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Miranda the tempest diary essay
The theme of revenge in William Shakespeare's
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Prospero is a very powerful man who is out for revenge. At this point in the play, and in his life, he seems to only care about himself and his daughter. He is bitter at the loss of his Kingdome from his own family and she has been the only one who is there for him which isn’t exactly by choice. It is easy to see how hurt he is from what has been done to both him and his daughter. For the first time he is telling Miranda about the journey that led them to the island, “I pray thee, mark me /I thus neglect worldly ends, all dedicated / To closeness and the bettering of my mind” (1.2.107-110). While he is telling his daughter this story he is making sure he is being seen as innocent, saying he was just trying to better himself when this happened.
Prospero is so powerful he can even control spirits and even twelve years on an island he still embodies characters of a king. He seeks revenge and is bitter about Antonio’s sneaking taking of the throne but at the end of the day he seems forgiving. To me, he doesn’t hold the normal qualities of a Shakespeare character who is out for blood. Prospero simply wants his life back, the life he had before he was wrongfully deceived. I believe his daughter, Miranda, helps support this notion. The idea that he has raised such an innocent and loving daughter shows the deeper roots of his character. Being on a secluded island, he is her only influence and he has done a good job in raising her.
A longing for revenge can hold people captive in their own minds, influencing thoughts and speech. The Tempest, by William Shakespeare, is a play that follows the story of Prospero, the rightful Duke of Milan, after he is overpowered by his own brother and left to die with his daughter in a cramped sailboat. He seeks vengeance against many; however, he is not alone in his pursuit of revenge. His servant, Caliban, yearns for revenge toward Prospero for commanding him to be his slave. As Prospero seeks revenge on Antonio and Caliban, he does not realize Caliban’s own craving for revenge against him.
The Tempest presents the character of Prospero the usurped duke of Milan. In the beginning Prospero’s character can be described as foul, spiteful, and selfish. This can be seen in various scenes in acts one and two of the play where he treats the people around him as his servants especially the fateful Ariel who reminded him of his promise only to be threatened of imprisonment. He’s selfish in the sense that he would do anything to accomplish his goal of executing his plan. Like a master puppeteer he is manipulative and deceptive. He even manipulates his daughter to fit according to his scheme. However, all of his foul characteristics left him as his plan nears its end. It is as if the shedding of his clothes represented his change is personality and attitude. After Prospero discarded his staff, drowned his magic book, and wore his duke garments he became more responsible and sympathetic. Instead of exacting revenge on the king of Naples a...
Throughout the play, Prospero is a figure who talks at rather than to the other characters, including his daughter Miranda, Prince Ferdinand, and Ariel, his airy servant. At the end of Act IV Prospero is caught up in the ecstasy of punishing and determining the fate of his foes. The beginning of Act V, however, marks a change in the character of Prospero, which averts a possible tragedy. Prospero is unsettled even though his plans are reaching fruition. In his talk with Ariel for the first time we see an actual conversation take place. In addition, in the line "...And mine shall." (Shakespeare V.i.20) we see a change of heart on the part of Prospero, and in the following monologue the audience is privy to introspection and contemplation even beyond that of the end of the masque in Act IV "We are such stuff as dreams are made on..."(Shakespeare).
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.
In Act I of the play, Prospero finally tells Miranda the woeful story of how she and he arrived on the island. From the beginning, Prospero plays his subjects and his sympathetic audience as pawns in his game of manipulation. He explains that twelve years ago he was the Duke of Milan, but being enthralled with his studies, he left most of the governmental responsibilities to his brother Antonio. Antonio, hungry to be "Absolute Milan" himself (1:2, p.6), proceeded to betray him with the help of King Alonso of Naples. 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.
kindness and innocence portray heart" (line 8/9) and this contrasts. to her father who is not as concerned as she is "Tell your piteous heart there's no harm done" (line 14). Prospero's power and control over Miranda is something that really stands out, "obey and be attentive" (line 38) and it is clear that she. respects him, "my dearest father" (line 1.) At first one may presume that Prospero is an evil man for causing the tempest, but I feel that He loves Miranda very much and would do anything to protect her.
But with Prospero informing Miranda of this at such a late stage in her life is this Prospero as a control freak only allowing his daughter Miranda to know the truth when he feels it is time or is it Prospero being caring keeping this information from Miranda until she is of an age when she can fully understand who she is and where she came from?, again it is not clear to see if Prospero's intentions are for his own good or the good of his daughter.
Prospero manifested to have been a caring father, and that he has taken full responsibility for her, as a proper father ought to do. On the other hand, Prospero has apparently been cautious with giving Miranda information about her past. In response to Miranda’s concerns of herself, Prospero answers; “Stay, not yet” (14, Act 1, Scene 2). “Obey, and be attentive” (15, Act 1, Scene 2), he exclaims to her in the same scene. In The Tempest, Miranda can be interpreted as a living representation of female morality. Miranda is typically viewed as completely embodying the patriarchal order of things, thinking of herself as dependent to her father. The traits that create Miranda 's femininity are the same traits that oppress her: her innocence and vulnerability are seen as the things that allow her to be manipulated by her father. Prospero 's use of Miranda as a gadget in his political revenge is expressive of the play 's sexist attitude towards women. Prospero is, to some extent, in control over her sexuality and her thoughts; According to Linley "Patriarchy 's dominance explains why so many men had such low opinions of women, treating them unsympathetically and as sex objects. " Prospero was portrayed as a patriarchal father who cared about his daughter, but he wasn 't ashamed to use her as marriage bait to get what he
Trust is a main theme between Miranda and Prospero’s relationship. We see this first in the opening scene with Miranda and Prospero when they are stood on the island looking at the shipwreck as Miranda questions her father; “You have put the wild waters in this roar, allay them” (William Shakespeare, 2008. The Tempest: The Oxford Shakespeare The Tempest (The Oxford Shakespeare: Oxfords World 's Classics). P.101, Reprint Edition. Oxford University Press.) This conveys that Miranda believes her father started the horrific storm, questioning his trust. There are many points throughout this play that Shakespeare shows how Prospero is very much in power of Miranda. One being; “I have done nothing but in care of thee, of thee, my dear one, thee, my daughter, who art ignorant of what thou art; naught knowing…” (William Shakespeare, 2008. The Tempest: The Oxford Shakespeare The Tempest (The Oxford Shakespeare: Oxfords World 's Classics). P.102, Reprint Edition. Oxford University Press.) Shakespeare has explored the father/daughter relationship between these characters right at the beginning and the reader is able to establish that Prospero is hurt by the fact his daughter who he dearly loves, does not trust him. Their relationship is very loving and you see that Miranda is the apple of Prospero’s eye even from their first entrance. However,
Prospero is in complete control of Miranda; he raises her in his image and as nearly all fathers of his day demands respect. He commands her, “obey, and be attentive” (Shakespeare 1.2.39) when he tells her the story of how they came to the island. Also alike the fathers of this time, Prospero would plan his daughter’s future marriage to Ferdinand. Ferdinand is the only man Miranda has ever seen, besides her father and Caliban so he immediately captivates her—they mutually fall in love. Prospero also controls the speed at which their relationship progresses, by accusing Ferdinand of only pretending to be the Prince of Naples and forces him to haul wood; this act only further exemplifies the power and control Prospero has over his
The shipwrecked people also play into Prospero’s hand, but they don’t even realize this. Even Miranda is dutiful to her father, and does what he says with little complaint.
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.
The nucleus of the plot in Shakespeare's The Tempest revolves around Prospero enacting his revenge on various characters who have wronged him in different ways. Interestingly enough, he uses the spirit of Ariel to deliver the punishments while Prospero delegates the action. Prospero is such a character that can concoct methods of revenge but hesitates to have direct involvement with disillusioning his foes. In essence, Prospero sends Ariel to do his dirty work while hiding his involvement in shipwrecking his brother, Antonio, from his daughter, Miranda.
Prospero’s conduct from the moment the play begins seems to contradict the basic lessons of Christian forgiveness. Prospero’s enemies are within his grasp and Prospero seizes the opportunity for revenge. “Desire for vengeance has apparently lain dormant in Prospero through the years of banishment, and now, with the sudden advent of his foes, the great wrong of twelve years before is stirringly present again, arousing the passions and stimulating the will to action” (Davidson 225). Though Prospero does not intend to harm anyone and he asks his servant, "But are they, Ariel, safe?" (1.1.218), he does want to put the men through the pain and agony of what they believe is a horrible disaster resulting in the death of the prince, Ferdinand.
Prospero uses the power of love to influence his daughter Miranda. Prospero knows that Miranda is devoted to him so he uses guilt to maintain her devotion. Miranda tells her father “Alack, what trouble/Was I then to you!” (I.2.153.154) her saying that to him shows that because of Prospero making her feel guilty, she is willing to do anything just for him. “Had I been any god of power, I would/Have sunk the sea within the earth…” (I.2.10.11). This quote indicates that she understood the extent of her father’s power and she had possessed the same amount of power, she would use it differently with Prospero. His power over Miranda is one that is continuously in this play. Prospero does say “I have done nothing, but in care of thee, /of thee, my dearest one…”(I.2.16.17) when he says that he makes it known that he does love his daughter and only trying to protect.