ACT II
Thinking about the selection: 1. (a) How does Antonio persuade Sebastian to kill Alonso? (b) What interrupts them? 2. What misunderstandings misunderstandings occur in scene ii? 3. How does Sebastian and Antonio's treatment of Gonzalo foreshadow their plotting against Alonso? 4. In what way does Prospero's magic make the evil that emerges in the first scene less threatening? 5. Stock characters are predictable characters used in many different literary works; they are stereotypes who do not grow or change. (a) Which characters in the second scene are stock characters? (b) Why are such characters effective for comic purposes? 6. How does Stephano's treatment of Caliban recall and parody Prospero's attempt to civilize his servant? 7. (a) How does the action in the second scene mirror that in the first? (b) What is different about the mood of the second scene? 8. How is Stephano's treatment of Caliban similar to the way in which some European explorers and settlers treated Native Americans? Analyzing literature: literature: The themes of a play are the central ideas that it explores. One of the key themes of The Tempest, inspired by Montaigne's essay "On Cannibals," is the true nature of civilization. Caliban is an "uncivilized" native of Prospero's island; his kinship to animals is suggested when Stephano, seeing Caliban and Trinculo under the coat, ta kes them for "some monster." Yet this scene is ironic about the Englishmen as well. They are as foolish as Caliban although they have the "advantages" of a civilized upbringing. 1. How does the island cause the nobly born Europeans to reveal their true natures as well? 2. How would you describe the "civilization" of Antonio and Sebastian? 3. Is there anything appealing about Caliban's barbaric nature? Explain. ACT III
Thinking about the selection: 1. How do you know that Prospero approves of the growing love between Ferdinand and Miranda? 2. What strategy does Ariel employ to confuse Caliban and his fellow plotters? 3. (a) What does the disguised Ariel say to the banqueters when the banquet vanishes? (b) How does each of them react? 4. (a) How does Prospero haunt this act, although he does not make a formal appearance in any scene? (b) In what way is he different from all the other characters? 5. In his "music" speech, Caliban speaks of sleep and dreaming (III.ii.126-134). (a) What other moments in this act stress dream or illusion? (b) How are dreams or strange visions related to the theme of transformation? 6. A feast usually suggests celebration and welcome. Why is an interrupted feast especially suitable for Prospero's purposes in the final scene of this act? 7. Gonzalo says that Sebastian, Antonio, and Alonso are affected by the "poison" of their guilt. How is guilt like a "poison"? Analyzing literature: literature:
Unlike a novelist, a dramatist cannot speak to his audience directly. Shakespeare therefore uses the plot and subplots, or main and secondary actions, to comment on situations and reveal complexities of character. In this act the first two scenes deal with subplots that lend perspective to the primary actions in the final scene. For instance, Caliban's bestial urge to "knock a nail into" P rospero's head underscores the baseness and ingratitude of the two courtiers who want to seize Alonzo's kingdom. In addition, contrasts between characters reveal traits that were not at first apparent. Such contrasts also suggest ideas about the way in which humans develop. 1. How do the events of the first scene provide an ironic comment on the actions of the two subsequent scenes? 2. (a) How does Caliban reveal himself to be more eloquent than Stephano or Trinculo? (b) What does this quality suggest about his character? 3. (a) If Caliban and Miranda had the same upbringing, why are they so different? (b) What does this difference suggest about the relative importance of nature versus nurture? ACT IV
Thinking about the selection: 1. (a) Which goddesses join in the masque? (b) What kinds of blessings do they bestow on the couple? (c) Who else joins the masque? 2. What causes Caliban and the others to turn aside from their plot? 3. What are Prospero’s motives in creating the masque for Ferdinand and Miranda? 4. How does this broken-off “show” resemble and differ from the “show” of the disrupted feast in Act III? 5. (a) How does the final part of the act contrast with the masque? (b) Why do you think Prospero is especially angry at Caliban? 6. If you were a director, how would you present the masque so that it would keep the attention of a modern audience? Analyzing literature: The Renaissance masque was a spectacle in which courtiers, dressed in elaborate costumes, acted and danced a vision of harmony and order. On occasion masques celebrated engagements, as Prospero’s does here. If one interprets the masque as Prospero’s ideal vision of marriage, many of the details make sense. 1. Why should Juno and Ceres — respectively, the queen of the gods and the goddess of fertility — be involved in the masque? 2. Why should Iris, goddess of the rainbow and traditionally a messenger, play a role? 3. A Renaissance audience saw its own ideals and beliefs reflected in masques. What modern kinds of performances or spectacles symbolize our beliefs? ACT V
Thinking about the selection: 1. Why does Prospero show mercy to his foes? 2. What will he do to show he has rejected his “rough magic”? 3. (a) What services does Ariel perform for his master in this act? (b) How will Ariel be rewarded? 4. How does Miranda’s view of the courtiers differ from her father’s? 5. In what way has Caliban changed?
6. Compare and contrast Prospero with Ariel. 7. (a) What quality does Miranda reveal when she exclaims, “O brave new world...”? (b) H ow do you think Shakespeare wants us to view her remark? Explain. 8. What do you think Antonio’s silence indicates about his state of mind? 9. (a) What does Prospero mean when he says in the epilogue, “Now my charms are all o’erthrown, / And what strength I have’s mine own, / Which is most faint”? (b) How does this request for “Mercy” relate to his own behavior toward Antonio and Sebastian? 10. What other works have you read (or films have you seen) in which the protagonist must renounce power to achieve a goal? Analyzing literature: The resolution, or solving, of the conflicts in the final act is not without a touch of sadness. True, on the surface all is well. The subplots and main plot come to satisfactory conclusions: Miranda and Ferdinand will marry, Caliban and his companions are thwarted in their scheme, and Alonso is genuinely sorry for what he did. By means of Prospero, however, Shakespeare hints at an unresolved conflict about the relationship of art (or magic and enchantment) to the real world. 1. (a) In what part of Prospero’s “farewell to magic” speech (V.i.33 -57) does he seem to dwell on his powers? (b) How do the words “But” and “rough” in line 50 indicate a sudden change of feeling? (c) How does the speech as a whole reveal his conflict about giving up his powers? 2. (a) What does he mean when he says, at the end of the play, “Every third thought shall be my grave” (V.i.309)? (b) What does this statement suggest about his attitude toward returning to the real world?
