The tempest: Model answers

“If by your art, my dearest father, you have put the wild waters in this roar, allay them. The sky it seems would pour down stinking pitch, But the sea, mounting to the´ welkin’s cheek, Dashes the fire out. O, I have suffered from those that I saw suffer: a brave vessel—Who had, no doubt, some noble creature in her—Dashed all to places! Oh, the cry did knock Against my very heart—pour souls, they perished.” Answer: William Shakespeare wrote the play “The tempest” in 1611, and it is about Prospero and his at the time young daughter Miranda that was exiled and trapped on a deserted island in what is now known as Bermuda. However, Prospero was exiled by his brother and the King of Milan, and because of this betrayal he wants to take revenge for their betrayal, which is one main themes of the play. Another theme that is central to the play, and that can be found it the quote is imprisonment where Miranda asks her father Prospero after have seen the ship wreck if the storm on the island is in fact her father’s creation, and if so she begs him to stop as it hurts people, and therefore she hurts too. What is interesting with imprisonment as the theme is how well it suits the historical context. For instance, it is not only Prospero and Miranda that are prisoners at the island, but Prospero holds Caliban as a prisoner too. This situation/relationship is very similar to slavery and colonization, as this was at its peak during the early 1600’s (Renaissance). Prospero takes on the role of acting as the “civilizer” to what he considers the wild “savage” Caliban. Moreover, the setting of the play, in terms of Prospero being deserted at the island because of the storm when he was put in a boat. During the 1600’s the Englishmen were at the forefront of exploring the world (as mentioned earlier about colonization), and many explorers traveled by ship. Some even say that the plot of the story is influenced by the Bermuda shipwreck where 9 ships were out at sea to explore new territory, and a Captain got lost from his men because of a storm in Bermuda. Some say that the captain got imprisoned at the island. The language traits in the quote is a typical feature of Shakespeare’s writing. He uses copia, in other words he never writes in a matter of fact way. For instance, when Miranda addresses her father she speaks in a way that is very unnatural. The lines is written in a iambic pentameter where each line has 5 stressed syllables, and the rhythm is unstressed-stressed throughout. This was a typical literary device during the Renaissance as writers at the time thought that the rhythmic language enhanced the language’s beauty when writing this in verses. Shakespeare often lets characters such as Miranda, Prospero etc. that are of higher rank speak in verse whereas characters of lower rank speak in prose.
“You are three men of sin, whom Destiny, That hath to instrument this lower worldAnd what is in’t, the never-surfeited seaHath caused to belch up you; and on this islandWhere man doth not inhabit – you ‘mongst men Being most unfit to live” Answer: William Shakespeare wrote the play “The tempest” in 1611, and it is about Prospero and his at the time young daughter Miranda that was exiled and trapped on a deserted island in what is now known as Bermuda. However, Prospero was exiled by his brother and the King of Milan, and because of this betrayal he wants to take revenge for their betrayal, which is one main themes of the play. In this quote Ariel, the spirit Prospero freed from being imprisoned by Sycorax and who is now Prospero’s servant speaks to Alonso, Antonio, and Sebastian. Ariel tells them that their betrayal of Prospero’s has made them sinners, and that it was the destiny who put them on the island because of their sin. As mentioned before a theme that one can apply to this quote is revenge, as Ariel is enslaved by Prospero, and everything he does is the work of Prospero. Therefore, putting them on the island is the first step towards revenge (even though in the end Prospero chooses not to get it) by the storm that Prospero himself has conducted with his magical powers with the help of his servant Ariel. More so, another theme one can apply here is imprisonment, as these three men is now also imprisoned at the island as Prospero, Miranda, Caliban, and Ariel is. The lines are written in a iambic pentameter where each line has 5 stressed syllables, and the rhythm is unstressed-stressed throughout. This was a typical literary device during the Renaissance as writers at the time thought that the rhythmic language enhanced the language’s beauty when writing this in verses.
“Hell is empty and all the devils are here.” Answer: William Shakespeare wrote the play “The tempest” in 1611, and it is about Prospero and his at the time young daughter Miranda that was exiled and trapped on a deserted island in what is now known as Bermuda. However, Prospero was exiled by his brother and the King of Milan, and because of this betrayal he wants to take revenge for their betrayal, which is one main themes of the play. In this quote Ariel, the spirit Prospero freed from being imprisoned by Sycorax and who is now Prospero’s servant. In this quote Ariel speaks to Prospero and he refers to Ferdinand, the king’s son, who said this before he jumped down into the sea from the ship. It refers to the island that they all are imprisoned at, which the characters that live there are evil like devils. In terms of themes that can be applied when speaking about the quote is imprisonment. Ariel and Caliban are imprisoned by Prospero, since Caliban is an “hag-seed” and Ariel is needed for his powers. Also both Miranda and Prospero are imprisoned on the Island since Prospero lost his title as the Duke of Milan. More so, the evil devils might also refer to the revenge part, as Prospero feels unable to forgive Anthony and Alonso for their betrayal and instead imprisons them on the island too. What is interesting with imprisonment as the theme is how well it suits the historical context. For instance, it is not only Prospero and Miranda that are prisoners at the island, but Prospero holds Caliban as a prisoner too. This situation/relationship is very similar to slavery and colonization, as this was at its peak during the early 1600’s (Renaissance). Prospero takes on the role of acting as the “civilizer” to what he considers the wild “savage” Caliban. Moreover, the setting of the play, in terms of Prospero being deserted at the island because of the storm when he was put in a boat. During the 1600’s the Englishmen were at the forefront of exploring the world (as mentioned earlier about colonization), and many explorers traveled by ship. Some even say that the plot of the story is influenced by the Bermuda shipwreck where 9 ships were out at sea to explore new territory, and a Captain got lost from his men because of a storm in Bermuda. Some say that the captain got imprisoned at the island. The language traits in the quote is a typical feature of Shakespeare’s writing. He uses copia, in other words he never writes in a matter of fact way. For instance, when Miranda addresses her father she speaks in a way that is very unnatural. The lines is written in a iambic pentameter where each line has 5 stressed syllables, and the rhythm is unstressed-stressed throughout. This was a typical literary device during the Renaissance as writers at the time thought that the rhythmic language enhanced the language’s beauty when writing this in verses. Shakespeare often lets characters such as Miranda, Prospero etc. that are of higher rank speak in verse whereas characters of lower rank speak in prose.
“Be not afeard. The isle is full of noises,Sounds, and sweet airs, that give delight and hurt not.Sometimes a thousand twangling instrumentsWill hum about mine ears, and sometime voicesThat, if I then had waked after long sleepWill make me sleep again; and then in dreamingThe clouds methought would open and show richesReady to drop upon me, that when I wakedI cried to dream again.” (Act III, scene II)” Answer: William Shakespeare wrote the play “The tempest” in 1611, and it is about Prospero and his at the time young daughter Miranda that was exiled and trapped on a deserted island in what is now known as Bermuda. However, Prospero was exiled by his brother and the King of Milan, and because of this betrayal he wants to take revenge for their betrayal, which is one main themes of the play. In this quote Caliban speaks to Stephano and Trinculo where he tells them that the music they hear is conducted by magic. However, even though Caliban’s only encounter with magic throughout most of the play is by Prospero’s tyranni, he describes the noises they hear as beautiful creations as well as the wonders that exists on the island – in other words, he’s able to appreciate the magic. A theme that applies here is magic, and the biggest source of magic comes from Prospero and Ariel. Ariel is enslaved by Prospero, but not of magic, but of gratitude of him being freed by Sycorax whereas Caliban is indeed enslaved by Prospero’s magic. This is because him trying to rape Miranda when she was only a child, and therefore Prospero thinks that he is a monster because of him being uncivil. This situation/relationship is very similar to slavery and colonization, as this was at its peak during the early 1600’s (Renaissance). Prospero takes on the role of acting as the “civilizer” to what he considers the wild “savage” Caliban. Moreover, the setting of the play, in terms of Prospero being deserted at the island because of the storm when he was put in a boat. During the 1600’s the Englishmen were at the forefront of exploring the world (as mentioned earlier about colonization), and many explorers traveled by ship. Some even say that the plot of the story is influenced by the Bermuda shipwreck where 9 ships were out at sea to explore new territory, and a Captain got lost from his men because of a storm in Bermuda. Some say that the captain got imprisoned at the island. This part is often considered to be the most controversial verse in the entire play as it is so beautiful, yet shakespeare chose to give it to the savage Caliban. More so, the characters that are less of status usually do not speak in verse, but here we can see that Caliban that is considered to be the biggest monster of them all speaks the most beautiful. Shakespeare uses copia as he doesn’t like to write in a matter of fact way. Moreover, he uses iambic pentameter where each line has 5 stressed syllables.
“Our revels now are ended. These our actors, As I foretold you, were all spirits, and Are melted into air, into thin air; And, like the baseless fabric of this vision, The cloud-capped towers, the gorgeous palaces, The solemn temples, the great globe itself, Yea, all which it inherit, shall dissolve; And, like this insubstantial pageant faded, Leave not a rack behind. We are such stuff As dreams are made on, and our little life Is rounded with a sleep” Answer: William Shakespeare wrote the play “The tempest” in 1611, and it is about Prospero and his at the time young daughter Miranda that was exiled and trapped on a deserted island in what is now known as Bermuda. However, Prospero was exiled by his brother and the King of Milan, and because of this betrayal he wants to take revenge for their betrayal, which is one main themes of the play. Prior this quote Prospero he caused a storm as a revenge for his brother Anthony and King Alonso exiled him, and Prospero did not like that Miranda and prince Ferdinand fell in love and tried to stop it. However, now he has accepted their love, and decided to stop with the storm When speaking about the storm it is essential to mention magic as a theme. The biggest source of magic comes from Prospero and Ariel. Ariel is enslaved by Prospero, but not of magic, but of gratitude of him being freed by Sycorax whereas Caliban is indeed enslaved by Prospero’s magic. This is because him trying to rape Miranda when she was only a child, and therefore Prospero thinks that he is a monster because of him being uncivil. This situation/relationship is very similar to slavery and colonization, as this was at its peak during the early 1600’s (Renaissance). Moreover, the setting of the play, in terms of Prospero being deserted at the island because of the storm when he was put in a boat. During the 1600’s the Englishmen were at the forefront of exploring the world (as mentioned earlier about colonization), and many explorers traveled by ship. Some even say that the plot of the story is influenced by the Bermuda shipwreck where 9 ships were out at sea to explore new territory, and a Captain got lost from his men because of a storm in Bermuda. Some say that the captain got imprisoned at the island. The language traits in the quote is a typical feature of Shakespeare’s writing. He uses copia, in other words he never writes in a matter of fact way. For instance, when Prospero speaks it is in a way that is very unnatural, however this is because it is the old Elizabethan English that today feel a bit alien. The lines is written in a iambic pentameter where each line has 5 stressed syllables, and the rhythm is unstressed-stressed throughout. This was a typical literary device during the Renaissance as writers at the time thought that the rhythmic language enhanced the language’s beauty when writing this in verses. Shakespeare often lets characters such as Miranda, Prospero etc. that are of higher rank speak in verse whereas characters of lower rank speak in prose.
“To have no screen between this part he play’d And him he play’d it for, he needs will be Absolute Milan. Me, poor man, my library Was dukedom large enough. Of temporal royalties He thinks me now incapable; confederates – So dry he was for sway – with’ King of Naples To give him annual tribute, do him homage, Subject his coronet to his crown, and bend The dukedom yet unbow’d – alas, poor Milan! – To most ignoble stooping” Answer: William Shakespeare wrote the play “The tempest” in 1611, and it is about Prospero and his at the time young daughter Miranda that was exiled and trapped on a deserted island in what is now known as Bermuda. However, Prospero was exiled by his brother and the King of Milan, and because of this betrayal he wants to take revenge for their betrayal, which is one main themes of the play. In this quote Prospero speaks to Miranda, and he explains to her about how he trusted his brother, but he betrayed him and ganged up with the King of Milan to become the duke himself because of his greed of power. A theme to connect to this greed of hunger is revenge, as the entire reason why Prospero wants to revenge is because of the betrayal. When the opportunity to take revenge on both Antonio and the King reveals itself, Prospero takes the chance. His scheme is well-planned, since he orchestrates the storm together with Ariel and separates the King from his son Ferdinand making him believe that he has lost Ferdinand.This situation/relationship is very similar to slavery and colonization, as this was at its peak during the early 1600’s (Renaissance). The Englishmen were at the forefront of exploring the world to take control and power over unmarked territory, for instance Captain Cook’s settlement in Jamestown, Virginia. In a way power is another theme too, as in a way Prospero takes power over Caliban as he acts uncivilized. The language traits in the quote is a typical feature of Shakespeare’s writing. He uses copia, in other words he never writes in a matter of fact way. For instance, when Prospero speaks it is in a way that is very unnatural, however this is because it is the old Elizabethan English that today feel a bit alien. The lines is written in a iambic pentameter where each line has 5 stressed syllables, and the rhythm is unstressed-stressed throughout. This was a typical literary device during the Renaissance as writers at the time thought that the rhythmic language enhanced the language’s beauty when writing this in verses. Shakespeare often lets characters such as Miranda, Prospero etc. that are of higher rank speak in verse whereas characters of lower rank speak in prose.
“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.” Answer: William Shakespeare wrote the play “The tempest” in 1611, and it is about Prospero and his at the time young daughter Miranda that was exiled and trapped on a deserted island in what is now known as Bermuda. However, Prospero was exiled by his brother and the King of Milan, and because of this betrayal he wants to take revenge for their betrayal, which is one main themes of the play. Prior this quote Prospero he caused a storm as a revenge for his brother Anthony and King Alonso exiled him, and Prospero did not like that Miranda and prince Ferdinand fell in love and tried to stop it. However, now he has accepted their love, and decided to stop with the storm. In this quote Miranda speaks to Ferdinand to declear her undying love for him. She breaks out from character of being a calm (because of obdience to her father), but her love and desire goes from being her father’s naive puppet to become a more sexual being that won’t take no for an answer. A theme to connect to this greed of hunger is revenge, as the entire reason why Prospero wants to revenge is because of the betrayal. When the opportunity to take revenge on both Antonio and the King reveals itself, Prospero takes the chance. His scheme is well-planned, since he orchestrates the storm together with Ariel and separates the King from his son Ferdinand making him believe that he has lost Ferdinand.This situation/relationship is very similar to slavery and colonization, as this was at its peak during the early 1600’s (Renaissance). The Englishmen were at the forefront of exploring the world to take control and power over unmarked territory, for instance Captain Cook’s settlement in Jamestown, Virginia. In a way power is another theme too, as in a way Prospero takes power over Caliban as he acts uncivilized. The language traits in the quote is a typical feature of Shakespeare’s writing. He uses copia, in other words he never writes in a matter of fact way. For instance, when Prospero speaks it is in a way that is very unnatural, however this is because it is the old Elizabethan English that today feel a bit alien. The lines is written in a iambic pentameter where each line has 5 stressed syllables, and the rhythm is unstressed-stressed throughout. This was a typical literary device during the Renaissance as writers at the time thought that the rhythmic language enhanced the language’s beauty when writing this in verses. Shakespeare often lets characters such as Miranda, Prospero etc. that are of higher rank speak in verse whereas characters of lower rank speak in prose. More so, Shakespeare uses reptition to enhance the rhythm.
“My strong imagination sees a crown Dropping upon thy head.– This is a strange repose, to be asleep With eyes wide open; standing, speaking, moving, And yet so fast asleep.– Thou let’st thy fortune sleep–die, rather; wink’st Whiles thou art waking.–Thou dost snore distinctly; There’s meaning in thy snores.” Answer: William Shakespeare wrote the play “The tempest” in 1611, and it is about Prospero and his at the time young daughter Miranda that was exiled and trapped on a deserted island in what is now known as Bermuda. However, Prospero was exiled by his brother and the King of Milan, and because of this betrayal he wants to take revenge for their betrayal, which is one main themes of the play. This quote is a bit special as it contains not only one speaker, but two. This is a conversation between Antonio and Sebastian after have witnessed that the king and his men have fallen mysteriously asleep. What is strange is that Antonio and Sebastian are the only ones awake, and Antonio sees his shot to persuade Sebastian with fortune and high status if he kills his own brother. A theme that one can connect this to is power. The entire motive for betraying Prospero in the beginning is the power to become duke. More so, in this quote the entire motive is to take the power from King Alonso. However, one can also connect magic as a theme here, as even though it is not directly stated, it is indicated that them all falling asleep is because of a Ariel’s music. This situation/relationship is very similar to slavery and colonization, as this was at its peak during the early 1600’s (Renaissance). The Englishmen were at the forefront of exploring the world to take control and power over unmarked territory, for instance Captain Cook’s settlement in Jamestown, Virginia. In a way power is another theme too, as in a way Prospero takes power over Caliban as he acts uncivilized. The language traits in the quote is a typical feature of Shakespeare’s writing. He uses copia, in other words he never writes in a matter of fact way. For instance, when Prospero speaks it is in a way that is very unnatural, however this is because it is the old Elizabethan English that today feel a bit alien. The lines in the tempest is usually written in a iambic pentameter where each line has 5 stressed syllables, and the rhythm is unstressed-stressed throughout. This was a typical literary device during the Renaissance as writers at the time thought that the rhythmic language enhanced the language’s beauty when writing this in verses. However, as Shakespeare often lets characters such as Miranda, Prospero etc. that are of higher rank speak in verse, the characters in this quote is of lower rank speak and therefore speaks in prose. More so, Shakespeare uses repetition to enhance the rhythm such as “thou”.
“Full fathom five thy father lies; Of his bones are coral made; Those are pearls that were his eyes: Nothing of him that doth fade But doth suffer a sea-change Into something rich and strange. Sea-nymphs hourly ring his knell” Answer: William Shakespeare wrote the play “The tempest” in 1611, and it is about Prospero and his at the time young daughter Miranda that was exiled and trapped on a deserted island in what is now known as Bermuda. However, Prospero was exiled by his brother and the King of Milan, and because of this betrayal he wants to take revenge for their betrayal, which is one main themes of the play. This quote is a bit special as this is “Ariel’s song”. It is sung by the spirit Ariel to the King’s son Ferdinand who with his father just got shipwrecked. The song implies that Alonso is dead, and this is a scheme by Prospero in order to get his revenge. A theme that one can connect this to is power. The entire motive for betraying Prospero in the beginning is the power to become duke. More so, in this quote the entire motive is to take the power from King Alonso. However, one can also connect revenge as a theme here, as because of the betrayal Prospero wants his revenge. He uses Ariel, whom he has enslaved, to do his dirty work. This situation/relationship is very similar to slavery and colonization, as this was at its peak during the early 1600’s (Renaissance). The Englishmen were at the forefront of exploring the world to take control and power over unmarked territory, for instance Captain Cook’s settlement in Jamestown, Virginia. In a way power is another theme too, as in a way Prospero takes power over Caliban as he acts uncivilized. The language traits in the quote is a typical feature of Shakespeare’s writing. He uses copia, in other words he never writes in a matter of fact way. For instance, when Prospero speaks it is in a way that is very unnatural, however this is because it is the old Elizabethan English that today feel a bit alien. The lines is written in a iambic pentameter where each line has 5 stressed syllables, and the rhythm is unstressed-stressed throughout. This was a typical literary device during the Renaissance as writers at the time thought that the rhythmic language enhanced the language’s beauty when writing this in verses. Shakespeare often lets characters such as Miranda, Prospero, Ariel etc. that are of higher rank speak in verse whereas characters of lower rank speak in prose. More so, Shakespeare uses reptition to enhance the rhythm.
“O, wonder! How many goodly creatures are there here! How beauteous mankind is! O brave new world, That has such people in’t!” The “O, wonder”-quote is from The Tempest by William Shakespeare, his last play 1611. The speaker is Miranda, a young girl who lives with her father, Prospero, magician and dispossessed Duke of Milan, on an island in Bermuda. The only other inhabitants of the island are their two servants, the “monster” Caliban, and the fairy-like Ariel. Shortly before this moment, Miranda has encountered a prince (Ferdinand) and fallen in love with him; now, she sees several of the other survivors of the magically arranged shipwreck that opens the play. Never having seen other human beings before, Miranda thinks of this band of traitors and would-be murderers, as beautiful and “goodly creatures”, and that the world is a better place for having such people in it. There is nice humour and irony in this, since the audience knows the sordid truth. But it also shows psychological realism: for Miranda, this is of course a wonderful and miraculous event. There are other people besides her old father! On another level one could argue that the desert island trope, and the realization that the world is both big and rich and diverse, and filled with “goodly creatures”, was a growing realization during Shakespeare’s time, not least in England with its budding colonial aspirations. In that soon-to-be-ugly-context, it is nice to hear Miranda’s positive, humanist affirmation, “how beauteous mankind is!” The quote is also a good example of Shakespeare’s language and style. The “O”-exclamation is repeated (O, wonder /O brave), as is the chained “How”-affirmation (How many / How beauteous); repetition is also achieved by verbal variation (goodly creatures / beauteous mankind); Shakespeare prefers variation and copia and excess over the bare and singular utterance. Rhythmically, the lines are in iambic pentameter (or blank verse), which is typical when Miranda or Prospero (or other nobility) is speaking. This means that there are five stressed syllables in each line, and that the rhythm is unstressed-stressed throughout. Of course we can only see this clearly in lines two and three, since lines one and four are incomplete; they connect metrically with the lines that go before or after. This cutting up of the lines actually gives the impression of haste and improvisation, without waiting for the other speakers to finish. It strengthens the excitement of this scene.
July 29, 2019