. It is interesting that Ariel compares his victims to colts and calves - where would he have seen these? This experience has united Stephano and Trinculo against Caliban. Stephano also affects the state of ruler by seeing "disgrace and dishonour" in their misfortune (specifically in losing his bottle - a bathetic conclusion). There is vulgarity ("horse-piss") and a series of weak puns on the line and the jerkin. The scene ends on a note of triumph for Prospero, as he declares that now all his enemies lie at his mercy: the play's last scene will show how he exercises his power over them.

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Act V; scene i *****

Relationship with the play and its general themes:

This play is tightly organized, and its dénouement is implicit in the first act; we know that Prospero has a purpose for his enemies, and we see in III, iii how they are condemned for their sin and directed to live "a clear life ensuing". In this scene we learn first that his enemies are wholly in his power, and awaiting justice. Though he is moved to take revenge, Prospero recognizes that the "rarer (nobler) action is in virtue", and he will forgive them. He delights in the puzzlement of his captives, and gently teases Alonso about his loss, before revealing Ferdinand alive, playing chess with Miranda.

This leads to a bewildering series of reconciliations and meetings, tempered by the obduracy of Antonio. Both Ferdinand and Miranda express fundamental themes of the play: he notes how "the seas threaten" yet "are merciful", while she sees the nobles as representatives of a "brave new world". More comic reconciliations follow: Caliban, Trinculo and Stephano are justly rebuked but mildly punished, while the Boatswain is excused for his intemperate speech in the tempest. It remains only for Ariel to be freed from his service of Prospero - undertaking one last charge - and for Prospero to give up his magic, a process elegantly mirrored in the play's last speech, where the actor playing this part steps out of character and invites our applause.

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Theatrical presentation:

This is a long scene (it is the whole Act) but has a clear structure of episodes (see above), marked by significant entrances. Gradually, Prospero assembles on stage all the characters of the drama. But first, as Ariel leaves to fetch the first of these, Prospero has the stage to himself, and his soliloquy is a dazzling display of the powers he commands, which, embracing humility, he is now ready to renounce; here, as in the previous Act, we have a sense that Prospero has nothing more to prove, and is ready to retire from the exercise of power. Properties are most important in this scene: Prospero's magic garment ("My art") and his staff fully represent, to the audience, the great power he wields.

Where previously we have seen Ferdinand holding a sword and logs, now we see him and Miranda moving chess-pieces, a cue for puns about playing false, and symbols of the greater dynastic stakes for which they are playing. Once more we have a piece of stage-trickery (compare the two-headed monster in II, ii, the disappearing banquet in III, iii the Masque and the hunting of the conspirators in Act IV): here it is the drawing back of a curtain (or similar device) to "discover" the lovers who are playing chess.

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We should also notice the use of costume here: while Prospero first covers (or replaces) his customary garb with his magic robes (first stage direction) he later asks for his hat and rapier, to "present" himself as he was "sometime Milan"; the Neapolitan nobles and Antonio may not recognize him from his appearance after twelve years, but should recognize the garments and insignia of office.

There is a rather amusing parallel to this, when Caliban, Stephano and Trinculo appear "in their stolen apparel". Their theft of these garments, which they believe suitably dignified for their new status as rulers of the island, has enabled Prospero to rout them, and now the clothes appear ridiculous on them. Notice also the indications (121, 213) of characters embracing or kneeling (179).

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Language

Here (as often in the last act of a play), Shakespeare dazzles us with the variety and mastery of language. Prospero is serious but in control of his feelings as he addresses Ariel. In his great soliloquy, he adopts a more formal tone as he invokes the natural powers by which he performs his magic; this section is characterized by long sentences with complex syntax. When he meets the Neapolitan party he adopts a conciliatory tone, and his affection is reciprocated by Gonzalo and Alonso, whose penitence is evident and sincere in all he says.

The dialogue here is characterized by extreme (but never excessive) sentiment: expressions of delight and amazement abound, and the frequency with which exclamation marks appear is notable. While these characters speak (albeit with changes of tone and feeling, as stated above) in blank verse, Ariel moves from this form, at the start of the scene, to delightful lyrics, as his time of release approaches. Trinculo and Stephano speak informally as ever, but the boatswain's prose invective of I, i gives way to respectful and formal blank verse, as he explains the miraculous delivery of the ship.

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Striking and beautiful comparisons abound here, but a few notable images are these. Alonso, as in III, iii (100-102), is ready to lie "mudded in that oozy bed" where Ferdinand, he thinks, lies. Prospero (79-82) depicts the return of reason to the distracted nobles as like a tide filling the shore of reason: an image that recurs to Alonso because of his distraught state for Prospero is the metaphor which describes the distraction.

Alonso's words on seeing Ferdinand and Miranda remind us of earlier encounters: first he fears he sees a vision (he has seen strange visions already), then he believes Miranda to be a goddess (as Ferdinand suspects when he meets her). Sebastian's "A most high miracle" suggests he cares more for his nephew's preservation than his own hopes of kingship - and contrasts with his claim that "the devil speaks" in Prospero at line 129. (Antonio does not speak until Caliban appears.)

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Ferdinand's comment on the seas, which he has "cursed...without cause" like Prospero's "the rarer action is/In virtue than in vengeance" is a brief statement which perfectly articulates a central theme of the play. And Prospero's mention of his "fury" recalls Ferdinand's words in I, ii, about "fury" and "passion".

But the most remarkable speech is arguably that of Gonzalo at line 205. Already, there have been repeated references to Naples and Milan. Gonzalo's previous discussion of Claribel and Tunis (in II, i) has led to the ridicule of Antonio and Sebastian.

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Now he turns the events and places into a beautiful epigrammatic and elegant statement of the way in which the evil beginning has led to a good end:

"Was Milan thrust from Milan, that his issue
Should become Kings of Naples? O, rejoice
Beyond a common joy, and set it down
With gold on lasting pillars: in one voyage
Did Claribel her husband find at Tunis;
And Ferdinand, her brother, found a wife
Where he himself was lost; Prospero his dukedom
In a poor isle; and all of us ourselves
When no man was his own."

"There is a strong hint of rejoicing at the felix culpa (="happy fault") in this beautiful speech." (Arden edn. p. 125)

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Love in The Tempest

The play is a comedy, in that a happy ending is contrived out of misfortune which has the potential for a tragic outcome. There is some doubt in our minds how Prospero will deal with his enemies, and Shakespeare is concerned, to a point, that his actions be justified, as is the case in speeches to Miranda, to Ariel, to Ferdinand and Alonso. How far, and in what ways, does the play, then, deal with ideas of love?

The play is about Romantic love, in the conventional sense: Ferdinand woos Miranda, but this element in the play is unusual in the circumstances in which the lovers meet, in their status (as heir of Naples and heiress of Milan) and expectations, and in their initial mistakes about each other. It is also worth considering what we learn of Ferdinand's previous relationships and Miranda's unconventional upbringing.

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The romance of the young lovers leads to consideration of themes of sexual love: this is found at once in Ferdinand's enquiry about Miranda's maidenhood (in I, ii) and more fully in Prospero's insistence that Ferdinand exercise self-control in his courtship, in Ferdinand's response to this injunction, and in the masque which Prospero's spirits present in IV, i.

The play is about the love of parents and children for each other: Alonso's grief at the supposed loss of his heir is an indication of his humanity, and helps bring about his reconciliation with Prospero. We can also see Ferdinand's sadness at his father's imagined loss (though this is tempered by the joy of meeting Miranda). Prospero's love for his daughter is evident, and he explains in I, i, how he has acted "in care of" her, in raising the tempest.

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The play is about the love of friends: Prospero shares mutual affection both with the "noble Neapolitan" Gonzalo, and with the "tricksy spirit" Ariel. He fails in his attempt to nurture civilising values in Caliban whom he at first tries to love, and he is betrayed by his brother, whose treachery is seen as unnatural, in contrast with the love of the good old counsellor which disregards political enmity. At the end of the play, Prospero befriends Alonso.

The play is about redeeming love or mercy: at one level this is what enables Prospero to forgive the "three men of sin" (and more trivially to forbear to punish Caliban, Stephano and Trinculo with any real severity); at a more profound level, this is a principle at work in the imagined world of the play. While Ariel's speech to the "men of sin", in III, iii, suggests that the "powers (of nature) delaying, not forgetting" are now punishing the offences of the sinners, this notion of just retribution gives way in Act V to a vision of forgiveness: "Though the seas threaten, they are merciful". This love has power to transform: we are puzzled to hear, from Ariel, that Ferdinand's father "suffers a sea-change" but at the end of the play, we understand that he has indeed suffered a "change" and how the sea is the agent of that change.

For the purpose of exposition of the drama, these elements can be considered separately. In the play, they are not separated but presented in a complex arrangement.

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Nature and Art

The Tempest shows the distinction between the natural man, Caliban, and the civilized man, Prospero. Shakespeare demonstrates, by the examples of Prospero, Ferdinand and Miranda, and by those of Sebastian, Stephano and Trinculo how social, civilized man may rise above or sink beneath the savage. Caliban is a kind of yardstick by which we can measure others. Caliban is not merely a slave in fact, but justly so. His vileness is not chosen but is his nature; Antonio, on the other hand, embraces wickedness for his own gain, although he knows the moral law.

Gonzalo, as Act V shows, has never approved of what was done to Prospero. In his speech in II, i (on the ideal commonwealth, echoing Montaigne's essay Of Cannibals) he expresses distaste for the more cynical and divisive features of government and society - exploitation of labour, expropriation of land and extremes of luxury, poverty, drunkenness, gluttony. Contrast this with the positive way in which Prospero makes the island more comfortable and delightful.

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On his arrival on the island, Prospero tries to educate Caliban; he has no intention to enslave him, but sees him as his inferior in respect only of learning. But Caliban is able only to learn Prospero's language to utter powerless curses; he cannot take "any print of goodness" - his attempted rape of the child Miranda is reported to the audience as unambiguous evidence of Caliban's lack of conscience or soul. Again we see his degeneracy in his knowing his curses have no power yet persisting in uttering them, and inviting "cramps" as punishment. Antonio also claims to have no conscience - in some ways this is more shocking, as he has the outward beauty and eloquence of the civilized man.

As the play is a pastoral romance it is permissible for physical beauty or ugliness to represent beauty or ugliness of spirit. So Caliban is a "salvage and deformed slave" while Sycorax, through her wickedness, "was grown into a hoop". Conversely, Miranda and Ferdinand appear god-like each to the other. To Miranda's untutored eye all the Milanese and Neapolitan nobles appear beautiful, but then she is comparing them with Caliban. This beauty results from an essential nobility which is tainted but not effaced by behaviour such as that of Antonio.

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Prospero's magic is not simply more powerful than that of Sycorax; it is stronger because of its radically different nature. Sycorax is a goetist, her magic as potent as the demon, Setebos, whom she serves. It is usually strongest when most malevolent, although her life was spared for "one thing she did" for Argier. Her imprisonment of Ariel in the cloven pine is typically cruel and destructive, "a torment...which Sycorax could not again undo".

Prospero repeatedly refers to his "Art": his magic is creative, of enormous power, as Ariel harnesses the elements. He is a theurgist, who does locally and swiftly what the natural universe or the supernatural power in it is striving to do always. He does not act for his own advantage but in order to produce what is good. In some ways Prospero's Art is a desperate remedy to a desperate situation: it is invoked to free himself from passion, the baser promptings of unregenerate nature, to create perfect self-discipline; for others his Art is used to restore harmony to human relationships and political hierarchies. Having done so, he can abjure "this rough magic", assured that it will not be needed again.

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Prospero's Art controls nature; it requires of the artist virtue and temperance if his experiment is to succeed; and it thus stands for the world of the better natures and its qualities. This is the world which is closed to Caliban...; the world of mind and the possibilities of liberating the soul, not the world of sense, whether that be represented as coarsely natural or charmingly voluptuous. Art is not only a beneficent magic in contrast to an evil one; it is the ordination of civility, the control of appetite, the transformation of nature by breeding and learning; it is, even, in a sense, the means of Grace. Prospero is, therefore, the representative of Art, as Caliban is of Nature. As a mage he controls nature; as a prince he conquers the passions which had excluded him from his kingdom and overthrown law; as a scholar he repairs his loss of Eden; as a man he learns to temper his passions, an achievement essential to success in any of the other activities.

Frank Kermode, The Arden Shakespeare, The Tempest, xlviii

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Art and Nature as contrasting principles can, then, be discerned in comparing the education of Miranda with what passes for education in Caliban; Ferdinand's chaste love and Caliban's lust; Sycorax's lesser and Prospero's greater magic; the intemperance and folly of Stephano and Trinculo against the self-control of Ferdinand and Prospero, and the latter's wisdom.

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Theatrical qualities

For a detailed reading of the theatrical qualities of the play, see the comments on the key scenes, under the heading Theatrical Presentation. But in answering questions about Shakespeare's stagecraft generally, you should consider the following:

the comic interludes (mostly involving Trinculo, Stephano and Caliban;

Caliban, Ariel and the spirits;

magic and music; the sea, the tempest and the island;

Prospero's books and staff;

the language of the play.

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The Masque in Act IV, scene i

In looking at this part of The Tempest you should be aware of:

this scene in terms of the structure of the whole play;

the relation of this scene, and antimasques to the wider themes of the play;

critical theories about masque elements in The Tempest.

Before starting some explanation of terms is in order. Originally a masque is any form of masked dancing (as in Romeo and Juliet) or informal entertainment. It has its origins in Italy and comes to France and England in the late 16th century. It becomes more formalized and ingenious through the masques of Ben Jonson and Inigo Jones, whose work Shakespeare would know. These are dramatic and musical entertainments using elaborate and expensive properties or machinery. A masque might be performed once only, owing to its expense and technical difficulty. A grotesque or comic interlude in a masque is sometimes known as an antimasque (corruption of antic mask).

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A helpful introduction of the masque in The Tempest is given by Stephen Orgel:

Playwrights were naturally attracted to the form for its spectacular qualities, but often too for the special nature of its action and view of the world. The action of masques is not limited by chronological time or dramatic interchange; their metamorphoses could provide alternatives to the demands of politics or mutability (=tendency to change); their idealized or symbolic figures could move the drama, however momentarily, away from a world of action and passion and toward the realization of another sort of possibility. Thus - to limit our consideration to only the most brilliant example - Prospero's masque in The Tempest has at its centre Ceres and Juno: the goddess of agriculture directs the play back to a world of civilized nature, away from Caliban's search for pig-nuts, "young scammels", dams for fish; and the resolution of both majesty and marriage points the way to a resolution of the play's political conflicts, to the proper exercise of authority and the uniting of ancient enemies in the harmony of marriage.

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The agent of all this is Iris, the rainbow, pledge of God's providence after the universal flood. And the action of the masque, in what is temporally the most tightly and precisely organized of Shakespeare's plays, moves in its brief span from "spongy April" through spring and the fruition of summer to the entry of 'sunburnt sicklemen, of August weary', after which (as Ceres assures Miranda and Ferdinand) there will be not winter but:

Spring come to you, at the farthest,
In the very end of harvest! (IV, i, 114-5)

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So the masque's world is able to banish even winter; its natural cycle contains no death. Appropriately, it is at this point that the magician interrupts this 'vanity of mine art' to recall himself and his play from the dangerous pleasures of fantasy to the realities of the world of action. 'I had forgot that foul conspiracy/Of the beast Caliban' (IV, i, 139-40): it is precisely death, in the persons of Caliban, Stephano and Trinculo that threatens at this very moment. Prospero's awareness of time - both the masque's time and the play's - constitutes both his art and his power, his vision of his world as an 'insubstantial pageant' on the one hand, and on the other, his total command of the action moment by moment. Nowhere else in the age is the immense and ambiguous vitality of the masque's world-view better exemplified than in The Tempest.

C.Ricks (ed). Sphere History of Literature in the English Language, Vol. 3 (English Drama to 1710), pp. 365-6

The interlude in Act IV is not strictly a masque, in that the action is presented by spirits rather than masked men and women, and the revels at the end are also conducted by the spirits, where in a conventional masque the spectators would join in at this point.

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The structure of the play and masque elements

Act I is largely an expository prologue, while in Act V, Prospero unmasks himself, reunites Alonso and Ferdinand, and is reconciled with his foes. But from I, ii to IV, i in a series of eight episodes, Prospero and Ariel oversee the actions of the three principal groups of characters (Alonso and his court; the comic "court" of "King Stephano", and Ferdinand and Miranda). In each case there is some spectacular performance from Ariel or the other spirits, culminating in an extended sequence: it begins with the disappearing banquet, followed by Ariel, in the figure of a harpy, denouncing the "three men of sin" and ends with the hunting of the comic trio of would-be rebels. Between these two comes Ferdinand's reward, in the formal masque of IV, i.

Ariel's appearance as a harpy is appropriate: the harpies tormented King Phineus by disturbing his meals and stealing his food; here food is taken away, and in both cases the disturbance is seen as a judgement on sin. The harpies come from the same Greek myth as the goddesses we see later. The punishment of Caliban, Stephano and Trinculo is delayed until the end of Act V.

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The Language of the play

Detailed comments on the language of the play appear in the comments on key scenes. This section should help you organize your ideas, while explaining some general features of the play, and helping you study language for yourself.

Forms of theatrical language

In any part of the play, it is worth noting what speakers are doing. Are they addressing one another, giving information, persuading or engaging in word-play? This may well affect the language forms they use. Consider also their social standing and the formality or informality of the occasion. "Thee", "thou" and "thy" are familiar forms, while "you" is more polite. Alonso is always addressed as "you". Only Caliban (impertinently) calls Prospero "thee". When Prospero is testing Ferdinand, he addresses him in the familiar "thee" form. Note, however, that the "you" form may be used to avoid friendliness as much as out of respect. Children are "thee" to their parents, but Miranda addresses Prospero as "you".

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Amazingly, Ferdinand only once speaks directly to his father, addressing him as "sir". When Caliban, Stephano and Trinculo are rebuked in Act V, Alonso and Prospero employ the formal "you", which is appropriate to passing a sentence. The different forms in which dialogue is presented tells us both about the speaker and the situation.

Dialogue in prose is less organized than that in verse (blank or rhymed) which is an indication of informality or lack of education. It is not the preserve of characters of low status (for the record, Theseus, Hamlet and Prince Hal all speak in prose on occasion). In this play, the nobles who speak in the first scene cannot compose their speech into verse forms: this also shows the audience that their language has descended to the level of the mariners (or below it - note Sebastian's and Antonio's curses). The sailors are distinguished not by more informal speech, but their garments and their seamanship. Caliban has no social standing, but has been taught to speak by Prospero and is most comfortable in unrhymed verse.

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For the most part the nobles speak in verse, also. Ariel, as a spirit, requires more variety: in giving information to his master, he will also speak in the conventional blank verse, as he does at length in condemning the "three men of sin" in III, iii. In other situations, or when he is expressing himself more spontaneously, Ariel will employ short lyrics, which we may suppose (from other characters' responses) to be sung or chanted.

Trinculo and Stephano are in no condition to speak verse if they have the capacity, which is not clear - although Trinculo, as a jester, should be able to vary his manner of speech. On the other hand, the Boatswain is more versatile: like everyone else, in the extremity of the storm and caring no more than "these roarers for the name of King" , his speech is prosaic; but he is perhaps used to addressing his superiors as appears in Act V, where, in polite and eloquent verse, he tells the king that the ship is safe and sound.

The Masque requires a more literary or formal style than the usual unrhymed verse; this would be tedious if kept up for the whole play - but it seems appropriate to the occasion and the performance by spirits.

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Imagery in The Tempest

In most of Shakespeare's plays metaphor and simile abound so much that it is impossible to comment generally without either writing at length and without coherence, or missing out much of importance. The Tempest is unusual, in that conventional comparisons are more sparing than elsewhere. It is unusual in another sense, too. In this play a number of ideas are expressed in terms which recur, alone or in compounds, as well as being, in the world of the play, directly present.

It can easily be seen that Shakespeare moves from an idea of justice and balance in nature, to an idea of a world composed of the four elements, to which reference is repeatedly made in the play.

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Caliban and Sycorax are associated with the earth, a word which appears ten times in the play (he is called "thou earth", her commands are "too earthy" for Ariel to perform) and various characters express affection for the land. Gonzalo asks in I, i for just an "acre of barren ground" and in II, I, he, Antonio and Sebastian discuss the ground of the island.

Ariel is of course an inhabitant of the air (the word or its forms appear fourteen times, though often in the sense of melody), while the storm he raises makes the ship "all afire" with him as he flames "amazement", and flames "distinctly" with "Jove's lightnings" and "the fire and cracks/Of sulphurous roaring" ("fire" or its forms appear seven times).

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But the most important element, by far, is water - in this play, the sea. It appears repeatedly in compounds ("sea-sorrow", "sea-nymphs", "sea-change", "sea-swallowed", "sea-marge") and thirty times in all in dialogue, apart from other references to it. The essential justice of the natural universe is stated in the condemnation of the "three men of sin", where we learn that "the powers delaying, not forgetting" have incensed the seas against the offenders: the sea is the agent, in this play, of change, justice and redemption. Ferdinand sees this as he recovers his seeming-drowned father: "Though the seas threaten, they are merciful".

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Among the other poetic images in the play, several are notable as they recur. There is an interest in clothes, which leads to such things as Ariel's marvellous cleaning of the nobles garments (despite being in sea-water, which would make the dye run, they "holdtheir freshness and glosses); Trinculo's sheltering under Caliban's gaberdine; Prospero's use of the "trumpery" as "stale to catchthieves", and Prospero's discasing and presenting himself as he was "sometime Milan". This idea is picked up as poetic image by Antonio - told by Sebastian that he recalls his usurping the Milanese throne, he tells him to "look how well" his "garments sit upon" him, "Much feater than before". Like Stephano and Trinculo, he sees the office he unjustly holds, in terms of wearing the robes it brings with it.

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There are various references to swallowing and regurgitation. In II, i, Alonso asks "what strange fish" has "made a meal on" his "heir", while Antonio says that he and his fellows have been "sea-swallowed" but some "cast again". We see plenty of swallowing of liquor in II, ii and III, ii, and Stephano notes that his "stomach is not constant", while in III, iii, a banquet is prepared, but miraculously taken away before it can be eaten.

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Music is a reality of life on the island, but also provides us with poetic images on occasion. The most notable of these is Prospero's description of his brother as having the (musical) "key of officer and office" so he was able to "set all hearts i' the state/To what tune pleased his ear". In I, ii, it is the music which allays the waters' "fury" and Ferdinand's "passion/With its sweet air", while the same idea recurs in V, I, where Prospero invokes a "solemn airthe best comforter to an unsettled fancy" to "cure" the "useless" brains of his former enemies. Of course, the ambiguous "air" connects the music, usually performed by Ariel, with the element he inhabits and of which he, being "but air", is formed. This in turn leads to a scheme, not unlike that of the four vital humours, whereby passion (=fire) is subdued by the soothing influence of music (=air).

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Dealing with questions in the "A" level exam

In preparing for the exam you should be aware of the different kinds of question you may have to answer. These are questions based on a passage from the play, questions about themes and characters, and questions about the play as a work of theatre. In studying the text closely you should simply realise that the material studied can be approached in different ways in the exam.

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Questions based on a passage from the play

In theory any episode from any scene in the play could be chosen; in practice the number of suitable scenes is more limited, but of course the extract chosen will only be a brief part of a longer scene.

Because of the part of such a question (usually) which refers to the themes of the play (not necessarily in so many words) and which implies consideration of before and after, scenes from the middle of the text are more likely to be chosen.

What the examiners do NOT want is a gloss (prose paraphrase or translation) of the extract given. This might make you feel secure, but you won't be.

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What is required may be as follows, but read the examiners' instructions to make sure:

Consideration of the scene's treatment of the play's general themes - the extract and its place in relation to the rest of the play.

Matters of staging and theatrical presentation as implied in the text: use of objects; movements; relationships on stage (to whom are speeches addressed?) and the scene's structure (in "episodes"). Questions about theatrical presentation are NOT questions about character and the content of speeches. (See below.)

How a character (or characters) is (are) revealed in the dialogue. Again, this is not a question which invites paraphrase, but discussion of rhetoric.

Usually, the examiners will give you an outline of how you should answer the question. You must organise your answer in these terms. Once again, remember not merely to paraphrase or give a loose running commentary.

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Possible essay subjects

Examiners will usually play fair and not set a question on Adrian or the Boatswain. Essays explicitly about a single character are comparatively rare at GCE "A" level (as they invite the "prepared" essay). Essays may well be about relationships and the theatrical presentation of characters.

Questions on themes look harder but aren't, usually. And they inhibit the "retelling-with-comment" method you should avoid.

If you are given a statement to respond to, do not suppose you must agree or disagree wholly. Usually, the statement will be more or less fair but will invite some qualification. Wholly wrong comments are never used. Often the accuracy of a statement may depend upon the interpretation given to the text in performance.

Questions about themes and characters

These should be straightforward. The examiners want to see lots of material but without irrelevance or sacrifice of depth and thoroughness. It is essential to plan your essay to ensure that sufficient range of comment appears. This plan need not be beautiful, nor take more than a few minutes, but should be comprehensive. Embody the plan in your opening sentence(s).

Among the principal themes of this play are love, redemption and nature and art.

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Revision questions

This play is very wide-ranging in its themes, while there is much to say about it in theatrical terms. This study-guide contains articles on some of these but is not exhaustive. Most school editions of the play will contain lists of questions for study, but some further questions appear below.

Questions set for past Advanced level exams

Show how the characters of Ariel and Caliban contribute to the dramatic interest and themes of The Tempest, indicating to what extent human qualities are important to these contributions. (JMB, 1978)

"The Tempest is a fairy-tale and something more." Discuss (JMB, 1978)

Examine Shakespeare's use of the theme of usurping in The Tempest, both as a reality and as a threat. (JMB, 1984)

"A play of spectacular effects but of little dramatic interest." Discuss this view of The Tempest. (JMB, 1984)

"A play which celebrates the power of love." How far is this an adequate account of The Tempest? (JMB, 1988)

How do both Caliban and Ariel contribute to the dramatic spectacle, action and themes of the Tempest? (JMB, 1989)

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Questions from the Casebook on The Tempest

It has been suggested that since Prospero controls the action of the play, it is lacking in dramatic conflict. Do you agree?

Consider the different aspects of Time as they are used in the play.

What part does the theme of service versus freedom play in The Tempest?

Examine Shakespeare's presentation of villainy in the play: is it possible to distinguish between serious and comic wickedness?

Trace the interplay of feelings of wonder and disillusion in The Tempest.

How appropriately does Shakespeare distinguish between the major characters of the play in their styles of speech?

Do you agree that the play shows Prospero's limitations as well as his virtues?

Is the Masque of Ceres an integral part of the play, or an interlude in the main action? Justify its presence in the play.

Do you think The Tempest appeals simultaneously to sophisticated and naive tastes?

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Specimen question on a given passage

Discuss the importance to the play of the printed episode, and the scene from which it comes. You should write about all of the following:

1. the relationship of the extract to the rest of the play, and its wider themes;

2. what is revealed of [name of character - e.g. Alonso] in the whole scene;

3. the theatrical qualities of the episode, including actions, properties and features of language.

An extract from the text of the play will follow this question.

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Specimen question on a theme

"Though the seas threaten, they are merciful": How does the play explore themes of justice and forgiveness? In your answer you should consider the "high wrongs" Prospero has suffered, his treatment of those who have injured him, and Shakespeare's presentation of the natural world as a symbol and agent of reconciliation.

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Specimen questions on theatrical qualities

In what ways have you found The Tempest interesting as a play for dramatic performance? In your answer you may wish to discuss any of the following and other relevant comments on the play as a work of theatre:

the comic interludes;

Caliban, Ariel and the spirits;

magic and music; the sea, the tempest and the island;

Prospero's books and staff;

the language of the play

What do the comic episodes, involving Caliban, Stephano and Trinculo, contribute to the total dramatic effect of The Tempest?

In your answer you should consider the following:

the relationship of these scenes to the play's wider themes;

dialogue, and any effects of language;

actions, properties, costume and use of the performing space

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© Andrew Moore, 2002; Contact me

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Introduction This study guide is intended for GCE Advanced level students in the UK, but is suitable for university students and the general reader who is interested in Shakespeare's plays. Please use the hyperlinks in the table above to navigate this page.

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The Tempest is different from many of Shakespeare's plays in that it does not derive from one clear source. The play does, however, draw on many of the motifs common to Shakespeare's works. These include the painful parting of a father with his daughter, jealousy and hatred between brothers, the usurpation of a legitimate ruler, the play-within-a-play, and the experiences of courtiers transplanted to a new environment. It is commonly classified with Pericles, The Winter's Tale, and in a small group of plays called "romances." These plays contain elements of comedy and, to a lesser extent, tragedy, but do not wholly belong to either category. Common elements in Shakespearean romances include experiences of loss and recovery, as well as imaginative realms in which magic can play an important role.

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The Tempest is different from many of Shakespeare's plays in that it does not derive from one clear source. The play does, however, draw on many of the motifs common to Shakespeare's works. These include the painful parting of a father with his daughter, jealousy and hatred between brothers, the usurpation of a legitimate ruler, the play-within-a-play, and the experiences of courtiers transplanted to a new environment.

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