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Relationships in a midsummer's night dream
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The Tempest seems to be a play that deals mainly with power and control. The first scene of Act I opens with the tempest itself, a powerful storm that is capable of destroying the ship and everyone on board. This chaotic scene introduces some of the characters and their power-relations to each other. The characters on the boat are either nobles, such as Antonio and Gonzalo, or servants or professionals, such as the Boatswain and the mariners. The storm upsets this precarious balance between masters and servants, and the Boatswain, attempting to save the ship, comes into direct conflict with the nobles. The Boatswain speaks rudely to the nobles, which irritates them because the Boatswain is a commoner. However, at that moment, the Boatswain
Shakespeare's play, The Tempest tells the story of a father, Prospero, who must let go of his daughter; who brings his enemies under his power only to release them; and who in turn finally relinquishes his sway over his world - including his power over nature itself. The Tempest contains elements ripe for tragedy: Prospero is a controlling figure bent on taking revenge for the wrongs done to him, and in his fury he has the potential to destroy not only his enemies, but his own humanity and his daughter's future.
The Tempest by William Shakespeare, among other themes, is a play very centered around rivalries, an important one being the one between Prospero and Caliban. As one would naturally expect, the triumphs and failures of the ongoing conflict yield different reactions for the two different characters. The conflict illustrates a dichotomous view of the way in which people respond to failure or defeat. Whereas Caliban responds to defeat instinctively with furious acts of retaliation, Prospero reasons that when those kinds of acts are examined under the scope of logic, they appear to be unlike that of a noble and therefore, should not be undertaken.
The Tempest reflects Shakespeare's society through the relationship between characters, especially between Prospero and Caliban. Caliban, who was the previous king of the island, is taught how to be "civilized" by Prospero and his daughter Miranda. Then he is forced to be their servant. Caliban explains "Thou strok'st me and make much of me; wo...
Through The Tempest play, William Shakespeare weaves together a tale that is characterized by anti-colonialist sentiments. Prospero - the deposed Milan Duke - adopts a colonialist mentality by treating his colleagues as slaves who have no rights. Characters who suffer mistreatment under Prospero include: Ariel - the spirit creature; Ferdinand - the Naples Prince; and Caliban - Sycorax’s son. Prospero possesses much magical power which he uses to oppress his compatriots. Consequently, Prospero is portrayed as a colonial tyrant who abuses his immense power. Anti-colonialism feelings are especially evident through the actions, utterances and disposition and of Caliban, Miranda, Ferdinand and Ariel. To illustrate, Caliban berates Prospero for the former’s forced labor. Likewise, Ariel protests Prospero’s reluctance to release the former as earlier agreed. Miranda also expresses her dissatisfaction with Prospero’s unfair imprisonment of Ferdinand. Similarly, Ferdinand appears to challenge Prospero’s authority by briefly stopping dragging timber so as to flirt and chat with Miranda. The foregoing four characters exhibit conduct that highlights their displeasure with Prospero’s colonial-style authority over them. From the preceding expose, it can thus be concluded that Shakespeare’s The Tempest play is about anti-colonialism based on its depiction of Caliban, Miranda, Ferdinand and Ariel’s opposition to Prospero’s oppressive authority.
“The Tempest” is a play written by William Shakespeare in early 1600s that has been previewed in different kinds of movies, such as the one made in 2010, directed by Julie Taymor. It is a play containing themes such as; revenge, allusion, retribution, forgiveness, power, love and hatred. When it is compared to the play, there are specific differences seen in the movie, such as; Prospero is reflected as a woman in the movie. The time differences between the play and the movie and how the spirit Ariel is shown as a white man in the movie. The play starts with the story of Prospero, the Duke of Milan. He gets banished from Italy and was cast to sea by his brother Antonio. He has perfected his skills during twelve years of exile on a lonely island. Prospero creates the tempest to make his enemies’ ship to wreck and lead them to the island. Meanwhile, Antonio takes Prospero’s place and starts to make everyone believe he is the duke and makes an agreement with the King of Naples, Alonso. Besides the drama happening in the island, Prospero forgives Alonso and the others.
William Shakespeare's, "The Tempest," provides insight into the hierarchy of command and servitude by order of nature. This play uses the relationship between its characters to display the control of the conqueror over the conquered. It also shows how society usually places the undesirable members at the bottom of the chain of command, even though they may be entitled to a higher social status. For example, the beginning of the play opens with a scene on a boat in the midst of a terrible storm. The boatswain, who is under the command of the royal party, attempts to keep the boat from sinking.
Shakespeare's "The Tempest" forms a world within itself. Within this world, many topics regarding government, power and colonization are addressed. Shakespeare tackles the discovery of new places and races, the relationship between the colonized and the colonist, old world ideologies on new soil, as well as theories on civilization and government. These aspects at the core reveal a very clear struggle for political power. Prospero's first major monologue creates the foundation of such a theme. In 1.2 lines 30-175 Prospero tell his story recounting the usurpation of the power he had as Duke of Milan, then quickly renews his power on the island. Prospero beings his story with an authoritative tone stating: "Obey and be attentive" (1.2 48). Desiring political power and authority becomes the core from which other themes derive.
It makes sense to me to see in this Shakespeare's sense of his own art--both what it can achieve and what it cannot. The theatre--that magical world of poetry, song, illusion, pleasing and threatening apparitions--can, like Prospero's magic, educate us into a better sense of ourselves, into a final acceptance of the world, a state in which we forgive and forget in the interests of the greater human community. The theatre, that is, can reconcile us to the joys of the human community so that we do not destroy our families in a search for righting past evils in a spirit of personal revenge or as crude assertions of our own egos. It can, in a very real sense, help us fully to understand the central Christian commitment to charity, to loving our neighbour as ourselves. The magic here brings about a total reconciliation of all levels of society from sophisticated rulers to semi-human brutes, momentarily holding off Machiavellian deceit, drunken foolishness, and animalistic rebellion--each person, no matter how he has lived, has a place in the magic circle at the end. And no one is asking any awkward questions.
One way in which The Tempest reflects Shakespeare's society is through the relationship between characters, especially between Prospero and Caliban. Caliban is the former king of the island, and Prospero and his daughter Miranda teach him how to be "civilized." Immediately thereafter, Prospero and Miranda enslave Caliban and he is forced to be their servant. Caliban explains "Thou strok'st me and make much of me...
The Tempest by William Shakespeare (1611) is a play about the manipulation of people who have a lack of knowledge of the current situation. Throughout the play Shakespeare uses Prospero a wizard as a master manipulator. The manipulation by Prospero, Ariel and Stephano are used to show that if you keep knowledge from others it is easy to take advantage of them. This was the case during the colonization of the New World by the English, Spanish and French. When first coming to the New World people from the old world uses manipulation and the lack of knowledge of the native people in order to overtake the land. By using manipulation Prospero is able to put into affect his plan to regain his dukedom.
The tempest in the beginning of the play is a symbol of Prospero’s magic. His magic is used as an abusive form of power, utilized for the purpose of self indulgence and personal profit. Prospero’s magic and the manner in which he uses his powers unethically reveals his willingness to go to any lengths to achieve his goals. He uses physical and psychological manipulation to achieve his goal of regaining his dukedom, disregarding the possible effects of his actions on those he manipulates. Prospero abuses his power over his servants so they can perform the tasks needed to execute his plan. Prospero also benefits from his manipulation of his own daughter. His influences in Miranda and Ferdinand’s relationships are to his advantage in furthering his scheme for vengeance. The members of the royal party are those which suffer the most from Prospero’s unethical use of magical power. Prospero first creates the Tempest to capsize their ship for the purpose of enacting his plan for revenge. While on the island, he continuously uses his magic to terrorize the group, he allows Alonso to grieve Ferdinand and believe him dead. Prospero also manipulates them with magical illusions in sending Ariel as Harpy to threaten them, “Lingering perdition, —worse than any death / —shall step by step attend / You and your ways” (3.3.77-79) After which he works their minds into a madness, and then later imprisons them. Even Prospero’s supposedly virtuous decision to give up his magical powers and release the prisoners is a selfish one. Moreover, it is Ariel, not Prospero, who proposes that the royal party be pardoned. From the beginning of the play until this point, Prospero has been wholly consumed by his need for power and revenge. Prospero shows no mercy or remorse to those he manipulates until
Nearly every scene in the play, either intentionally or unintentionally, portrays a struggling relationship between a figure that possesses power and a figure that is suppressed by that power. The play explores the relationship between master and servant very dynamically. In the opening scene, the boatswain (servant) is very oppressive towards the noble men (master) due to their sophomoric attitude in a dangerous situation like that. This is especially visible when Antonio, the usurping Duke of Milan, asks the boatswain where the master is, to this, the boatswain replies, “Do you not hear him? You mar our labour. Keep your cabins! You do assist the storm,” (1.1.11-12). After being told to be patient, the boatswain once again replies with strong attitude, “What cares these roarers for the name of king/None that I more love than myself,” (1.1.14-17). This shows that despite the noble men having great amounts of political “authority” over the boatswain, they do not have enough “power” to substantiate that. This authority is not gained by strength or inheritance, but knowledge. ...
Shakespeare was intending to represent several different groups of people in society through his plays and “The Tempest” was no exception to the rule. I aim to show how the “human” relationships in the play reflect real life relationships within Shakespeare’s own society (as well as his future audience), for which his plays were written and performed.
The Tempest was written in 1611 as Shakespeare’s last romantic comedy. This play is focused mainly on the theme of power. Shakespeare portrays an aging magician who has been living in exile with his young daughter on a remote island for the past 12 years. Shakespeare presents forms of power in different ways, but mainly through the characters of Prospero. In The Tempest Shakespeare shows 3 different types of power, which are through love, power over his slave Caliban, and power of magic.
The Tempest, like any text, is a product of its context. It is constructed in relation to moral or ethical concerns of 17th century European Jacobean society. The resolution of conflict appears 'natural' or an inevitable consequence if regarded in relation to the concerns of its context. The resolution of conflict in this play incorporates Prospero being returned to his 'rightful' or natural position as Duke of Milan, his daughter Miranda getting married to Ferdinand, and the party returning to Milan leaving the island to the 'monster', Caliban. The resolution is a consequence of the concerns of the time, including the idea of the divine right of kings, courtly love, and colonisation.