The Tempest Betrayal Quotes

492 Words1 Page

Betrayal hurts, everyone has felt the damage which betrayal creates. You almost never expect it to happen from your loved ones, your family. And when it does, the feeling can only be described as a gunshot tearing through your trust, and more importantly your love. One can only describe an act of betrayal as dreadful and to forgive such an abhorrent act would be challenging to say the least. In the play, The tempest, Prospero is banished alway by his brother and the king in hopes he and his daughter die. However both make shelter on a deserted island that prospero uses in his revenge. Years later, the king and a small crew of his men, including prospero's brother are tricked into landing on the island i which prospero's uses this time to half heartedly get payback at those who attacked him so long ago. However Prospero feels it's more important to make amends with his brother, and the other antagonists, and decides to forgive them. Clearly shown from the text, prospero forgives the ones who are guilty.

Prospero is forgiving to those who even plotted to kill him.”Go, sirrah,to my cell; take with you your companions”(5,294). In the quote, Prospero tells his would be killers to go into his house and put the things they stole back away. This is because of the trio going through Prospero's clothing in a drunken state if madness. …show more content…

For the men who overthrew Prospero in the beginning, he sent his fairy, Ariel to act as a harpie attacking from the sky. When he realizes the evilness is torturing their mind, he stops the fairy. “His tears run down his beard like winter's drops from eaves to reeds. Your charm works em that if you now beheld them, your affections would become tender”(5,12) Ariel says to Prospero that the king has gone mad, and that their mind rest in prospero's hands. Prospero realizes that he's becoming just like the men who hurt him once

Show More
Related

  • Role of Government in the Tempest

    885 Words  | 2 Pages

    Prospero, the protagonist of the play, is perhaps one of the more controversial characters in literary history. Prospero is essentially on a quest to right the wrongs that he and his daughter Miranda have had to suffer. He sees himself as a bringer of justice, and that he is morally correct in doing what he is doing. He was formerly the Duke of Milan, a fairly high position in regards to political power in Italy. One day, however, he was stabbed in the proverbial back by his own flesh and blood, his brother Antonio. Antonio removed Prospero of his position and took the reigns of Duke for himself. He then banished Prospero and Miranda out to sea, where they eventually ended up on the island. Now this sounds unjust, and of course it is. But Prospero then begins to contradict his own self. The island that he and Miranda come upon is already inhabited by a witch, Sycorax, and her son Caliban. Prospero, an extremely powerful man, looks down on Sycorax because she is a witch, and he proceeds to take over the island and run it as himself. This all of a sudden sounds like a familiar tale. Sycorax eventually passes away, and Prospero enslaves her son, Caliban, to do all of Prospero's bidding. Prospero also comes across a prisoner, Ariel, who has been imprisoned for twelve years. Ariel is an interesting character in that he is almost a spirit-like entity.

    Read More

  • The Tempest Ap Essay

    473 Words  | 1 Pages

    “The Tempest” is a play about an alchemist trying to exert revenge on the people who expelled him from dukedom from the kingdom of Milan. During the course of the play Prospero has many chances to make the antagonists suffer. During these times Prospero arbitrarily finds humanity and decides not to harm them and even care for their goodness. An example of this is when Prospero assures to Miranda that during the tempest Prospero created, everyone on the boat was not harmed: “Be collected./No more amazement./ Tell your piteous heart/There’s no harm done.” During the play Prospero goes through a plethora of mood swings that show many different sides of such as: Prospero as being a patriarchal or benevolent figure to him being a tyrant or being manipulative.

    Read More

  • The Christ–like Prospero of Shakespeare’s The Tempest

    1367 Words  | 3 Pages

    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"...

    Read More

  • Vengeance and Forgiveness in Shakespeare's The Tempest

    1049 Words  | 3 Pages

    Here, the imaginative sympathy for the sufferings of others leads to an active intervention based upon "virtue" rather than "vengeance." This is a key recognition in the play: virtue expressed in forgiveness is a higher human attribute than vengeance. And in the conclusion of the play, Prospero does not even mention the list of crimes against him. He simply offers to forgive and accept what has happened to him, in a spirit of reconciliation. Unlike other Shakespeare plays, the ending of The Tempest requires neither the death nor the punishment of any of the parties.

    Read More

  • biblical themes in shakespeares the tempest

    1700 Words  | 4 Pages

    Prospero is the picture of a man in two different aspects. On one hand, he is made in the image of God and given dominion and control over the world created in The Tempest. On the other hand he represents a fallen man who is in exile from his home. Both of these types can be found in the book of Genesis. God himself is in control of his world, and able to manipulate the world in order to stand back and see how the players will react. God and Prospero are both willing to accomplish their goals through imperfect means. When Jacob steals Esau’s inheritance right, the younger son triumphs over the older son by dishonest means. In the end it accomplishes God’s goal, so it is allowed to happen. Just as Joseph’s mistreatment by his brothers and his imprisonment because of Potiphar’s wife cause him great anguish, but move him closer to accomplishing God’s plan. Prospero is a scholar who has spent years in his books perfecting his magical powers. Clearly the last twelve years has been spent developing the power to both punish and forgive his enemies. Prospero controls even the inner workings of Caliban’s body. He is able to punish Caliban physically with his power, in order to completely control him and accomplish his means. Prospers also completely controls Ariel.

    Read More

  • The Tempest Critical Lens

    604 Words  | 2 Pages

    “Both, both my girl. By foul play, as thou sayst, were we heaved thence, but blessedly holp hither”. This quote shows that Prospero knows that it was Antonio, his brother, who vanished him to the island, which he later forgives. “The rarer action is in virtue than in vengeance. They being penitent, the sole drift of my purpose doth extend not a frown further”. Prospero is being honest about forgiving his brother for vanishing him to the isolated island. It is clear that neither Antonio and Sebastian are penitent about their behavior towards vanishing him. When Prospero states “In virtue in vengeance” he doesn’t want to look for revenge towards his brother. These words show that although Antonio vanished his brother Prospero to an isolated island with his daughter Miranda. However, Prospero forgives Antonio and doesn’t seek revenge. This relates to the prompt because Antonio betrays Prospero by vanishing him to a isolated island with his

    Read More

  • Prospero’s Abuse of Power in Shakespeare's The Tempest

    1318 Words  | 3 Pages

    When Miranda asks why they were not killed, Prospero sighs, "Dear, they durst not,/ so dear the love my people bore me" (1:2, p.7). From the beginning, Prospero portrays himself as a distinguished scholar and beloved leader, unjustly victimized by his power-hungry brother. Who would suspect such a humble man of being psychologically manipulative? Prospero succeeds in deceiving many with this credible guise. Prospero's control of Miranda is evident throughout The Tempest, even from their first conversation.

    Read More

  • Similarities Between The Tempest And One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest

    1015 Words  | 3 Pages

    Prosperos discovery of mercy leads him to regain political power and leadership. It is likely that desire for revenge has lain dormant in Prospero and after 12 years of being secluded on the island, his enemies are now within his grasp and Prospero revels in it. His desire for justice was so great that he commands his spirits to torture

    Read More

  • Prospero's Choice in The Tempest

    494 Words  | 1 Pages

    Prospero's choice to refrain from murder sets his objectives above mere revenge. By using ingenuity and the spirit Ariel's help, he achieves the semblance of death without the reality thereof. He could have simply made the tempest so furious that it destroyed the ship, or subjected the offenders to lingering torture, but instead spends more time to separate the "survivors" into three groups to deal with them more effectively. Thus he avoids guilt and criticism for unnecessary death.

    Read More

  • The Tempest Quotes Of Manipulation And Power

    1100 Words  | 3 Pages

    Ariel seems to have exchanged the Prospero (the lesser evil) over being confined to a tree in the hope Prospero would keep his promise to give him his freedom. Prospero and his daughter were accustomed to living a life of luxury and having people wait on them, had to learn how to become self-sufficient while on the island. Having control through manipulating Ariel may have given Prospero a sense of ownership over the island. Prospero could use Ariel’s magic to exact revenge upon the people who sent him into exile away from his home. In seeking revenge upon those individuals, it also may have given him a sense of control over the situation allowing him to control and bring fear and misery to those on the ship. Prospero’s use of manipulation to get Ariel to do as he asked was evident in Act 1 Scene II, when he manipulated Ariel by reminding him of how he saved Ariel from the pine tree, “Dost thou forget From what a torment I did free thee?” Reminding Ariel how he saved him, made Ariel feel guilty for reminding Prospero

    Read More

  • Servants In The Tempest

    1334 Words  | 3 Pages

    Despite the fact that, Antonio betrays him, takes his position and plots to murder him, but Prospero’s response to that is quite positive. First he put the blame on himself for not taking the responsibility of his duties and following his study. Second, he thought of him as a brother or a human being. His decision is more in the sense of humanity and morality. He forgives his brother since he returns his position as a duke of Milan. Prospero

    Read More

  • The Abuse of Power in Shakespeare's Play, The Tempest

    986 Words  | 2 Pages

    Prospero presents himself as a victim of injustice, however his belief of justice and injustice is somewhat contradicting. He takes advantage of this authority over other people and situations he encounters while using his integrity and compassion to mask his dangerous plans and to retain love and respect. The Tempest in the end suggests that love and compassion are more effective political tools than violence, hatred or even abusive magic.

    Read More

  • Essay on Prospero in Shakespeare's The Tempest

    989 Words  | 2 Pages

    No man is an island. It takes a strong, mature man to forgive those who hand him misfortune. It takes a real man to drop to his knees and repent. The character of Prospero in Shakespeare's Tempest is a man who has suffered much. Prospero is a puppet master throughout the play, but releases everything to save himself from his own self. The enemies in the play are not those whom he shipwrecked, they are of little consequence, and he plays them easily.

    Read More

  • The Tempest Research Paper

    487 Words  | 1 Pages

    In the play Miranda does not want to look at Caliban and is afraid of him because he looks different. When Prospero came to the island he taught Caliban about his language and culture and now treats him as a slave. Now Caliban does all the manual labor. Prospero has also imprisoned Ariel into his service and promises Ariel freedom once but goes back on his word and says he will free Ariel later. Ariel has become Prospero’s servant and like everyone else, Prospero manipulate Ariel to get what he wants. Throughout the play Prospero’s way of manipulation and ruling over the island and its inhabitants show similarities to colonialism and imperialism.

    Read More

  • Character of Prospero in Shakespeare's The Tempest

    628 Words  | 2 Pages

    Prospero is a very powerful person and using his spell books he is able to conjure up some mighty magic. Possibly the most powerful thing he controls is Ariel (a spirit). An example of this is when Prospero says "Hast thou, spirit, Preformed to point, the tempest I bade thee".(718) Ariel had the power to create a great sea storm and Prospero had the power to control Ariel which gave him great power. Another reason why Prospero is powerful is because of his knowledge of Caliban, Stephano, and Trinculos plot to kill the king. So when Prospero reclaims his place in Milan again he'll have some mighty blackmail just incase he needs any favors or they try any thing stupid. This way they'll think twice before going against Prospero. Especially considering that Miranda will become queen. These are the reasons why Prospero is powerful.

    Read More

More about The Tempest Betrayal Quotes

Open Document