relationships in the tempest essay

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Investigate character relationships.

See how their relationship changes during the play by moving the bar to the marked points.

The relationship between these characters remains the same throughout the play.

John Gielgud as Prospero.

Antony Sher as Prospero.

Miranda, Prospero and Caliban.

Ralph Richardson as Prospero.

Malcolm Storry as Prospero.

Jonathan Slinger as Prospero.

John Wood as Prospero.

Prospero was Duke of Milan until his brother Antonio usurped his position and had Prospero cast out to sea in a small boat with his young daughter Miranda . Prospero and Miranda landed on an island where the only other inhabitants are spirits and a strange creature called Caliban , who he now commands.

Facts we learn about Prospero at the start of the play:

• He uses magic to control the spirits of the island.
• He was the Duke of Milan until his brother Antonio betrayed him, supported by Alonso.
• While Prospero was Duke of Milan, he became interested in magic.
• He has lived alone on the island for 12 years, bringing up his daughter Miranda.
• He has a close relationship with Ariel, one of the spirits of the island.

Things they say:

‘Thy father was the Duke of Milan and / A prince of power’ (Prospero, 1:2)

Prospero was a powerful man before arriving on the island.

‘And these, mine enemies, are now knit up / In their distractions. They now are in my power’ (Prospero, 3:3)

Power is important to Prospero and he enjoys having power over his enemies.

Things others say about them:

‘I must obey. His art is of such power / It would control my dam’s god Setebos / And make a vassal of him’ (Caliban, 1:2)

Caliban is scared of Prospero because his magic is even more powerful than anything his mother’s god could do.

‘Never till this day / Saw I him touched with anger, so distempered ’ (Miranda, 4:1)

Prospero is usually calm but can become angry.

‘this famous Duke of Milan / Of whom so often I have heard renown’ (Ferdinand, 5:1)

Prospero was thought of as a good duke when he ruled Milan.

Miranda and Ferdinand.

Miranda sits on a large shell.

Miranda with a wooden doll.

Miranda is Prospero's daughter and his only child. We are not told anything about her mother. She was cast out to sea with her father when she was three-years-old and knows nothing about the world except what her father has taught her. Prospero hopes she and Ferdinand will be attracted to each other. When they immediately fall in love, he pretends to be angry and makes Ferdinand a slave. Once Ferdinand has proved he deserves Miranda, he blesses their engagement with a magical show.

Facts we learn about Miranda at the start of the play:

• She is about 15 years old.
• She has grown up on the island.
• She can’t remember ever seeing any other men besides her father and Caliban, until the shipwreck.

‘O, I have suffered / With those that I saw suffer’ (Miranda, 1:2)

Miranda doesn’t like to watch people suffer.

'Tis a villain, sir, / I do not love to look on’ (Miranda, 1:2)

Miranda does not like being near Caliban.

‘What foul play had we that we came from thence? / Or blessed was’t we did?’ (Miranda, 1:2)

Miranda seems at home on the island, saying it could be a blessing they were stranded there.

‘I do not know / One of my sex, no woman’s face remember / Save from my glass , mine own’ (Miranda, 3:1)

Miranda has never seen another woman.

‘But you, O you, / So perfect and so peerless, are created / Of every creature’s best’ (Ferdinand, 3:1)

Miranda is beautiful, even compared to the women Ferdinand would have known at court in Naples.

‘This my rich gift’ (Prospero, 4:1)

Miranda has a close relationship with her father, who values her.

Margaret Leighton as Ariel.

Simon Russell Beale as Ariel.

Ariel looks sad.

Alan Badel as Ariel.

Brian Bedford as Ariel.

Ariel as a puppet.

In this production, Ariel was a physical character but also appeared digitally.

Kananu Kirimi as Ariel, suspended by wires.

Scott Handy as Ariel.

Ariel is the chief spirit of the island and controls the other spirits. Prospero found him imprisoned in a pine tree where he had been left by a witch called Sycorax, who died before Prospero arrived. In return for being freed from the tree, Ariel now serves Prospero and carries out his magical orders. Prospero promises Ariel that if he does everything he is asked to, he will be set free. At the end of the play, when Prospero has achieved everything he wanted with Ariel’s help, he says goodbye to Ariel and sets him free.

Facts we learn about Ariel at the start of the play:

• Ariel has the power to create storms.
• Ariel was imprisoned in a tree by Sycorax until Prospero freed him.
• No other character in the play can see Ariel apart from Prospero.
• Ariel is loyal to Prospero but is also keen to have his freedom.

‘I come / to answer thy best pleasure, be’t to fly / To swim, to dive into the fire, to ride / On the curled clouds, to thy strong bidding task / Ariel and all his quality’ (Ariel, 1:2)

Ariel is willing to obey Prospero and has many skills.

‘I have done thee worthy service / Told thee no lies, made no mistakings, served / Without grudge or grumblings.’ (Ariel, 1:2)

Ariel doesn’t usually complain about serving Prospero.

‘I must / Once a month recount what thou hast been / Which thou forget’st’ (Prospero, 1:2)

Ariel owes Prospero for his freedom but Prospero has to remind him of this every month.

‘For thou wast a spirit too delicate / To act her earthy and abhorred commands, / Refusing her grand hests , she did confine thee’ (Prospero, 1:2)

Ariel disobeyed Sycrorax and was imprisoned for it.

‘My industrious servant, Ariel’ (Prospero, 4:1)

Ariel is hard working.

John Kani as Caliban.

Michael Hordern as Caliban.

Hugh Griffith as Caliban.

Frank Benson as Caliban.

Robert Glenister as Caliban, sitting in a large shell.

Alec Clunes as Caliban.

A man works a puppet of Caliban.

Sycorax, a witch, was abandoned on the island and gave birth to a son, Caliban. When she died, he was left alone on the island with only the invisible spirits for company. When Prospero and Miranda arrive on the island, Caliban lives with them as part of the family but when Prospero catches him about to sexually assault Miranda, he throws Caliban out and treats him as a slave. Caliban wants revenge on Prospero but is afraid of his magical powers. When he meets Stephano , Caliban believes the drunken butler can kill Prospero and become a better master to him. He tries to lead Stephano to kill Prospero but Ariel and Prospero defeat his plans.

Facts we learn about Caliban at the start of the play:

• The son of a witch, he was born on the island and lived there alone for a long time.
• He helped Prospero and Miranda to survive on the island.
• He hates Prospero for treating him like a slave.
• He has never tasted alcohol before and thinks Stephano must be a god for owning it.

‘This island's mine by Sycorax my mother / Which thou tak’st from me’ (Caliban, 1:2)

Caliban should have ruled the island but Prospero took it from him.

‘I’ll be wise hereafter / And seek for grace. What a thrice-double ass / Was I to take this drunkard for a god’ (Caliban, 5:1)

Caliban is quite gullible and believes Stephano is a god. He asks forgiveness for this at the end of the play.

‘ Abhorred slave / Which any print of goodness wilt not take / being capable of all ill’ (Miranda, 1:2)

Caliban is hated by Miranda and Prospero.

‘A most ridiculous monster to make a wonder of a poor drunkard’ (Trinculo, 2:2)

Caliban does not look human, but like a ‘monster’.

‘A devil, a born devil, on whose nature / Nurture can never stick, on whom my pains / Humanely taken, all, all lost quite lost / And as with age his body uglier grows / So his mind cankers ’ (Prospero, 4:1)

Caliban is seen as naturally bad by Prospero who thinks he grows worse as he gets older.

Ariel stands behind Ferdinand.

Ferdinand with Ariel.

Ferdinand in uniform.

Alexander Davion as Ferdinand.

Ferdinand is the only son of Alonso , King of Naples. When the ship seems to be breaking up in the tempest, he swims ashore and believes his father drowned. He falls in love with Miranda at first sight but Prospero thinks they have fallen in love too easily. Prospero uses his magical powers to make Ferdinand a slave and forces him to carry logs. Ferdinand puts up with this so long as he can see Miranda. Eventually, Prospero rewards his loyalty by releasing him and agrees that Ferdinand and Miranda can marry.

Facts we learn about Ferdinand at the start of the play:

• He swam ashore alone after the shipwreck.
• He is loyal to his father.
• He falls in love with Miranda as soon as he sees her and immediately decides to marry her.
• He has heard good things about Prospero and shows respect towards him when he finds out who he is.

‘Sitting on a bank / Weeping again the King my father’s wreck’ (Ferdinand, 1:2)

Ferdinand is close to his father.

‘The very instant that I saw you did / My heart fly to your service, there resides / To make me slave to it and for your sake / Am I this patient log-man’ (Ferdinand, 3:1)

Ferdinand falls in love with Miranda instantly and is willing to be her father’s slave.

‘This gallant which thou seest / Was in the wreck, and but he’s something stained / With grief, that’s beauty’s canker, thou mightst call him / A goodly person’ (Prospero, 1:2)

Ferdinand seems a good and gallant person.

‘I might call him / A thing divine, for nothing natural / I ever saw so noble’ (Miranda, 1:2)

Ferdinand is immediately attractive to Miranda.

‘There’s nothing ill can dwell in such a temple’ (Miranda, 1:2)

Ferdinand is good looking.

Trinculo and Caliban.

Caliban, Stephano and Trinculo.

Stephano and Trinculo.

Trinculo dressed as a cook.

Trinculo in clown make up.

Trinculo is a jester and serves Alonso , King of Naples. He was washed up alone on the island after the shipwreck. Looking for shelter, he ends up crawling underneath Caliban's cloak with him. His friend Stephano then discovers them and they meet Caliban. Stephano is persuaded to kill Prospero, by Caliban, and Trinculo reluctantly follows along with their plot.

Facts we learn about Trinculo at the start of the play:

• He swam ashore after the shipwreck.
• He is friends with Stephano, Alonso’s butler.
• He gets drunk on Stephano’s wine.
• He feels left out when Caliban and Stephano join together.

‘They say there’s but five upon this isle. We are three of them. If the other two be brained like us, the state totters’ (Trinculo, 3:2)

Trinculo does not have a very high opinion of either his own intelligence or that of Caliban and Stephano.

‘Though thou canst swim like a duck, thou art made like a goose’ (Stephano, 2:2)

Trinculo is unsteady on his feet, like a goose.

‘I will not serve him, he’s not valiant’ (Caliban, 3:2)

Trinculo is not impressive to Caliban, who doesn’t want to serve him.

‘Trinculo is reeling ripe’ (Alonso, 5:1)

Trinculo is also drunk by the end of the play.

Caliban, Trinculo and Stephano.

Caliban and Stephano.

Stephano is butler to Alonso , King of Naples. He was washed up on the island alone and wanders around drunk until he meets up with his friend Trinculo , who is hiding under a cloak with Caliban . Stephano shares his wine with them and Caliban thinks he is a god. Stephano agrees to kill Prospero , rule the island and become Caliban’s new master. However, Ariel watches them and makes sure they do not cause any real trouble.

Facts we learn about Stephano at the start of the play:

• He washes up on the island clinging to a barrel of wine.
• He shares his wine with Caliban and Trinculo, which makes Caliban want to serve him as his new master.
• He enjoys the attention Caliban gives him.

‘If I can recover him and keep him tame, and get to Naples with him, he’s a present for any emperor’ (Stephano, 2:2)

Stephano is greedy and thinks he can make money from selling Caliban.

‘Prithee do not turn me about, my stomach is not constant’ (Stephano, 2:2)

Stephano is already drunk when he meets Trinculo .

‘I do begin to have bloody thoughts’ (Stephano, 4:1)

Stephano is prepared to kill Prospero until he is distracted.

‘That’s a brave god and bears celestial liquor. I will kneel to him’ (Caliban, 2:2)

Stephano uses the drink he has to make Caliban worship him.

‘Is not this Stephano, my drunken butler?’ (Alonso, 5:1)

Stephano is often drunk.

Trinculo and Alonso.

Alonso in suit and crown.

Alonso in uniform.

Prospero stands behind Alonso.

Alonso is the King of Naples. He helped Antonio to get rid of Prospero and take his brother’s place as Duke of Milan. He has two children, a daughter called Claribel and a son, Ferdinand . His fleet of ships is returning to Naples from Tunis but they are caught in a huge storm. Travelling with him is his son, his brother and other nobles. They are all washed up on the island after the storm, although Alonso thinks Ferdinand has drowned. When Alonso finally meets Prospero, he apologises and makes him Duke of Milan again. When he is reunited with Ferdinand and finds out about his engagement to Prospero’s daughter Miranda , he is delighted.

Facts we learn about Alonso at the start of the play:

• As King of Naples, he has the highest status of the nobles.
• He helped Antonio to take Prospero’s place.
• His ship is returning from Tunis where his daughter Claribel married the King of Tunis.
• He is very upset at loosing of his son Ferdinand, who he thinks has drowned.

‘Old lord, I cannot blame thee / Who am myself attached with weariness / To the dulling of my spirits. Sit down and rest. / Even here will I put off my hope’ (Alonso, 3:2)

Alonso is determined to find his son and cares for Gonzalo.

‘I will stand to and feed / Although my last, no matter since I feel / The best is past’ (Alonso, 3:3)

Alonso becomes reckless when he thinks he has lost his son.

‘The King of Naples, being an enemy / To me inveterate’ (Prospero, 1:2)

Alonso is Prospero’s long term enemy.

‘Sir, you may thank yourself for this great loss / That would not bless our Europe with your daughter / But rather lose her to an African’ (Sebastian, 2:1)

Alonso’s choices as a ruler are not respected by his brother.

‘Here lies your brother / No better than the earth he lies upon / If he were that which now he’s like, that’s dead’ (Antonio, 2:1)

Alonso’s rule in Naples is not secure.

Antonio and Sebastian plot.

Antonio and Sebastian plot to kill Alonso.

Antonio is Prospero's younger brother. Prospero trusted him to help rule the dukedom of Milan but Antonio used this trust against his brother and secretly plotted with Alonso to overthrow Prospero and have him and Miranda removed from the city. Antonio owes a debt to Alonso for his help and wants Sebastian to become King of Naples instead so that he can be released from that debt. He has very few lines in the last scene so it is not clear how he feels about seeing Prospero again.

Facts we learn about Antonio at the start of the play:

• Prospero trusted him to rule Milan while he was studying his magic books.
• Antonio has to give regular payments and support to Naples in return for Alonso's help in overthrowing Prospero.
• Antonio would prefer Sebastian to be King of Naples.

‘O that you bore / The mind that I do, what a sleep were this / For your advancement’ (Antonio, 2:1)

Antonio is opportunistic.

‘I am right glad that he’s so out of hope’ (Antonio, 3:2)

Antonio has no sympathy, even for Alonso who believes his son is dead.

‘in my false brother / Awaked an evil nature, and my trust / Like a good parent, did beget of him / A falsehood in its contrary as great / As my trust was’ (Prospero, 1:2)

Antonio betrayed Prospero, even though Prospero thinks he treated him well.

‘Thy case, dear friend / Shall be my precedent: as thou got’st Milan / I’ll come by Naples’ (Sebastian, 2:1)

Antonio is trusted by Sebastian and uses his trust to persuade him to kill his brother.

‘You brother mine that entertained ambition / Expelled remorse and nature.’ (Prospero, 5:1)

Antonio is motivated by personal ambition, according to Prospero.

Gonzalo with Prospero.

Gonzalo (left) and Alonso (sat in gold).

Gonzalo (left) consoles Alonso.

Gonzalo is chief advisor to Alonso , King of Naples. He is remembered by Prospero for his kindness in making sure that supplies, clothing and books were put aboard the boat when Prospero and Miranda were cast out to sea. He tries to keep Alonso positive as they search the island for Ferdinand and is aware that Sebastian and Antonio make fun of him.

Facts we learn about Gonzalo at the start of the play:

• When Prospero was cast out to sea, Gonzalo helped him by giving him food and drink as well as rich clothing and important magic books from his library.
• He is loyal to Alonso and tries to keep his spirits up as they search the island for Ferdinand.
• He is delighted that Ferdinand and Miranda will become king and queen.

‘You have cause / So have we all, of joy, for our escape / Is much beyond our loss’ (Gonzalo, 2:1)

Gonzalo is positive and tries to see the good in their situation.

‘I can go no further sir / My old bones aches’ (Gonzalo, 3:2)

Gonzalo is old and struggles to walk around the island.

‘A noble Neapolitan, Gonzalo / Out of his charity, who being then appointed / Master of this design, did give us, with / Rich garments, linens, stuffs, and necessaries / Which since have steaded much’ (Prospero, 1:2)

Gonzalo helped Prospero and Miranda to escape Milan and gave them provisions.

‘Look, he’s winding up the watch of his wit’ (Sebastian, 2:1)

Gonzalo is not quick witted, something Sebastian finds humorous.

‘O good Gonzalo / My true preserver and a loyal sir / To him thou followest’ (Prospero, 5:1)

Gonzalo is loyal, both to Prospero and to Alonso.

Explore their relationships

Prospero - miranda.

Prospero and Miranda have a strong relationship at the beginning of the play. They have been alone on the island together for 12 years.

‘my dearest father’ (Miranda, 1:2)

‘I have done nothing but in care of thee’ (Prospero, 1:2)

In Act 1 Scene 2, when Miranda first meets Ferdinand, her loyalty to her father is tested. She is attracted to Ferdinand as soon as she sees him and is then upset with her father for being mean to Ferdinand.

‘O dear father / Make not too rash a trial of him’ (Miranda, 1:2)

In Act 3, Miranda finds her loyalty divided between her father and Ferdinand, the man she has promised to marry. She visits Ferdinand and tells him her name even though her father told her not to.

‘Miranda – O my father / I have broke your hest to say so’ (Miranda, 3:1)

In Act 4, Prospero reveals that he is actually really pleased that Miranda and Ferdinand have fallen in love. Ferdinand will be his son-in-law. Prospero agrees to their marriage.

‘Here afore heaven / I ratify this my rich gift’ (Prospero, 4:1)

In Act 5, Prospero has to acknowledge that his daughter has grown up and moved on. He has lost his daughter to Ferdinand but he and Alonso share their delight that their children will marry and will one day rule over Milan and Naples together.

‘For I / Have lost a daughter… / In this last tempest’ (Prospero, 5:1)

Prospero - Antonio

When Prospero was Duke of Milan, his brother supported him and helped to rule the city state.

‘he whom next thyself / Of all the world I loved and to him put / The manage of my state’ (Prospero, 1:2)

Antonio betrayed Prospero by plotting with Alonso to throw him out of Milan and take his place as Duke.

‘he needs will be / Absolute Milan’ (Prospero, 1:2)

In Act 1, Prospero creates a storm to wreck Alonso and Antonio's ship. He hopes he can repair his fortunes and make his enemies sorry for how they treated him.

‘By accident most strange, bountiful Fortune, / Now my dear lady, hath mine enemies / Brought to this shore’ (Prospero, 1:2)

In Act 3 Scene 3, Prospero has Ariel appear as a harpy and tell Antonio, Alonso and Sebastian that they are being punished for their ‘foul deed’. Antonio then acts strangely and tries to fight invisible demons and Prospero seems happy they are under his control.

‘All three of them are desperate, their great guilt / Like poison given to work a great time after / Now ‘gins to bit the spirits’ (Prospero, 3:3)

‘They are now in my power’ (Prospero, 3:3)

In Act 5, Prospero forgives Antonio for everything he has done. Antonio has no lines expressing how he feels about seeing Prospero again.

‘I do forgive thee / Unnatural though thou art’ (Prospero, 5:1)

Prospero - Ariel

In Act 1 Scene 2, it seems that Prospero and Ariel have a very close relationship. While it is clear that Prospero values Ariel, he also holds power over him. Ariel says

‘All hail, great master’ and ‘I come / To answer thy best pleasure’ (Ariel, 1:2)

Prospero calls Ariel

’My brave spirit’ (Prospero, 1:2)

Prospero first found Ariel imprisoned in a tree and freed him. When Ariel questions him in Act 1, Prospero threatens to imprison him in another tree if he does not do what he is told.

‘If thou more murmur’st, I will rend an oak / And peg thee in his knotty entrails’ (Prospero, 1:2)

In Act 4, Ariel’s relationship with Prospero seems quite close. When Prospero calls him, ‘Come with a thought’, Ariel says, ‘Thy thoughts I cleave to. What’s thy pleasure?’ (4:1) but Ariel does seeks approval from Prospero.

‘Do you love me, master?’ (Ariel, 4:1)

At the beginning of Act 5, Prospero asks Ariel’s opinion when he is considering what to do with his enemies. This may suggest a more equal moment in their relationship.

‘Dost thou think so, spirit? (Prospero, 5:1)

At the end of the play, Prospero sets Ariel free. His words are quite affectionate as he gives Ariel his last instruction.

‘My Ariel, chick, / That is thy charge. Then to the elements / Be free, and fare thee well’ (Prospero, 5:1)

Prospero - Caliban

When Prospero first landed on the island, Prospero and Caliban helped each other. Caliban helped him to find food, water, shelter and fuel and Prospero was grateful.

‘When thou cam’st first, / Thou strok’st me and made much of me’ (Caliban, 1:2)

‘I lodged thee in mine own cell’ (Prospero, 1:2)

Prospero and Caliban’s relationship broke down when Caliban tried to ‘violate the honour’ of Miranda (1:2). Then Prospero used his powers to throw Caliban out of their home and turn him into a slave.

Caliban hates Prospero and feels Prospero has used his power to exploit him and steal his island. Caliban says he must obey Prospero because ‘His art is of such power’ (1:2).

‘This island’s mine by Sycorax my mother / Which thou tak’st from me’ (Caliban, 1:2)

Caliban thinks Stephano can become his new master and set him free from Prospero’s power. He tells Stephano he will lead him to where Prospero sleeps.

‘Where thou mayst knock a nail into his head’ (Caliban, 3:2)

In Act 5, Prospero calls Caliban ‘mine’. This might mean that Caliban is a slave he owns, or he might be recognising that he has had a role to play in how Caliban behaves.

‘This thing of darkness I /Acknowledge mine’ (Prospero, 5:1)

Prospero - Gonzalo

Miranda - prospero, miranda - caliban, miranda - ferdinand, ariel - prospero, caliban - prospero, caliban - stephano, caliban - miranda, ferdinand - alonso.

Alonso and his son Ferdinand are together on the ship in Act 1 Scene 1, returning from seeing Ferdinand’s sister Claribel get married in Tunis. They are together during the storm.

’The King and Prince are at prayers’ (Gonzalo, 1:1)

In Act 1 Scene 2, Ferdinand weeps because he thinks his father has drowned in the shipwreck. Alonso is also very upset because he believes his son has drowned.

‘Sitting on a bank, / Weeping again the King my father’s wreck’ (Ferdinand, 1:2)

‘O thou mine heir / Of Naples and of Milan, what strange fish / Hath made his meal on thee?’ (Alonso, 2:1)

As Ferdinand falls more in love with Miranda in Act 3, he thinks less about his father. He sadly accepts that his father is dead and looks forward to his life with Miranda.

‘I am, in my condition. / A prince, Miranda; I do think a king, / I would not so’ (Ferdinand, 3:1)

In Act 5, Ferdinand and Alonso are both delighted to be reunited and to discover that the other is still alive.

Ferdinand: ‘Though the seas threaten, they are merciful. / I have cursed them without cause.’

Alonso: ‘Now all the blessings / Of a glad father compass thee about’ (5:1)

Ferdinand - Miranda

Trinculo - stephano.

Stephano and Trinculo seem to be good friends and are very pleased to see each other when they are both washed up on the island after the shipwreck.

‘I am Trinculo, be not afeared, thy good friend Trinculo’ (Trinculo, 2:2)

When Caliban begins to worship Stephano, Trinculo thinks it’s ridiculous. Stephano defends Caliban and we see that Stephano has power over Trinculo because he threatens to beat him.

‘Interrupt the monster one word further and by this hand…’ (Stephano, 3:2)

In Act 4, Stephano and Trinculo are friends again but Stephano still has more power, telling Trinculo what to do.

‘Put off that gown, Trinculo. By this hand, I’ll have that gown’ (Stephano, 4:1)

In Act 5, Stephano and Trinculo are reunited with the nobles and are back in their positions as servants.

Stephano - Trinculo

Stephano - caliban, alonso - ferdinand, alonso - antonio.

In Act 1, Prospero tells Miranda that Alonso helped Antonio to steal the dukedom in return for an ‘annual tribute’ and ‘homage’ (1:2). This means Antonio has to give money and service to Alonso, so Alonso has a lot of power over Antonio.

In Act 2, Antonio tries to take power from Alonso by killing him. He persuades Sebastian that if they kill Alonso, Sebastian can be king instead and free Antonio from paying money to Alonso. Sebastian agrees.

‘Draw thy sword – one stroke / Shall free thee from the tribute which thou payest / And I the king shall love thee’ (Antonio, 2:1)

In Act 5, Alonso pays no attention to Antonio and uses his power to give Prospero back the dukedom of Milan. Antonio has no lines to express how he might feel about this.

‘Thy dukedom I resign, and do entreat / Thou pardon me my wrongs’ (Alonso, 5:1)

Alonso - Gonzalo

Antonio - prospero, antonio - alonso, antonio - gonzalo, gonzalo - alonso, gonzalo - antonio, gonzalo - prospero, teacher notes.

On this page students can arrange the characters on the screen, showing the connections between the characters and their relationships. They can then print this using the button on the page and label them with their own quotes.

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Power Relationships in "The Tempest"

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The Tempest includes elements of both tragedy and comedy. It was written around 1610 and it's generally considered Shakespeare's final play as well as the last of his romance plays. The story is set on a remote island, where Prospero, the rightful Duke of Milan, schemes to restore his daughter Miranda to her proper place using manipulation and illusion. He conjures up a storm--the aptly named tempest--to lure his power-hungry brother Antonio and the conspiring King Alonso to the island.

In The Tempest , power and control are dominant themes. Many of the characters are locked into a power struggle for their freedom and for control of the island, forcing some characters (both good and evil) to abuse their power. For example:

• Prospero enslaves and treats Caliban badly.
• Antonio and Sebastian plot to kill Alonso.
• Antonio and Alonso aim to get rid of Prospero.

The Tempest : Power Relationships

In order to demonstrate power relationships in The Tempest , Shakespeare utilizes the dynamics between servants and those who control them.

For example, in the story Prospero is the controller of Ariel and Caliban -- although Prospero conducts each of these relationships differently, both Ariel and Caliban are acutely aware of their subservience. This leads Caliban to challenge Prospero’s control by serving Stefano instead. However, in trying to escape one power relationship, Caliban quickly creates another when he persuades Stefano to murder Prospero by promising that he can marry Miranda and rule the island.

Power relationships are inescapable in the play. Indeed, when Gonzalo envisages an equal world with no sovereignty, he is mocked. Sebastian reminds him that he would still be king and would therefore still have power – even if he did not exercise it.

The Tempest: Colonization

Many of the characters compete for colonial control of the island – a reflection of England’s colonial expansion in Shakespeare’s time .

Sycorax, the original colonizer, came from Algiers with her son Caliban and reportedly performed evil deeds. When Prospero arrived on the island he enslaved its inhabitants and the power struggle for colonial control began - in turn raising issues of fairness in The Tempest

Each character has a plan for the island if they were in charge: Caliban wants to “people the isle with Calibans," Stefano plans to murder his way into power, and Gonzalo imagines an idyllic mutually controlled society. Ironically, Gonzalo is one of the few characters in the play who is honest, loyal and kind throughout – in other words: a potential king.

Shakespeare calls into question the right to rule by debating which qualities a good ruler should possess – and each of the characters with colonial ambitions embodies a particular aspect of the debate:

• Prospero: embodies the all-controlling, omnipresent ruler
• Gonzalo: embodies the utopian visionary
• Caliban: embodies the rightful native ruler

Ultimately, Miranda and Ferdinand take control of the island, but what sort of rulers will they make? The audience is asked to question their suitability: Are they too weak to rule after we have seen them manipulated by Prospero and Alonso?

• Overview of Shakespeare's 'The Tempest'
• The Role of Caliban in 'The Tempest'
• Prospero: Character Analysis of Shakespeare's 'Tempest' Protagonist
• 'The Tempest' Summary for Students
• 'The Tempest' Characters: Description and Analysis
• 'The Tempest' Overview
• Top 5 Female Villains in Shakespeare Plays
• 'The Tempest' Summary
• Quotes From Shakespeare's 'The Tempest'
• Analyzing Shakespeare's 'The Tempest'
• 'The Tempest' Themes, Symbols, and Literary Devices
• "The Tempest" Act 1
• Magic in 'The Tempest'
• 'The Tempest' Quotes Explained
• Understanding Ariel in "The Tempest"
• How to Use Shakespeare Quotes

A Modern Perspective: The Tempest

By Barbara A. Mowat

Somewhat past the midpoint of The Tempest, King Alonso and his courtiers reach a temporary still point in their journey on Prospero’s island. Shipwrecked, they have searched for the lost Prince Ferdinand; now, exhausted, they give up the search. Into this moment of fatigue—and, for Alonso, despair—at the center of what Gonzalo calls their “maze,” enters the maze’s monster: a Harpy who threatens them with lingering torment worse than any death. For Alonso, the Harpy’s recounting of his long-ago crimes against Prospero is “monstrous”; maddened, he rushes off to leap (he thinks) into the sea, to join (he thinks) his drowned son Ferdinand.

King Alonso’s confrontation with the Harpy ( 3.3.23 –133) brings together powerfully The Tempest ’s intricate set of travel stories and its technique of presenting key dramatic moments as theatrical fantasy. The presentation of dancing islanders, a disappearing banquet, and a descending monster is the first big spectacle since the play’s opening tempest. The unexpected appearance of these island “spirits,” combined with the power of the Harpy’s speech, gives the Harpy confrontation a solidity within the story world that seems designed to rivet audience attention. At the same time, audience response to the scene is inevitably colored by curiosity about the “quaint device” that makes the banquet vanish and by awareness of Prospero looking down on his trapped enemies from “the top,” commenting on them in asides, and obtrusively turning the Harpy/king encounter into make-believe, first by telling us that the Harpy was only Ariel reciting a speech and, second, by reminding us, just before Alonso’s desperate exit to join Ferdinand in the ocean’s ooze, that Ferdinand is, at this moment, courting Miranda.

The double signals here—to the powerful moment within the story and to the deliberate theatricality with which the moment is staged—reflect larger doublenesses in this drama. They reflect, first of all, major differences in the temporal and spatial dimensions of the drama’s “story” and its “play.” The Tempest ’s “story” stretches over more than twenty-four years and several sea journeys; it embeds elements of the mythological voyages of Aeneas and of Jason and the Argonauts, of the biblical voyages of St. Paul, and of actual contemporary voyages to the new world of Virginia. The “play” that The Tempest actually presents is, in contrast, constricted within a plot-time of a single afternoon and confined to the space imagined for an island. 1 Through this particular doubling, Shakespeare creates in The Tempest a form that allows him to bring familiar voyage material to the stage in a (literally) spectacular new way.

The “story” that The Tempest tells is a story of voyages—Sycorax’s journey from Algiers, Prospero and Miranda’s journey from Milan to the island in the rotten carcass of a butt, Alonso’s voyage from Naples to Tunis across the Mediterranean Sea and thence to the island—and, on the island, a set of journeys (Ferdinand’s journey across yellow sands; Caliban, Stephano, and Trinculo’s through briers and filthy-mantled pools, and Alonso and his men’s through strange mazes) that lead, finally, back to the sea and the ship and to yet another sea journey. This complex narrative, with its immense span of chronological time, its routes stretching over most of the Mediterranean, its violent separations and losses and its culmination in royal betrothals and restorations, is the kind of story told in the massive novels, popular in Shakespeare’s time, called Greek Romances. The Tempest ’s story could have filled one or more such romance volumes or could have been presented in a narrative-like drama such as Shakespeare himself had created in Pericles and The Winter’s Tale . Instead, within the brief period of The Tempest ’s supposed action, the narrative of the twenty-four or more years preceding the shipwreck of King Alonso and his courtiers on the island—worked out by Shakespeare in elaborate detail—is told to us elaborately. The second and third scenes of The Tempest —that is, 1.2 . and 2.1 —contain close to half the lines in the play, and close to half of those lines are past-tense narration. Through Prospero, through Ariel, through Caliban, through Gonzalo, through Sebastian, through Antonio, characters in our presence (and our present) tell us their pasts.

If we take the sets of narratives embedded in 1.2 and 2.1 and roll them back to where they belong chronologically, the first story (and the most fantastic) is that of the witch Sycorax, her exile on the island, her “littering” of Caliban there, and her imprisoning of Ariel ( 1.2.308 –47)—twelve years before Prospero is thrust forth from Milan. That thrusting-forth is the subject of the next story (next chronologically, that is): the narrative of Antonio’s betrayal of Prospero and of Prospero and Miranda’s sea journey and arrival on the island ( 1.2.66 –200). Then comes the story of what happened on the island during the next twelve years, a story in which narratives that tell of Caliban ( 1.2.396 –451), of Ariel ( 1.2.287 –306, 340 –47), and of Miranda and Prospero ( 1.2.205 –8) overlap and intersect. Finally comes the story from the most recent past—the story of the Princess Claribel and her “loathness” to the marriage arranged by her father ( 2.1.131 –40), of Claribel’s wedding in Tunis ( 2.1.71 –111), of the return journey of Alonso and his courtiers ( 2.1.112 –17), and of the shipwreck as described by Ariel ( 1.2.232 –80).

One of the most powerful features of the form Shakespeare crafted in The Tempest is that this detailed, complex narrative, told us in the first part of the play, keeps reappearing within the play’s action. The story of the coup d’état that expelled Prospero “twelve year since,” for example, is made the model for the Antonio/Sebastian assassination plot (“Thy case, dear friend,” says Sebastian to Antonio, “shall be my precedent: as thou got’st Milan, I’ll come by Naples” [ 2.1.332 –34]); the story appears at the center of the Harpy’s message ( 3.3.86 –93); and it is told yet once again by Prospero when, in the play’s final scene, he attempts to forgive Antonio ( 5.1.80 –89). Caliban’s story—“this island is mine”; “I serve a tyrant”—is told by him again and again. The story of Sycorax, who died years before the dramatic “now,” is alluded to so often—her powers described one last time by Prospero even as the play is ending ( 5.1.323 –26)—that she seems to haunt the play, as does the absent, distant, unhappy Claribel.

As the play reaches its conclusion, each of the stories recounted in the early narrative scenes is conjured up a final time, though the pressure now is toward the future—toward the nuptials of the royal couple, toward a royal lineage with Prospero’s heirs as kings of Naples. As that virtual future is created, the structuring process of the opening scenes is reversed: where narrative was there incorporated into the play, now the play opens back out into the next pages of the narrative from which it had emerged. As we watch and listen, the play we have been experiencing moves into the past, becomes a moment in the tale Prospero promises to tell to the voyagers—“such discourse as . . . shall make [the night] / Go quick away: the story of my life / And the particular accidents gone by / Since I came to this isle” ( 5.1.361 –64). As Alonso notes, this is a “story . . . which must / Take the ear strangely” ( 5.1.371 –72).

By folding the story into the play and then unfolding the play into its own virtual narrative future, Shakespeare creates a form in which past and future press on the present dramatic moment with peculiar intensity. We sense this throughout the play, but see it with special clarity in the confrontation between Alonso and the Harpy. The Harpy brings the past to Alonso as a burden Alonso must pick up—an intolerable burden for Alonso, who goes mad under the simultaneous recognition of his guilt and its consequences, given to him as Time Past, Time Present, and Time Future. In Time Past: “you . . . / From Milan did supplant good Prospero, / Exposed unto the sea . . . / Him and his innocent child” ( 3.3.87 –90); in Time Present: “for which foul deed, / The powers . . . have / Incensed the seas and shores, yea, all the creatures / Against your peace. Thee of thy son, Alonso, / They have bereft” ( 90 –94); and finally, in Time Future: “Ling’ring perdition . . . shall step by step attend / You and your ways, whose wraths to guard you from— / Which here, in this most desolate isle, else fells / Upon your heads—is nothing but heart’s sorrow / And a clear life ensuing” ( 95 –101). This pressure of past and future on the present moment—a pressure that is created in large part by the way Shakespeare folds chronological time into plot-time, and that we feel throughout the play in Prospero’s tension, in Ariel’s restiveness, in Caliban’s fury—makes believable in The Tempest that which is normally suspect: namely, instant repentance, instant inner transformation. Because the dramatic present is so permeated with the play’s virtual past, so pressured by the future—the six o’clock toward which the play rushes, after which Time as Opportunity will be gone—that Alonso’s anguished repentance, his descent into silence, madness, and unceasing tears, his immediate surrender of Milan to Prospero and the reward of being given back his lost son—can all take place in moments, and can, even so, seem credible and wonderful.

The interplay between The Tempest ’s elaborate voyage story and its tightly constricted “play” is not the only doubleness toward which the drama’s Harpy/king encounter points us. It points as well to two kinds of travel tales embedded in the drama: ancient, fictional voyage narratives and contemporary travelers’ tales buzzing around London at the time the play was being written. The Harpy/king encounter is shaped as a sequence of verbal and visual events that in effect reenact and thus recall ancient confrontations between harpies and sea voyagers. In each of these harpy incidents—from the third century B.C. Argonautica through the first century B.C. Aeneid to The Tempest itself—harpies are ministers of the gods sent to punish those who have angered the gods; they punish by devouring or despoiling food; and they are associated with dire prophecies. The Tempest ’s enactment of the harpy encounter is thus one in a line of harpy stories stretching into the past from this island and this set of voyagers to Aeneas, and through Aeneas back to Jason and the crucial encounter between the terrible harpies (the “hounds of mighty Zeus”) and the Argonauts. 2 In replicating the sequence of events of voyagers meeting harpies, combining details from Jason’s story and from the Aeneid, Shakespeare directs attention to the specific context in which such harpy confrontations appear and within which The Tempest clearly belongs—that of literary fictional voyages.

At the same time, he surrounds the encounter with dialogue that would remind his audience of present-day voyages of their own fellow Londoners. Geographical expansion, around-the-world journeys, explorations of the new world of the Americas had heightened the stay-at-homes’ fascination with the strange creatures reported by travelers. Real-world creatures like crocodiles and hippopotami, fantastic creatures like unicorns and griffins, reported monstrosities like the men whose heads grow beneath their shoulders—all were, at the time, equally real (or unreal) and equally fascinating. The dialogue preceding the Harpy’s descent in The Tempest centers on such fabulous creatures. When the supposed “islanders”—creatures of “monstrous shape”—appear, bringing in the banquet, Sebastian says: “Now I will believe / That there are unicorns, that in Arabia / There is one tree, the phoenix’ throne, one phoenix / At this hour reigning there.” “Travelers ne’er did lie,” says Antonio, “Though fools at home condemn ’em.” Gonzalo adds, “If in Naples / I should report this now, would they believe me? / If I should say I saw such islanders . . . ” ( 3.3.26 –36). It is into this dialogue-context that the Harpy descends—that is, into a discussion of fantastic travelers’ tales and fabulous creatures.

When the Harpy—one of these creatures—actually appears, claps its wings upon the table, and somehow makes the food disappear ( 3.3.69 SD), she is very real to Alonso and his men—as real as the harpies were to Jason and to Aeneas; as real as the hippopotami and anthropophagi were to fifteenth-century explorers; as real as is Caliban, the monster mooncalf, to his discoverers Stephano and Trinculo. The attempts to kill the Harpy are classical responses—that is, they are the responses of Jason and Aeneas when confronted by the terrible bird-women. The response of Stephano and Trinculo to their man-monster is a more typically sixteenth-century response to the fabulous. When, for example, Stephano finds Trinculo and Caliban huddled under a cloak and thinks he has discovered a “most delicate monster” with four legs and two voices, he responds with the greed that we associate with Martin Frobisher and other sixteenth-century New World explorers who brought natives from North America to England to put on display: “If I can recover him,” says Stephano, “and keep him tame and get to Naples with him, he’s a present for any emperor that ever trod on neat’s leather. . . . He shall pay for him that hath him, and that soundly” ( 2.2.69 –81). Trinculo had responded with equal greed to his first sight of the frightened Caliban:

What have we here, a man or a fish? . . . A strange fish. Were I in England . . . and had but this fish painted, not a holiday fool there but would give a piece of silver. There would this monster make a man. Any strange beast there makes a man. When they will not give a doit to relieve a lame beggar, they will lay out ten to see a dead Indian.

( 2.2.25 –34)

While the finding and subjugating of “wild men” was a feature that ancient and new-world voyage stories held in common (for example, Jupiter promises that Aeneas, as the climax of his sea journeys, will “wage a great war in Italy, and . . . crush wild peoples and set up laws for men and build walls” 3 ), Prospero’s subjugation of Caliban has a particularly New World flavor. The play itself, no matter how steeped it is in ancient voyage literature and no matter how much emphasis it places on its Mediterranean setting, is also a representation of New World exploration. While it retells the stories of Aeneas and of Jason, it also stages a particular Virginia voyage that, in 1610–11, was the topic of sermons, published government accounts, and first-person epistles, many of which Shakespeare drew on in crafting The Tempest . The story, in brief, goes as follows: A fleet of ships set out in 1609 from England carrying a new governor—Sir Thomas Gates—to the struggling Virginia colony in Jamestown. The fleet was caught in a tempest off the coast of Bermuda. All of the ships survived the storm and sailed on to Virginia—except the flagship, the Sea-Venture, carrying the governor, the admiral of the fleet, and other important officials. A year later, the exhausted and dispirited colonists in Jamestown were astounded when two boats sailed up the James River carrying the supposedly drowned governor and his companions. The crew and passengers on the flagship had survived the storm, had lived for a year in the Bermudas, had built new ships, and had made it safely to Virginia. News of the happy ending to this “tragicomedy,” as one who reported the story called it, soon reached London, and many details of the story are preserved in The Tempest .

Among the details may be the disturbing picture of the relationship of the “settlers” and the “Indians” in Jamestown, represented perhaps in Caliban and his relationship with Prospero. In one of the documents used by Shakespeare in writing The Tempest, William Strachey describes an incident in which “certain Indians,” finding a man alone, “seized the poor fellow and led him up in to the woods and sacrificed him.” Strachey writes that the lieutenant governor was very disturbed by this incident, since hitherto he “would not by any means be wrought to a violent proceeding against them [i.e., the Indians] for all the practices of villainy with which they daily endangered our men.” This incident, though, made him “well perceive” that “fair and noble treatment” had little effect “upon a barbarous disposition,” and “therefore . . . purposed to be revenged.” The revenge took the form of an attack upon an Indian village. 4

As we read Strachey’s account today, we find much in the behavior of the settlers toward the natives that is appalling, so that the account is not for us simply that of “good white men” against “bad Indians,” as it was for Strachey. In the same way, whether or not this particular lieutenant governor and these treacherous “Indians” are represented in The Tempest, Shakespeare’s decision to include a “wild man” among his island’s cast of characters, and (as Stephen Greenblatt notes) to place him in opposition to a European prince whose power lies in his language and his books, 5 raises a host of questions for us about the play. The Tempest was written just as England was beginning what would become massive empire-building through the subjugating of others and the possessing of their lands. European nations—Spain, in particular—had already taken over major land areas, and Shakespeare and his contemporaries had available to them many accounts of native peoples and of European colonizers’ treatment of such peoples. Many such accounts are like Strachey’s: they describe a barbarous people who refuse to be “civilized,” who have no language, who have a “nature” on which “nurture will never stick” (as Prospero says of Caliban). Other accounts describe instead cultural differences in which that which is different is not necessarily inferior or “barbarous.” When Gonzalo says (at 2.1.157 –60), “Had I plantation [i.e., colonization] of this isle . . . And were the King on ’t, what would I do?” he answers his own question by describing the Utopia he would set up ( lines 162 –84), taking his description from Montaigne’s essay “Of the Cannibals.” In this essay, Montaigne (“whose supple mind,” writes Ronald Wright, “exemplifies Western civilization at its best” 6 ) argues in effect that American “savages” are in many ways more moral, more humane people than so-called civilized Europeans.

As with so much of The Tempest, Caliban may be seen as representing two quite different images. Shakespeare gives him negative traits attached to New World natives (traits that seem to many today to smack of racist responses to the strange and to the Other) while giving him at the same time a richly poetic language and a sensitive awareness of nature and the supernatural. He places Caliban in relation to Prospero (as Caliban’s master and the island’s “colonizer”), to Miranda (as the girl who taught Caliban language and whom he tried to rape), and indirectly to Ferdinand (who, like Caliban, is made to carry logs and who will father Miranda’s children as Caliban had wished to do). Shakespeare thus creates in the center of this otherworldly play a confrontation that speaks eloquently to late-twentieth-century readers and audiences living with the aftereffects of the massive colonizing of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries and observing the continuing life of “empire” in the interactions between the powerful and the formerly colonized states. 7 As many readers and audiences today look back at the centuries of colonization of the Americas, Africa, and India from, as it were, Caliban’s perspective, The Tempest, once considered Shakespeare’s most serene, most lyrical play, is now put forward as his representation, for good or ill, of the colonizing and the colonized. 8

This relatively new interest in the colonization depicted in The Tempest has had a profound impact on attitudes toward Prospero. For centuries seen as spokesman for Shakespeare himself, as the benign, profound magician-artist who presides like a god over an otherworldly kingdom, Prospero is now perceived as one of Shakespeare’s most complex creations. He brings to the island books, Old World language, and the power to hurt and to control; he thus figures an early form of the colonizer. But he carries with him other, complicating associations. He is, for example, a figure familiar in voyage romances popular in Shakespeare’s day. The hermit magician (or exiled doctor, or some equivalent) in Greek Romance tales comes to the aid of heroes and heroines, protects them, heals them, often teaches them who they really are. In such stories, the focus is always on the lost, shipwrecked, searching man or woman—that is, on the Alonso figure or the Ferdinand or the Miranda figure. In The Tempest, Prospero, the hermit magician, is center stage, and the lost, shipwrecked, and searching are seen by us through him and in relation to him. Prospero thus carries a kind of power and an aura of ultimately benevolent intention that complicates the colonizer image.

Prospero is also the creator of the maze in which the other characters find themselves—“as strange a maze as e’er men trod,” says Alonso ( 5.1.293 )—and thus carries yet other complicating associations. The scene of the Harpy/king encounter opens with Gonzalo’s “Here’s a maze trod indeed through forthrights and meanders,” a statement that picks up suggestively Ovid’s description of that most infamous of mazes, created by Daedalus to enclose the Minotaur. The Daedalus story has unexpected but rich links with The Tempest . Daedalus, the quintessential artist/engineer/magician, built the maze to sty the monstrous creature that he had helped to bring into being. (It was sired by a bull on King Minos’ queen, but it was Daedalus who had lured the bull to the queen, encasing her, at her urgings, in the wooden shape of a cow.) Having built the maze, Daedalus (in Golding’s 1567 translation of Ovid’s Metamorphosis ) “scarce himselfe could find the meanes to wind himself well out / So busie and so intricate” was the labyrinth he had created (Book 8, lines 210–20).

The story of the maze and its Minotaur is a familiar one, involving the sacrifice of Greek youths to the bloodthirsty Minotaur, an annual horror that stopped only with Theseus’ slaughter of the Minotaur and his escape from the maze through the aid of King Minos’ daughter, Ariadne, whom Theseus marries and then abandons. Less familiar is the connection between the story of the maze and that of Daedalus and his son Icarus’ flight from the island of Crete:

Now in this while [when Theseus was overcoming

the Minotaur] gan Daedalus a weariness to take

Of living like a banisht man and prisoner such a time

In Crete, and longed in his heart to see his native

But Seas enclosed him as if he had in prison be.

Then thought he: though both Sea and land King

Minos stop fro me,

I am assured he cannot stop the Aire and open

It is at this point that Daedalus turns to “uncoth Arts” (i.e., magic), bending “the force of all his wits / To alter natures course by craft”—and he constructs the famous wings that take him home, at the cost of the life of his son, who falls into the sea and drowns.

When Prospero stands “on the top,” looking down and commenting on the trapped figures below him, he to some extent figures the magician/artist Daedalus. Throughout the play he, like Daedalus, is almost trapped in his own intricate maze, an exile who “gan . . . a weariness to take / Of living like a banisht man and prisoner such a time,” who “longed in his heart to see his native Clime,” and who thus bent “the force of all his wits” and his magic powers to find a way to get himself and his child home. The associations of Prospero with Daedalus, his maze, and his magic flight are less accessible to us today than they would have been to a Renaissance audience. But the sense of Prospero’s weariness, of his hatred of exile, of the danger facing him as he heads back to Milan having abjured his magic—these complicating emotional factors, even without a specific awareness of the Daedalus parallels, are available to us. We notice them especially in Prospero’s epilogue, where he begs our help in wafting him off the island and safely back home.

Like The Tempest itself, then, Prospero is complicated, double. He, like the play, is woven from a variety of story materials, and like the play he represents a particular moment, the moment at which began a period of colonizing and empire-building that would completely alter the world, leaving a legacy with which we still live. But he, like the play, also embodies ancient stories of travel and exile and the emotions that accompany them. And The Tempest ’s nineteenth- and twentieth-century retellings and sequels (Browning’s “Caliban on Setebos,” Aimé Césaire’s Une Tempête, Auden’s “The Sea and the Mirror,” and such film versions as Forbidden Planet and Peter Greenaway’s Prospero’s Books, to name but a few) suggest that those stories and emotions have continued to intrigue. The magician fascinates, the journey and the maze still tempt, despite the near certainty that magic—like all power—tends to corrupt and that islands and labyrinths hold as many monsters as they do “revels.”

• I am using the word “story” here both in its general sense of a narration of events and in the more particular sense that translates the Russian formalists’ term “fabula”—that is, the events sequenced in chronological order. The formalists contrast the “fabula” with the “szujet”—the fiction as structured by the author (a term I translate as “play”). See Keir Elam’s The Semiotics of Theatre and Drama (London and New York: Methuen, 1980), pp. 119–26.
• See Barbara A. Mowat, “‘And that’s true, too’: Structures and Meaning in The Tempest ,” Renaissance Papers 1976 , pp. 37–50. The pertinent sections of the Argonaut stories are Apollonius Rhodius, Argonautica 2:178–535, and Valerius Flaccus, Argonautica 4:422–636; Virgil’s account of the Harpies as encountered by Aeneas and his men is found in the Aeneid 3:210–69.
• Aeneid , Book I, lines 261–64 (Guildford trans.).
• “A True Reportory of the Wreck and Redemption of Sir Thomas Gates, Knight,” in A Voyage to Virginia in 1609 , ed. Louis B. Wright (Charlottesville: The University Press of Virginia, 1964), pp. 1–101, esp. pp. 88–89.
• “Learning to Curse: Aspects of Linguistic Colonialism in the Sixteenth Century,” in Learning to Curse: Essays in Early Modern Culture (New York and London: Routledge, 1990), pp. 23–26.
• Stolen Continents: The “New World” Through Indian Eyes (Toronto: Penguin Books, 1993).
• See Edward W. Said, “Empire, Geography, and Culture” and “Images of the Past, Pure and Impure,” in Culture and Imperialism (New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1993), pp. 3–14, 15–19.
• For example, in “Nymphs and reapers heavily vanish: the discursive con-texts of The Tempest ,” Alternative Shakespeares , ed. John Drakakis (pp. 192–205), Francis Barker and Peter Hulme state that “the discourse of colonialism” is the “dominant discursive con-text” for the play.

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The Tempest

William shakespeare, everything you need for every book you read..

During the time when The Tempest was written and first performed, both Shakespeare and his audiences would have been very interested in the efforts of English and other European settlers to colonize distant lands around the globe. The Tempest explores the complex and problematic relationship between the European colonizer and the native colonized peoples through the relationship between Prospero and Caliban. Prospero views Caliban as a lesser being than himself. As such, Prospero believes that Caliban should be grateful to him for educating Caliban and lifting him out of "savagery." It simply does not occur to Prospero that he has stolen rulership of the island from Caliban, because Prospero can't imagine Caliban as being fit to rule anything. In contrast, Caliban soon realizes that Prospero views him as a second-class citizen fit only to serve and that by giving up his rulership of the island in return for his education, he has allowed himself to be robbed. As a result, Caliban turns bitter and violent, which only reinforces Prospero's view of him as a "savage." Shakespeare uses Prospero and Caliban's relationship to show how the misunderstandings between the colonizer and the colonized lead to hatred and conflict, with each side thinking that the other is at fault.

In addition to the relationship between the colonizer and colonized, The Tempest also explores the fears and opportunities that colonization creates. Exposure to new and different peoples leads to racism and intolerance, as seen when Sebastian criticizes Alonso for allowing his daughter to marry an African. Exploration and colonization led directly to slavery and the conquering of native peoples. For instance, Stephano and Trinculo both consider capturing Caliban to sell as a curiosity back at home, while Stephano eventually begins to see himself as a potential king of the island. At the same time, the expanded territories established by colonization created new places in which to experiment with alternative societies. Shakespeare conveys this idea in Gonzalo's musings about the perfect civilization he would establish if he could acquire a territory of his own.

Colonization ThemeTracker

Colonization Quotes in The Tempest

William Shakespeare: Father-Daughter Relationship in “The Tempest” Essay

The relationships between fathers and daughters are usually particular. This connection is greater when a father have to bring up a daughter himself. It is obvious that no matter how old a daughter is a father always considers her as a small girl who needs care and protection.

The appearance of one more man near a lovely daughter is usually considered as the attempt to still the dearest person in the world, that is why many fathers are usually against their daughters’ relationships with other men no matter how good these men are. The denial is the first reaction fathers usually experience and their desire to check a man is understood.

One of the main conditions according to which a daughter is going to be protected in the future is the strong assuredness that a daughter is in good and loving hands, protected like under the father’s care. Reading the play The Tempest by William Shakespeare, it becomes obvious that the same situation is happening among Prospero, Miranda and Ferdinand.

Starting the discussion with Prospero and Miranda it should be mentioned that living on the island, Prospero understands how cruel the surrounding world may be. However, Miranda is really naïve and cannot distract the simple problem from the real disaster.

Taking care for a daughter, Prospero is ready to create the fake problems and put the intentions of loving Ferdinand under question just to make sure that the man is ready to fight for his daughter and to win in this battle.

At the very beginning of the play Prospero says the following to Miranda,

I have done nothing but I care of thee,

Of thee, my dear one, thee, my daughter, who

Art ignorant of what thou art, nought knowing

Of whence I am: nor that I am more better

Than Prospero, master of a full poor cell,

And thy no greater father (Shakespeare 7).

This phrase directs the further relations between Prospero, Miranda and the men who surround her. Everything Miranda knows is the merit of her farther. Being educated, polite and well bread, Miranda is a great example of an ideal daughter and a wife. It seems that father is going to be glad when she meets a person with whom they are going to live together, however, everything is absolutely different.

Trying to make sure that Miranda is going to be safe and protected, Prospero in interested in pleasing her at the island. Still, he could not predict the appearance of Ferdinand who spoiled all the dreams of the father. Each father wants their daughters to be happy, however, at the same time, many fathers are sure that their children are going to be near them all the time.

The appearance of Ferdinand on the island and the first scene where Miranda and Ferdinand meet each other seems too dangerous for Prospero. Prospero cannot trust Ferdinand and tries to check his intentions.

Prospero understands that Miranda is going to fall in love with Ferdinand as there is no another way out. A girl has been at the island for the last 12 years (since she was 15) and the natural desire of a young woman to love and to be loved is essential. However, Prospero does not want Ferdinand to get such a great woman as his daughter for free, without battles.

Prospero understands that being restricted from the whole world, Miranda is not going to reject Ferdinand’s courtship. At the same time considering his daughter as a great prize, too expensive and unique, Prospero uses his magic to force Ferdinand to suffer. Even though Miranda has never been fallen in love, she understands that she is ready to do anything for her lover,

[I weep] at mine unworthiness, that dare not offer

What I desire to give, and much less take

What I shall die to want. But this is trifling,

And all the more it seeks to hide itself

The bigger bulk it shows. Hence, bashful cunning,

And prompt me, plain and holy innocence.

I am your wife, if you will marry me.

If not, I’ll die your maid. To be your fellow

You may deny me, but I’ll be your servant

Whether you will or no (Shakespeare 60)

The further dialogue is the expression of the feelings where two young people exchange the desire to be together “a thousand thousand” hours (Shakespeare 60). Even though this scene presupposes that two lovers are not going to meet any difficulties, that these people are not going to suffer, Miranda’s father thinks differently.

The story of love discussed in the play is like any other love-story has to suffer greatly to have a happy end. Being able to control everything and everyone on the island, it is difficult to imagine that Prospero is not going to use an opportunity to create difficulties for the fiancé if the bride is not ready (or is not taught) to create those.

It is impossible to say whether it is the desire to make sure that all the rules are followed as when people love each other they are to be together. It seems that the author of the pay intentionally creates the sarcastic situation. Lovers can be together without any difficulties, however, the usual estate of affairs is different and there is a person who can create the complications.

Still, the lovers are predicted to be together. The author shows the reader that it is Prospero who unites two lovers to underline the fact that everything on the island is under his control.

Therefore, it may be concluded that the romantic relationships between Miranda and Ferdinand are possible only because Miranda’s father allows them. At the same time, looking at the situation from the perspective of the acknowledgeable audience, it becomes obvious that Prospero is exactly the person who has created additional circumstances on the way for lovers’ union.

Why is it necessary? Whether the desire to create the situation which usually appears is that great? Reading the final words Prospero expresses to the audience, it becomes obvious that Prospero believes himself the director of the destinies of people who surround him.

Miranda and Ferdinand’s love is neither predicted nor directed by Prospero, that is why he wants to make sure that all the occasions which happen on the island (like it was before Ferdinand and his family arrived) are caused or controlled by him.

“Our revels now are ended. These our actors…” (Shakespeare 82) are the final words in the play which support the idea of Prospero’s desire to control the whole island with people there. Therefore, the love of two people sometimes depends not on the circumstances which appear, but on people who surround them as sometimes the desire to be the main person in the lives of others may put under question the positive intentions.

Works Cited

Shakespeare, William. The Tempest . New York: Cricket House Books LLC, 2010. Print.

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Back to: The Tempest by William Shakespeare

In the play The Tempest, Shakespeare contemplates the idea of power in various ways. The play explores the desire for control and power which is universal. It is a unique play that has yielded different perspectives of different ages.

In modern times, much has been interpreted from the play in terms of colonial and post-colonial reading . The play reflects the power of a master over its slave and as well as the power of men over women in a patriarchal society apart from other topical notions of power such as the king and his subjects.

The power which is most deciding in the play is the magical power of Prospero. Prospero controls the whole island and through his power, he can also intervene in the rhythm of Nature.

The brutal side of his power is exposed through his dealing with Caliban. His brutality towards him is justified by the fact that Caliban tried raping his daughter Miranda.

Nevertheless, his power must have blinded him from realizing certain limitations of Caliban and accepting him as a living individual. In his power, he denies Caliban any humanity rather reserves it under his fold and addresses him as an “ Other .”

Prospero’s attempt to civilize him is actually a patronizing device of power exercise. He is almost disappointed with his attempt to humanize Caliban but it feels more like a disappointment of curiosity.

At the beginning of the play, it is not clear whether Prospero is good or bad but with the progress in the plot, one notices Prospero’s use of power for just reasons reveals his goodness by the end.

Caliban is a foil to Prospero’s power. Prospero’s power has no effect upon Caliban while at the same time, his power can control even the sleep of other characters.

The power which men exercise over women in such a society as shown in the play is clearly contemplated in the play. Miranda becomes a mere object of exchange for Prospero to achieve his political gain.

Even when Ferdinand describes his love in a mode of serving Miranda, it remains a tool of patriarchal power. Ferdinand says that “ The very instant that I saw you did My heart fly to your service. ”

Miranda’s femininity has been subdued under her father and later by Ferdinand. But towards the end of the play, Prospero decides to abandon his “ rough magic. ”

He understands the value of mortal limitations and retires from the limitless adventure of power and that’s what perhaps let him go back to the position of his past. Power in its various forms remains one of the prime thematic concerns of the play.

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Essays on The Tempest

The Tempest is a timeless play by William Shakespeare that offers a myriad of themes, characters, and plot points to explore. Choosing the right essay topic is crucial to producing a compelling and insightful piece of writing. In this guide, we will discuss the importance of selecting the right topic, offer advice on how to choose one, and provide a detailed list of recommended essay topics.

The Importance of Choosing the Right Topic

Choosing the right topic is crucial when writing an essay about The Tempest. The play is rich in symbolism, themes, and complex characters, offering a wide range of potential topics to explore. A well-chosen topic can make the writing process more enjoyable and help you produce a more engaging and insightful essay.

When selecting a topic for your essay on The Tempest, consider your interests, the themes you find most compelling, and the aspects of the play you want to explore in-depth. It's also important to consider the requirements of the assignment and the audience for your essay. Aim to choose a topic that allows you to demonstrate your understanding of the play and offers ample opportunities for analysis and interpretation.

30+ The Tempest Essay Topics for Your Academic Writing

Are you looking for an interesting and unique topic for your essay on The Tempest? Look no further! We have compiled a list of over 30 essay topics that cover a wide range of themes and elements from this classic play by William Shakespeare.

Themes and Motifs

• The use of magic and supernatural elements in The Tempest
• The theme of power and control in the play
• Colonialism and imperialism in The Tempest
• The concept of freedom and servitude in the play
• The role of forgiveness and reconciliation in the play
• Familial relationships and the theme of forgiveness
• Nature versus nurture in the character of Caliban
• The theme of colonization and imperialism

Characters Analysis

• An analysis of Prospero's character and his role as a father and a ruler
• The portrayal of Ariel as a symbol of freedom and captivity
• Caliban as a representation of the oppressed and the other
• The role of Miranda in the play and her relationships with other characters
• Exploring the character development of Ferdinand throughout the play
• The role of Caliban as a symbol of colonialism
• The portrayal of power and authority through the character of Alonso

Symbolism and Imagery

• An exploration of the significance of the tempest in the play
• The use of music and sound as a symbol in The Tempest
• The significance of the island as a setting in the play
• The portrayal of the masque as a reflection of the play's themes
• An analysis of the use of clothing and disguise in the play
• The use of symbolism in The Tempest
• The significance of the storm in the opening scene
• Shakespeare's use of language and imagery in the play
• The role of music and sound in The Tempest
• The use of comedy and humor in the play

Plot and Structure

• An examination of the role of the storm in the opening scene
• The use of the supernatural elements to drive the plot forward
• An analysis of the resolution and the restoration of order in the play
• The role of the subplot involving Stephano, Trinculo, and Caliban
• An exploration of the play's use of comedy and tragedy

Comparative Essays

• Comparing The Tempest with other Shakespearean plays
• The Tempest and the theme of revenge in other literary works
• Comparing the portrayal of magic in The Tempest and other works of literature
• The Tempest and its relation to the genre of tragicomedy

With these diverse and thought-provoking essay topics, you are sure to find the perfect inspiration for your academic writing on The Tempest. Whether you're interested in analyzing the play's themes, characters, symbolism, or plot, there are numerous avenues for exploration within the text. By choosing a topic that resonates with you and allows for in-depth analysis, you can produce a compelling and insightful essay that showcases your understanding of Shakespeare's timeless play. Happy writing!

Tempest Revenge Quotes

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The ulterior theme in the character of miranda from the tempest, analysis of prospero's behavior in the tempest, daughters: the principal driving force in the tempest, the power over "the other": isolation and injustice in literature, elemental powers in shakespeare’s the tempest, shakespeare’s criticism of colonialism in acts 1 and 2 of the tempest, analysis of prospero and ariel relationship in the tempest, "creator" and "creature" monsters in the tempest and frankenstein, the obsessive creativity of prospero in the tempest, the refinement of caliban in the tempest, comic elements in our country's good and the tempest, the combination of love and witchcraft in the tempest, the story of joseph in shakespeare’s the tempest vs. the spirit of revenge in montaigne’s cannibals, significance of the menacing force of the sea in the tempest, the use of stories as a literary device in the tempest and othello, a cinematic perspective of the relationship between art and nature in the tempest, another version of prosperity: undermining the authority of prospero, the influence of caliban and ariel on prospero, the shakespearean dystopia of aldous huxley.

November 1, 1611

• William Shakespeare

Shakespearean Comedy, Tragicomedy

Prospero, Miranda, Ariel, Caliban, Alonso, Sebastian, Antonio, Ferdinand, Gonzalo, Adrian, Francisco, Trinculo, Stephano, Juno, Ceres, Iris, Master, Mariners, Boatswain, Nymphs, Reapers

c.1611 by William Shakespeare

Shakespeare’s tragicomedy is about a major act of betrayal, ill treatment, the development of magic arts and a plot of revenge.

Prospero, Miranda, Ariel, Caliban, Alonso, Sebastian, Antonio, Ferdinand, Gonzalo, Adrian, Francisco, Trinculo, Stephano, Juno, Ceres

The play is set on a remote island and Prospero's home is near the shore. The island is inhabited by spirits, lead by Ariel, who have magical powers.

Prospero uses magic to conjure a storm and torment the survivors of a shipwreck, including the King of Naples and Prospero’s treacherous brother, Antonio. The King’s young son Ferdinand, thought to be dead, falls in love with Prospero’s daughter Miranda. Their celebrations are cut short when Prospero confronts his brother and reveals his identity as the usurped Duke of Milan. The families are reunited and all conflict is resolved. Prospero grants Ariel his freedom and prepares to leave the island.

“Hell is empty and all the devils are here.” “We are such stuff as dreams are made on, and our little life is rounded with a sleep.” “What's past is prologue.”

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New state of mind: rethinking how researchers understand brain activity.

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Understanding the link between brain activity and behavior is among the core interests of neuroscience. Having a better grasp of this relationship will both help scientists understand how the brain works on a basic level and uncover what specifically goes awry in cases of neurological and psychological disease.

One way that researchers study this connection is through what are known as “brain states,” patterns of neural activity or connectivity that emerge during specific cognitive tasks and are common enough in all individuals that they become predictable. Another, newer, approach is the study of brain waves, rhythmic, repetitive patterns of brain cell activity caused by synchronization across cells.

In a new paper, two Yale researchers propose that these two ways of thinking about brain activity may not represent separate events but two aspects of the same occurrence. Essentially, they suggest that though brain states are traditionally thought of as a snapshot of brain activity while waves are more like a movie, they’re capturing parts of the same story.

Reconsidering these two approaches in this context, the researchers say, could help both fields benefit from the methods and knowledge of the other and advance our understanding of the brain.

Inspired by ecological, conservation, and Indigenous philosophies, Maya Foster, a third-year Ph.D. student in the Department of Biomedical Engineering, began pursuing this idea once she joined the lab of Dustin Scheinost , an associate professor in the Department of Radiology and Biomedical Imaging at Yale School of Medicine.

They are co-authors of the new paper , published April 5 in the journal Trends in Cognitive Sciences.

“ We’re arguing that rather than a brain state being one single thing, it’s a collection of things, a collection of discrete patterns that emerge in time in a predictable way,” she said.

In an interview with Yale News, Foster and Scheinost describe their proposal, and discuss how they might help researchers better understand the mysteries of the brain. This interview has been edited and condensed.

When did you start to consider these might be two aspects of the same occurrence?

Maya Foster: This has been on my mind even before I came to this lab. I was reading a book — “Erosion: Essays of Undoing” by Terry Tempest Williams — and she talks about how human-made machinery like helicopters cause vibrations that interrupt the natural pulse of things and cause things like rock formations to fall apart. Relatedly, there are a lot of Indigenous populations that believe everything has a pulse. And that got me thinking of the brain and whether we have some type of resonance or vibration that can be disrupted.

Then I joined this lab and Dustin let me experiment with a lot of different things. During one of those experiments, I input some data into a particular analysis and the outputs looked wave-like, and patterns emerged and then repeated. That took me down a whole rabbit hole of research literature and there was a lot of evidence for this idea of wave-like patterns in brain states.

What are the benefits of considering brain states as wave-like?

Foster: I think it creates a synergy where both sides — the brain state folks and the brain wave folks — benefit by learning from each other. And maybe the gaps in knowledge we have now when it comes to how brain activity relates to behavior might be filled by both groups working together.

Dustin Scheinost: Brain waves are newer in this field and they’re complex. And any time you can take something new and relate it to something old — brain states in this case — it gives you a natural jumping off point. You can bring along everything you’ve learned so far. It’s kind of like not throwing the baby out with the bath water. We don’t need to drop brain states. They’ve informed us, but we can go in a different direction with them too.

How are you proposing researchers consider brain states and brain waves now?

Foster: Borrowing from physics, when you analyze light, it can be a discrete point — a photon — or it can be wave-like. And that’s one way we’re thinking about this. Similarly, depending on how you analyze brain states you can get static patterns, much like a photon, or you if you look at activity more dynamically, certain patterns start to occur more than once over time, kind of like a wave.

So we’re arguing that rather than a brain state being one single thing, it’s a collection of things, a collection of discrete patterns that emerge in time in a predictable way.

For example, if we measured four distinct patterns in brain activity as someone completed a cognitive task, a brain state could be that pattern one emerges, then pattern three, then two, then four, and that series might repeat over time. And when that repetition stops, that would be the end of that particular brain state.

You also draw comparisons to the musical technique known as “fugue.” How does that fit with how you’re visualizing these phenomena?

Foster: I’m a music person, so that’s where this came from. In a fugue, you have a basic melody and then that melody emerges later in the music in different forms and formats. For instance, the melody will play, then some other music comes in, then the melody returns with the same rhythm and time sequence but maybe it’s in a different key.

Fugues are cyclical and wave-like, they have distinct groups of notes, and there’s a systematic repetition and sometimes layering of the main melody. We’re arguing that brain states are also wave-like, have distinct patterns of brain activity, and display systematic repetition and layering of sequential patterns.

How are you hoping other researchers respond to your argument?

Foster: I would love feedback, honestly. There is evidence for what we’re proposing but when it comes to implementing these ideas going forward, it would be helpful to have a conversation about how that might work. There are a lot of different strategies and I’m interested in a broader conversation about how we as researchers might go about studying this.

What’s it like as someone who has been in this field for a while to have a student come in with a new idea like this?

Scheinost: You can get set in your ways as a researcher and you need new ideas, new creativity. Sometimes they may sound outlandish when you first hear them. But then you ruminate, and they start to take form. And it’s fun. That’s really where the fun of this job is, to hear new ideas and see how people discuss and debate them.

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Guest Essay

You Don’t Just See a Total Solar Eclipse. You Feel It Completely.

By Ryan Milligan

Dr. Milligan is a senior lecturer in astrophysics at Queen’s University in Belfast, Northern Ireland.

Almost one year ago, in the middle of the night, I drove from my hometown, Belfast, Northern Ireland, to Dublin to catch an early morning flight to Munich. From there I caught another plane to Bangkok, another to Singapore and yet another to Perth in Western Australia. There, I rented a camper van and began a drive of more than 750 miles north to the town of Exmouth on a remote peninsula on the northwest coast of the continent.

This was the only reasonably accessible location on the planet with decent weather prospects from which to view the total solar eclipse on April 20, 2023. The entire event lasted 62 seconds. It was the 10th total solar eclipse I’d traveled to witness.

Even as a professional solar physicist, I find it difficult to convey why eclipse chasers like me go to such extraordinary lengths to witness such a fleeting phenomenon, again and again. I was extra determined to make the pilgrimage last year after I was thwarted by clouds in Chile in December 2020, and I couldn’t afford the eye-watering cost of traveling to Antarctica in 2021. I needed to whet my appetite before embarking on another expedition to see the totality of the April 8 eclipse in Mazatlán, Mexico.

It may sound absurd, but there is no other celestial event that anyone I know would devote so much time and effort to seeing. If you wish to see the northern lights, you can hop on a plane to Iceland or Norway and have a fairly decent chance of seeing them in the winter months. If you are on the nightside of the planet during a lunar eclipse and the skies are clear, you just need to go outside and look up to see it happening. But unless you are fortunate enough to live within or close to the path of totality, witnessing a total solar eclipse will probably require meticulous planning and marshaling time and money to get you to an optimal location and a bit of luck to make sure the weather forecasts you’ve pored over hold true.

Believe me, it is worth the effort.

A total solar eclipse is not something that you see — it’s something that you experience. You can feel the temperature around you begin to drop by as much as 15 degrees over the five to 10 minutes that lead up to the eclipse. The birds and other animals go silent. The light becomes eerie and morphs into a dusky, muted twilight, and you begin to see stark, misplaced shadows abound. A column of darkness in the sky hurtles toward you at over 1,000 miles per hour as the moon’s shadow falls neatly over the sun, turning day into temporary night — nothing like the calming sunset we take for granted every day. Sometimes, a few stars or planets begin to appear faintly in the sky as your eyes get used to the new darkness.

The hairs stand up on the back of your neck and the adrenaline kicks in as your brain tries to make sense of what is going on. But it cannot. It has no other point of reference to compare these sensations to. A total eclipse elicits a unique, visceral, primeval feeling that cannot be evoked by a photograph or a video or a newspaper article, and that can be experienced only within the path of totality when the moon completely obscures the disk of the sun.

And then of course there is the crowning glory: the sun’s corona, the pearly white outer atmosphere of our nearest star that we can otherwise see only using a fleet of dedicated solar-observing spacecraft. It has an ethereal beauty that is challenging to articulate.

For those brief few moments when the corona appears bright in the sky, all the effort made to experience the totality becomes worth it. You want to soak up every second of it and process every feeling, because it is over all too soon. Once the moon’s shadow has passed you feel both exhilarated and deflated because the next opportunity to experience this sensation again could be years away and on the other side of the world. And it is something that you will crave.

There is also, of course, the professional motivation for me to gaze upon the subject of my research with my own eyes. Most other astrophysicists only get to look at exploding stars or distant comets through gargantuan telescopes, where they appear as mere pixels on a computer screen or a squiggle on a graph. It’s easy to get detached from the beauty of astronomy when your job becomes more focused on securing grant funding, teaching, administrative duties and bureaucracy. Eclipse chasing reminds me why I chose this field of work in the first place and reignites my passion — and I want to inspire my students with that same passion.

Each eclipse is different. The shape and structure of the solar corona varies over the course of each solar cycle. The longer the duration of the eclipse, the darker one’s surroundings are likely to seem. And sandwiched between the sun’s “surface” and the corona is the crimson red chromosphere, the layer of the sun’s atmosphere that I have been researching for almost 20 years to understand its relationship to solar flares. In Australia the briefness of totality meant that this region was exceptionally bright and distinguished, and one could even spot some solar prominences (clouds of hydrogen gas suspended above the chromosphere) with the naked eye. That may also be the case on Monday.

People mistakenly think that a partial eclipse is good enough. It is not. When outside the path of totality, the visibility of even 1 percent of the sun’s disk is enough to outshine the entire corona. The buzz around this year’s eclipse through North America has reached a fever pitch not seen since the “Great American Eclipse” of 2017. The duration of totality will be almost twice as long — almost four and a half minutes. (Whether the weather will cooperate is still an open question .)

This is far from the first time I’ve tried to cajole people into experiencing the totality in full. In 2017, I persuaded several of my friends in the United States to join me in Nebraska to enjoy the spectacle without forcing them to traipse halfway across the globe. They later told me that they at first thought I may have been somewhat exaggerating the experience because of my professional bias, but when the eclipse was over, I knew that they finally got it. Their faces were overcome with emotion and they struggled to articulate how they were feeling. Because it wasn’t just about what they had seen — it was about what they had experienced.

Ryan Milligan is a solar physicist at Queen’s University in Belfast, Northern Ireland. He has held research fellowships at NASA and the Science and Technology Facilities Council in Britain and was affiliated with NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center for over a decade.

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