The Tempest
The tragic comedy, at the end of Shakespeare's career
A tragic comedy
The story begins when
Prospero causes a tempest in
the Mediterranean Sea, in
which his brother Antonio and
his fellow Alonso, king of
Naples, are washed up on an
unknown island and all the
characters finally meet in
Prospero's cavern.
Caliban, a monster, organises
a rebellion against Prospero
with Stephano and Trinculo,
that fails.
Ferdinand falls in love with Miranda, Prospero's
daughter and finally Prospero and Alonso reconcile
themselves.
This comedy, the last written completely by
Shakespeare, wants him to leave the role of the
playwright to reconcile him with the society, like
Prospero, who leave the magic to reconcile him with
Alonso.
The structure
The five acts of the comedy
Act I: the Tempest
Prospero, with his magic
powers, breaks out a tragic
tempest in the
Mediterranean Sea, and
gets his brother Antonio and
his fellow Alonso
shipwrecked on a
mysterious island.
Prospero uses Ariel, a
ghost, to activate his plans.
Act II: desperation
Alonso is desperate
because he thinks that his
son Ferdinand has drowned
and he explores all the
island searching him.
Ferdinand isn't dead, but
he's fallen in love with
Miranda, Prospero's
daughter.
Act III: Caliban, Stephano
and Trinculo
Caliban, a monster that
lives on the island, meets
Stephano and Trinculo, two
drunken, and they
organized a plan to kill
Prospero.
Ariel heard them and
informed Prospero about
this plan
The plan fails
Act IV: preparing the final
Prospero begins to planning
his punishment and reward:
he prepares himself to the
reconciliation.
There is a sort of interlude in
which are entertained the
characters of Ferdinand and
Miranda.
Act V: reconciliation
The whole work ends with a
general reconciliation
between the characters;
Miranda and Ferdinand
marry.
Prospero, with the marriage,
returns to the dukedom of
Milan and reconciles him
with Antonio and Alonso.
The characters
Plots, fights, disgraces:
all depends from Prospero
Prospero: the key character
Prospero is (was) the duke
of Milan, overthrown by his
brother Antonio.
All the events in the work
depend by him.
He has magic powers and
he uses them when he
causes the tempest, his
revenge against Antonio.
Antonio: the usurper
Antonio is Prospero's brother;
he usurped the dukedom of
Milan and exiled him on a
mysterious island in the
Mediterranean.
He also planned to kill Alonso
and to usurp the throne of
Naples.
He shipwrecked because of
the tempest.
Alonso: the king
Alonso is the king of
Naples.
He is in the same boat with
Antonio at the dramatic
moment of the tempest and
the shipwrecking.
Gonzalo: the helper
Gonzalo is a neapolitan
courtier, and he is the
secret helper of Prospero
and Miranda after the
shipwrecking
Ariel: the magic spirit
Ariel has not a body:
he/she's an immaterial
magic spirit.
He/she was imprisoned in a
tree by Sycorax, an african
witch, and he is freed by
Prospero, who uses it to
activate his plans
Caliban: the monster
Caliban is a terrifying
creature who lives in the
island and governed it
before Prospero came
there.
Helped by two drunken,
Stephano and Trinculo, he
carries out a plan to kill
Prospero, that failed.
"a southwest wind blow on
ye and blister ye o'er".
W.Shakespeare
Ferdinand and Miranda
Ferdinand is the Prince of
Naples, Alonso's son;
Miranda is Prospero's
daughter.
In the second Act Ferdinand
and Miranda fall in love: their
marriage, at the end, will be
the reason of the
reconciliation between
Prospero and Antonio
The themes
What the comedy wants to say
and how it's composed
J.M.William Turner - The
Tempest
Forgiveness
The theme of forgiveness
permits all the events of the
work
The final reconciliation
between Prospero and
Antonio; and the marriage
between Ferdinand and
Miranda depend from it.
Wild, exotic setting
All the events in the work
are set in mysterious lands
with terrifiant creatures,
unknown by the characters
that visit these places.
These places can also be
dangerous, like the sea in
tempest.
Magic illusion
Another important theme is
the magic, that literally
organizes and governs all
the events.
It creates a sort of
"theatrical illusion", because
there are supernatural
beings and powers that
permit the activation of
magic facts.
Black and White Magic
We can see the Black
Magic in the actions of
Sycorax, that works evil in
every circumstance.
The White Magic derives
from the study and the
books, and represents
power and knowledge.
Reconciliation with society
We can understand
Shakespeare's feeling of
reconciliation with the
society in the figure of
Prospero, that reconciles
with his old foes Antonio
and Alonso.
The End
"Passata è la tempesta..."
G. Leopardi
Realised by:
Guglielmi Tiziano (task oriented)
Plescia Lucy (narrator)
Gigantiello Vincenza (group oriented)
Del Zoppo Nicola (speaker)
Bibliography
Performer - culture&literature 1+2; M.Spiazzi, M.Tavella, M.Layton
English Wikipedia article "The Tempest":
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Tempest
Pictures and works of art
All the works of art have been painted by: J.M.W. Turner, A. Bertè, S.
Foissant, J.H. Nixon, A. Kauffmann, P. Rembrandt, M. Poole.
There are anonymous photos taken in a representation of "The
Tempest" at the Globe Theatre, London.
Softwares and websites used:
•
•
•
•
Apple iCloud, Keynote, Pages
Microsoft Office PowerPoint
Google Chrome
Wikipedia