The Christ–like Prospero of Shakespeare’s The Tempest

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The Christ–like Prospero of Shakespeare’s The Tempest

It is not only the goodness of man which, according to traditional Christian concepts ,is not germane to himself. His very being, and his ultimate destiny stems alike from a principle that is infinitely beyond him (Morris 143).

What was Prospero attempting to accomplish through the creation of the storm? Why would he go to that length of natural disaster, if the events would only end in an unharmed manner?

Prospero. But are they, Ariel, safe?

Ariel. Not a hair perished. On their sustaining garments not a blemish but fresher than before; (1.2.218-221).

It was Prospero’s innate goodness that created a merciful storm, temporarily displacing his brother, the Duke, and the ship’s crew. Prospero use of magic allowed him to realize that his power surpassed the Duke’s. What might create empathy in the readers and viewers of this play is that Prospero had double the power of Antonio, the Duke and it showed through his merciful treatment of the storm’s creation. Prospero used intellect and did not operate on emotions solely, which could make the interpretation of the storm more philosophical, than vengeful. Because Prospero was a scholar, his plan became well thought out and the consequences were considered before hand, instead of acting on impulse, worrying about the outcome of those actions when it's too late. The power of nature was apparent to Prospero. His treatment of that power showed that he just wanted to return the rightful position of Duke to himself. "A man’s will, in order to be good, must be conformed to the Divine will….a will must be referred to the common good as an end, and formally will the Divine and universal good in addition to a particular good"...

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...peare's Plays.

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Publishing, 1972.

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Greenblatt, Stephen. gen. ed. The Norton Shakespeare. New York: Norton Company, 1997.

Knight, G. Wilson. Shakespeare and Religion: Essays of Forty Years. New York:

Simon and Schuster Publishing, 1968.

Knox , Bernard . The Tempest. New York: Penguin Group, 1987.

"Magic". The Encyclopedia Britannica. 1971. ed.

Morris, Ivor. Shakespeare's God. London: Rustin House, 1972.

Smith, Hallet. Twentieth Century Interpretations of The Tempest. New Jersey:

Prentice Hall, 1969.

The New Oxford Annotated Bible. Bruce M. Metzger and Roland E. Murphy, ed.

New York: Oxford University Press, 1994.

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