The Supernatural in Shakespeare’s The Tempest And Marlowe’s The Tragical History of D. Faustus
The supernatural forces are at once alike and distinct in Shakespeare’s The Tempest and in Marlowe’s The Tragical History of D. Faustus. The supernatural is kind to Prospero and his daughter Miranda in The Tempest, while the devils in Dr Faustus eagerly wait for the day that Faustus would join them in Hell. In both plays, the supernatural provides recurrent waves of sounds and feelings, lending special atmospheric qualities to The Tempest and Dr Faustus. The supernatural serves as a reminder of the hierarchies that exist in both plays, and it also illuminates the human heart, revealing the characters’ thoughts and wishes. Often appearing visible to all, the supernatural forces in The Tempest and Dr Faustus sustain the plays by providing a distinct atmospheric backbone, by reminding the characters of the existing hierarchies, and by revealing the characters’ inner hearts.
Soaked in the supernatural, Shakespeare’s The Tempest possesses an impenetrable veil of eeriness. It opens with the tempestuous roaring of thunder and lightning, setting the stage for panic and confusion amongst the mariners. The mariners scatter and hide, while Ferdinand’s hair stands on end. This wild and surreal atmosphere prepares the characters and the audience for future encounters with supernatural beings. When the spirit Ariel wakes Gonzalo and the others, Gonzalo says, “’Tis best we stand upon our guard, or that we quit this place. Let’s draw our weapons” (II.i.317-318). The mortals are on guard against the supernatural, and this suspenseful atmosphere often returns when Ariel and the other spirits approach these unknowing men. When Prospero remembers ...
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...ory of D. Faustus are about the relationship of the two worlds. By creating an eerie and sometimes humourous atmosphere, the supernatural gives the plays points of interest. The existing hierarchies between mortal and immortal are not to be destroyed, and the supernatural beings in these two plays reinforce the rules. By revealing the characters’ hearts and minds, the supernatural drive the plot as well as the actions of the individual characters, so that without these beings, these two plays would grind to a standstill.
WORKS CITED
Marlowe, Christopher. The Tragical History of D. Faustus. In Renaissance Drama: An Anthology of Plays and Entertainments. Edited by A.F. Kinney. Massachusetts: Blackwell Publishers Ltd., 2002.
Shakespeare, William. The Tempest. The Norton Shakespeare. Ed. Greenblatt, Stephen. New York: W.W. Norton & Co. Inc., 1997. 3055-3107.
Shakespeare, William. The Tragedy of Othello: The Moor of Venice. Ed. Barbara A. Mowat and Paul Werstine. New York; Washington Square Press, 1993.
The book contains some of what you would expect in a book by revolting librarians. There are the requisite essays on the suppression of civil liberties through the Patriot Act along with essays detailing the problem of cultural representation in the Library of Congress Subject Headings. And of course, there's something both by and about Sandy Berman, a living legend among progressive librarians. But there are also quite a few surprises. Ever curious about the astrological breakdown of librarians? You'll find an extensive article complete with enough statistics to make you break out your notes from IRLS 506. [Leos dominate the field, with Aquarians an astrological minority.] Another notable essay concerns what services librarians can offer to day laborers.
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The Tempest by William Shakespeare is one of the most relevant and studied plays of the Elizabethan period among scholars, from both, ancient and actual times. One of the many readings that have prevailed suggests that the play’s protagonist, Prospero, and his two su-pernatural servants, Ariel and Caliban, can work as a single psychological unit is constantly discussed by the academics. This reading is not new; it has been considered for longer than the idea of The Tempest as an autobiographical allegory, being first proposed by Thomas Campbell in 1838 (Yachnin).
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John Wilders' lecture on The Tempest given at Oxford University - Worcester College - August 4th, 1999.
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In this brief examination of the Tempest, it becomes obvious that the play is a mirror image of the progression of events in the Bible. This use of Christian elements in the play is not obvious upon first reading the play, but becomes undeniable as the action progresses. The motif of Christianity in other Shakespearean works is not as structured and in-depth as the motif found in the Tempest.
Bevington, David M; Rasmussen, Eric. “Doctor Faustus A- and B- texts (1604, 1616): Christopher Marlowe and his collaborator and revisers.” Manchester, England: Manchester University Press. (1962). Academic Search Complete. Web. 5 Dec. 2013 (Bevington)
Greenblatt, Stephen. Introduction to the Tempest. The Norton Shakespeare. New York: W.W. Norton and Co. 1997: 3047-3053
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In The Tempest, Shakespeare adheres closely to the classical unities of time, place and action. The unity of place required that the scene should remain unchanged throughout the play. The entire action, with the exception of the first scene, is confined to the island. The storm of the first scene symbolizes a transition in the lives of the characters, and establishes their relationships with each other and with a world in a state of disorder. The initial reactions of the characters when arriving on the island are important metaphors for the ideologies they h...
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Shakespeare, William, and Robert Woodrow Langbaum. The Tempest: With New and Updated Critical Essays and A Revised Bibliography. New York, NY, USA: Signet Classic, 1998. Print.