The Tempest

¶ … Inescapability of Self-Interest in the Tempest

The Tempest is in some ways one of Shakespeare's most complex and difficult to understand plays. The plot is relatively straightforward, but the motivations and lessons that are woven into this plot and the characters' actions are not immediately visible. Bevington asserts that the various instances of manipulation in which Prospero engages are done only to lead men to a "renewed faith in goodness," and furthermore that they consist primarily of illusion, without real effect. Jarvis is even more naive in his interpretation of The Tempest's plot and Prospero's motivations; he accepts at face value Prospero's claim early in the play that everything he does is done for Miranda's sake. An examination of the way Prospero actually uses his magic reveals that neither of these interpretations is entirely accurate, and in fact they miss one of the major lessons and developments in the play.

It is true that Prospero does not seek the return of his throne, at least not at the end of the play. When he forgives Alonso with seeming nonchalance in saying, "Let us not burden our remembrance with / A heaviness that's gone," however, he is showing a distinct shift in his character from what was evident throughout the bulk of the play (Act V, scene I, line 230). His creation of the tempest of the title, with which the play opens and which makes the entire play possible in bringing the nobility of Naples to his island, is a clear indicator that Prospero is fully willing to "burden his rememberance" with the events of the past -- indeed, he harps on them constantly. It is not only the past wrongs that were committed directly to him that he recounts time and time again, but also the good that he has done for Ariel and tried to do for Caliban. Both of these characters show Prospero's twisted sense of justice.

Prospero's use of magic to control Caliban through "pinchings" and chains is somewhat more justified, given the story of Caliban's attempted rape of Miranda. It also clearly shows, however, that Prospero assumes control of situations without taking others' feelings or rights into account. Caliban grew up on the island and had the full run of it for years before Prospero came to its shores, yet this is not given even a modicum of respect by Prospero's self-centered (and ethnocentric) view. His treatment of Ariel is even worse; this spirit did nothing to harm Prospero, but rather is enslaved by the magician simply because Prospero freed him from the tree where he was imprisoned. This was not an act of illusion done to give Ariel a "renewed faith in goodness," but rather a very corporeal act that traded imprisonment for enslavement. Nor was this done primarily for Miranda's benefit, but rather was a way to ensure Prospero's increased and continued dominion over his island and its surrounding waters. In short, Prospero is almost completely self-serving not only during the action of the play, but also in the details of his life that occurred before the action of the play that are referenced in the script.