The Character of Prospero in The Tempest
The presence of Prospero is felt continuously in The Tempest, even in those scenes in which he does not appear personally. He is the manipulator of the action of the play, and occupies the center of the stage very markedly, especially if one compares his position with that of the central characters of, say, most of Shakespeare's history plays. For in the latter plays, England itself becomes the hero - the English crown, in its resistance to civil war and factionalism, and therefore there is usually no one character of quite the same stature as Prospero.
In Latin, the name Prospero would mean, "I hope for." That which a member of English Renaissance society would generally have hoped for would be salvation, in the terms of Christian theology. Another meaning of his name would be "prosperity," implying that everything which he attempts will prosper. There is certainly a connotation of hopefulness in his name.
Prospero is purified intellect. He is a "white" magician; he practices theurgy, not goety. (Curry 137). By the practice of white rather than black magic we mean that Prospero's magic is always turned to good ends, and that he seeks only good. At the end of the play Prospero seems somewhat to abdicate his role as the embodiment of pure intellect, as he returns to Milan to resume his role as an active chief magistrate, or Duke.
The question then arises: is Prospero a renegade to the status he has throughout the play - the status of pure intellect? For an answer, we must turn to the concept advanced earlier in this study: that everyone on the enchanted island, including even the man - monster Caliban, learns and is educate...
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Hartman, Geoffrey H. Saving the Text: Literature/Derrida/Philosophy. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins UP, 1981.
More, Sir Thomas. "Utopia." The Longman Anthology of British Literature. Vol 1. Ed. David Damrosch. New York: Addison-Wesley Educational Publishers Inc., 1999. 637-706.
Platt, Peter. "Shakespeare and Rhetorical Culture." A Companion to Shakespeare. Ed. David Scott Kastan. Massachusetts: Blackwell Publishers Ltd., 1999. 277-296.
Sacks, David Harris. "Political Culture." A Companion to Shakespeare. Ed. David Scott Kastan. Massachusetts: Blackwell Publishers Ltd., 1999. 100-116.
Shakespeare, William. The Tempest. Ed. Rex Gibson. Cambridge: Cambridge UP, 1995.
Snider, Denton J. "A review of The Tempest." The Shakespearian Drama a Commentary: The Comedies. (1890). Rpt. Scott. 320-324.
The Red Badge of Courage and The Blue Hotel: The Singular Love of Stephen Crane
In the novella Maggie: A Girl of the Streets and Other Short Fiction by Stephen Crane, Crane tells a story about Maggie, a girl who lives in the slums of New York City in the 1800s with her family and friends. In novella it is portrayed that Maggie desperately tries to escape the slums, however, because of Maggie’s environment and social forces, it ultimately led to her downfall and demise within society.
Though in his short life Stephen Crane was never a soldier, his novel The Red Badge of Courage was commended by Civil War veterans as well as veterans from more recent wars not only for its historical accuracy but its ability to capture the psychological evolution of those on the field of battle (Heizberg xvi). Walt Whitman, on the other hand, served as a field medic during the Civil War. He was exposed perhaps to the most gruesome aspect of the war on a daily basis: the primitive medical techniques, the wounded, the diseased, the dying and the dead. Out of his experiences grew a collection of poems, "Drum Taps" , describing the horrors he had witnessed and that America suffered. As literary artists, a wide chasm of structure and style separates Crane and Whitman. The common cultural experience, the heritage of the Civil War connects them, throwing a bridge across the darkness, allowing them, unilaterally, to dispel notions of glorious battles and heroic honorable deaths. By examining Crane's Henry Fleming and the wound dresser from 'Whitman's poem of the same name, both fundamental literary differences and essential thematic consistencies emerge.
Crane's story is about a girl named Maggie who grew up in a life that would cause any person with feelings to have the utmost sympathy for her. To explain briefly; her brother was a roughneck in the community, her mother and father were alcoholics, a younger brother died at a young age, and they lived in a tenement building. Crane is described as a "realistic" author because of the way he describes the social environment and the stress of everyday life.
Stephen A. Douglas was born in Brandon, Vermont on April 23, 1813. His father, a young physician of high standing, died suddenly when Stephen was two months old, and the widow with her two children retired to a farm near Brandon. This is where Stephen lived with her until he was fifteen years old. He attended school during the three winter months and working on the farm the remainder of the year. He wanted to earn his own living so he went to Middlebury and became an apprentice in the cabinetmaking business. This trade he followed for about eighteen months, when he was forced to stop his work because of impaired health, after this he attended the academy at Brandon for about a year.
In the comedic, yet thrilling play, The Tempest, William Shakespeare uses characters such as Caliban, Alonso, and Ariel to show Prospero’s immense cruelness and pure monstrosity. Moreover, these Shakespearean characters are also used to highlight Prospero’s change in character into a kinder and more forgiving person. Prospero starts the play out as a vengeful monster, after an illuminating moment however, his persona transforms into his true identity of a compassionate man.
Stephen Crane's purpose in writing The Red Badge of Courage was to dictate the pressures faced by the prototypical American soldier in the Civil War. His intent was accomplished by making known the horrors and atrocities seen by Unionist Henry Fleming during the Battle of Chancellorsville, and the conflicts within himself.
Stephen Crane was a realistic, American author. He also wrote little bits of Naturalism and Impressionism. As a child, Crane was constantly sick. In fact, he was so sick that his parents worried he would not make it. After losing four children before Crane was born, Crane’s parents had reason to worry about losing him. Despite his unhealthy nature, Stephen taught himself to read by the age of four. Crane is seen as the most groundbreaking writer of his generation by many modern day authors. A major theme that is seen throughout Stephen Crane’s writing is the sense of ideal life versus reality. Crane’s poetry differed from other poets during his time because most of his poems were narratives. In his poem “In the Desert,” Crane illustrates that even though a person might not seem human because of their mistakes, the ability to overcome that emotion and not allow the negative aspects of life to consume the positive aspects is what considers a person human (Stephen Crane).
Crane utilizes a unique writing style in the novel, specifically in the way he structures the chapters. Each chapter contains strong imagery which Crane strengthens through repetition and (at times) a unique parallel structure. A prime example is the opening chapter in which Pete saves Jimmie from a fight with the local children of Devil’s Row. The chapter opens with an already battered Jimmie who stands defiantly in lieu of the other children retreating stating “dese micks can’t make me run” (752). Jimmie uses the derogatory “mick” in order to refer to the Irish ancestry of his adversaries.
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.
If it was not for Stephen Crane and his visionary work than American Realism would not have taken hold of the United States during the eighteen hundreds. During the years following the Civil War America was a melting pot of many different writing styles. Many scholars argue that at this time there was still no definite American author or technique. Up to this point authors in the Americas simply copied techniques that were popular in regions of Europe. Stephen Crane came onto the scene with a very different approach to many of his contemporaries. He was a realist, and being such he described actions in a true, unadorned way that portrayed situations in the manner that they actually occurred (Kaplan). He had numerous admired pieces but his most famous work was the Red Badge of Courage (Bentley 103). In this novel he illustrates the accounts of a Union soldier named Henry Fleming. At first the writing was considered too graphic and many people did not buy the book. Eventually the American people changed their opinions and began to gravitate towards Crane’s work. The readers were fascinated by the realistic environment he creates even though he himself had never fought in a war (Bentley 103). By spreading the influence of realistic writing Crane has come to be known as the first American Realist.
Dutton, R., & Howard, J.E. (2003). A Companion to Shakespeare’s Works.(p. 9) Maiden, MA: Blackwell Pub.
Shakespeare's Use of Language, Imagery and Setting to Illuminate Prospero's Journey from Revenge to Reconciliation
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.
Prospero is really the key character about which the nature of illusion and reality centers. He is the one who appears to have been stripped of all his power, and yet he is truly the most powerful; he lives in a world where he can conjure up an illusion of a storm; he lives between a course of regular human action and magic; and he is perceptive about philosophies on the topic of illusion and reality.