Caliban In The Tempest

As The Director Of 'The Tempest', What Advice Would You Give To The Actor Playing Caliban In These Two Extracts? Act 3 Scene 2 There are many different things that as a director, I would need to say to 'Caliban' to make the play run smoothly In my opinion the first bit of action that I would give to Caliban is as follows: when Stephano says to him on line three "servant monster, drink to me", Caliban should hesitate a bit, then shove the bottle to his mouth and gulp the alcohol down fast in order to get it down faster. Caliban is the victim of Stephano and Trinculo; they are forcing him to drink. It is not given to him as a form of relaxation; rather it is used in order to please the ones who are feeding him. The next piece is when Stephano says on line six, "thy eyes are almost set in thy head". Caliban should open his eyes wide and act drowsy and partly oblivious to the surroundings around him. He should also have a very glazed expression on his face after drinking. In the next line of Stephano (line eleven), when he says, "my man-monster hath drowned his tongue in sack" Caliban should hang his tongue out of his mouth as if it is numb and he could possibly drool a bit before repositioning it back in his mouth. The next piece of performance that Caliban is to do is on line twenty-one when he says, "let me lick thy shoe. I'll not serve him. He is not valiant!" Here Caliban

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  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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William Shakespear's Tempest

Explain how you would direct a production of Act 1 Scene 2 of the Tempest. What do we learn about the character of Prospero from the play and from this scene in particular? William Shakespeare wrote The Tempest in 1610, it was one of the last plays he wrote before his death in 1616. It has been said that Prospero's character is mirrored around William Shakespeare, Shakespeare based Prospero on himself. The Tempest is about a usurped duke, Prospero, who is set adrift on a small boat with his daughter Miranda by his evil brother Antonio. Prospero and his daughter end up on an enchanted island where Prospero begins to learn magic, using his magic he frees Ariel from a tree and enslaves Caliban, a hero and villainous task. Twelve years later, Prospero see's a royal boat passing the island carrying Antonio, Alonso, the king of Naples who helped usurp Prospero. Sebastian, Alonso's brother and Gonzalo, the kindly courtier who gave Prospero food, water, clothes and the vital magic books. Prospero summons a tempest, with the help of Ariel, and wrecks the ship onto the island, separating them into four different groups. This deed makes Prospero quite the villain as there were many innocent sailors aboard the boat that had done nothing against him. This part of the play is very much like a game of chess, and Prospero is the player. Prospero manipulates how all the characters move to

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  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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Shakespeare has made Caliban the most violent and savage character, but has also given him some of the most beautiful lines in the play to show that he has two sides to him, a split personality. And that he is not exactly as evil as what other people perc

The tempest There is a sign of another tempest when the scene opens up with another thunder storm, which gives us a reminder of Prospero's power over Caliban. The tempest is also a symbol of Prospero's magic over Caliban, which suggests this is what the threat Caliban is under, which also indicates that Caliban is confined within the island with no freedom. Caliban is viewed as some one who is not knowledgeable and literate. This is shown from the view of Miranda in page 77, in which she tells him, "... gabble like a thing most brutish" This suggests that Caliban is uneducated and in addition to this it also shows that he did not have the right upbringing in his life as his mother was a witch named Sycorax which suggests he was associated with evil magic during his upbringing. From Prosperos's perspective, Caliban is presented as a slave. This is shown in Act 1 scene 2. Where, Prospero refers to him as his "... my slave..." This indicates that Prospero has authority over Caliban and is possessive over him. However, he also shows that Caliban's role is as a slave who follows orders from his master Prospero. Miranda and Prospero are most united and linked together when they are against Caliban. Miranda says "Abhorred Slave". Also Prospero says "thou poisonous Slave". They both hate Caliban Passionately and display this with hateful words. Miranda addresses to the same

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  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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A sensitive father who is a tyrannical with Caliban and Ferdinand. How far do you agree with this statement?

The Tempest Oral Assignment A sensitive father who is a tyrannical with Caliban and Ferdinand. How far do you agree with this statement? I thoroughly agree with the statement. Prospero has a close and understanding relationship with Miranda. I believe that they understand each other to an extent; this initiates a certain amount of trust between them quote. Although Miranda questions her father's decisions, ultimately she trusts his choices and is easily led to believe by Prospero that whatever he is doing is merciful, morally correct and is in her best interests. I believe that Prospero truly believes that, and that what he is dong is best for his daughter. Prospero always tries to protect Miranda even if it means leading her to believe that a situation is more acceptable than it really is 'So safely ordered, that there is no soul'. He sees Miranda as his 'cherubin'. Therefore we are led to believe that Miranda is his metaphorical guardian angel. It was her that possibly saved Prospero and gave him the power and opportunities that he has today 'Thou wast that did preserve me'. This affectionate language shows that Prospero shows a great love for his daughter and that perhaps he knows that Miranda is his savour; therefore he must treat her with great admiration and affection. It is obvious that Miranda as well as his powers is what keeps Prospero going. I believe that

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  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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Tempest - What do we learn about Antonio and Sebastian so far in the play?

Tempest essay By Claire Bourne L6P What do we learn about Antonio and Sebastian so far in the play? When we first meet Antonio and Sebastian in "The Tempest" the ship that they are all on, is sinking. Antonio shows loyalty towards Alonso, who is the King of Naples. This is a contrast to later on in the play: "ANTONIO: Let's all sink wi'th' King." We realise, when we meet Prospero that he was the rightful Duke of Milan, but that his power was usurped: PROSPERO: In my false brother Awakened 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, which indeed had no limit." In Prospero's speech, he uses words like "evil," "false" and even "falsehood" to explain his thoughts about Antonio, which in my opinion are true. When Antonio, Sebastian and Alonso have been washed up on an island, Alonso is grieving for the "loss" of his son, who he thinks has drowned during the struggle for survival. Instead of cheering Alonso up, Antonio and Sebastian play jokes on Alonso and even make bets against Alonso, which is mean. Even as this is when he needs his friends to support him, all Sebastian and Alonso can do is to make him feel worse: "SEBASTIAN: Which, of he or Adrian, for a good wager, first begins to crow." "SEBASTIAN: We have lost your

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  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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What elements of the comedy genre are evident in Act1 of the Tempest?

What elements of the comedy genre are evident in Act1 of the Tempest? The Tempest written by William Shakespeare was a tragicomedy; this means this is a play that contains comedy and also tragic events. The Tempest was Shakespeare's final play so therefore it was more experimental. In the Tempest the play deals with much more serious issues. The term "nature vs. nurture" is a phrase used for this play due to the fact that many unreal activities are taken place, by stereotype people around Shakespeare's times were formally known to act unaware of the moral activities that surround them at the time. The Tempest is more rhythmical and pacific; this is more advanced and modern to those of his earlier plays. The Tempest has a magical setting. The play is set on an Island that it "topsy turvy", meaning that everything is upside down, The setting of the play reflects its genre conveying that the magical setting mostly exist in fairytale stories in link to this the Tempest had a colonisation society which made situations much more clearer to understand due to this unreal society. Also in having everything upside down, this reflects to me that confusion comes into place so comedy gets fit in the place. I feel from reading the play so far that there are a mixture of emotions, themes and genre's The Tempest also has evidence of magic. His brother Antonio over threw Prospero who is the

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Do you believe that Shakespeare intended the audience to share Prospero's view of Caliban?

"A Devil, a born devil, on whose nature, Nurture can never stick" (IV, i, 189,190) Do you believe that Shakespeare intended the audience to share Prospero's view of Caliban? I feel that through out the Tempest Caliban is portrayed as a dislikeable 'creature'. However I personally think that the audience is supposed to learn to love him by the end as slowly we are told of all his good points. In the Tempest we meet many characters, the first on the island being Prospero. Before Prospero we meet characters like Boatswain and Master, as well as Antonio. We are not sure at the start whether we like them or not as we haven't been with them for a very long time. However as soon as we meet Prospero we are told the story of his past and sympathise with him. We also start to trust him, as we all believe beyond question his story of his and Miranda's flight to the island. This principle is aided by the way Miranda believes everything without a doubt and as she is attractive our immediate thought is to trust her. This is our first instance showing just how important appearances actually are. From all this we start to abhor Antonio and all the others Prospero mentions except Gonzalo as he is described as "A noble Neapolitan". So after the first two scenes we all ready have complete trust in Prospero, so therefore when we hear him describe another character like this: "Thou poisonous

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Consider closely the role and presentation of Prospero in the first act of the play. How do you think an audience would respond to him- a despot or a benevolent old man?

Consider closely the role and presentation of Prospero in the first act of the play. How do you think an audience would respond to him- a despot or a benevolent old man? At the centre of The Tempest is the question of authority, embodied in the character of Prospero. The fact that the play may have originally been performed for the royal court perhaps gives it more dimension and context as a challenge or a mockery of royalty and the nature of power. The audience's reaction to Prospero obviously depends very much on how he is portrayed by the actor, but in Act 1 Scene 2 the audience becomes aware that the storm of the previous scene, in which the characters seem to have drowned, was caused by Prospero, perhaps having the immediate effect of making him appear a heartless man who uses his "art" for his own cruel purposes. Prospero's language however is calm and gentle, "Of thee my dear one, thee my daughter" accentuated by the contrast with Miranda's emotional outbursts, "O, woe the day", perhaps creating an image of a wise old man who has good, rational reasons for his actions. As he is introduced, speaking in this mild language, the audience may begin to realise the complexity of his character, a man whose manner does not correspond to his seemingly destructive actions. The violent impact of the first scene perhaps undermines the calmness of Prospero's first lines, and while

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  • Subject: English
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Prospero's Relationship with other Characters in

Prospero's Relationship with other Characters in "The Tempest". Prospero is a multifaceted character; he behaves differently towards all of the characters. In this essay I am going to describe Prospero's Relationship with the main Characters. Prospero is one of Shakespeare's more enigmatic protagonists. He is a sympathetic character in that he was wronged by his usurping brother, but his absolute power over the other characters and his overwrought speeches make him difficult to like. In our first glimpse of him, he appears puffed up and self-important, and his repeated insistence that Miranda, his "loved one", pay attention suggest that his story is boring her. Once Prospero moves on to a subject other than his absorption in the pursuit of knowledge, Miranda's attention is riveted. Prospero is very loving towards his daughter. He settles her when she is worried about the "brave vessel, who had no doubt some noble creature in her" by saying "tell your piteous heart there's no harm done". He is trying to comfort her saying nobody got hurt. Prospero cares greatly for Miranda in everyway possible: "I have done nothing but in care of thee". She is the only thing he has left, apart from his books. She is his dear one: "Thee my dear one, thee my daughter". Prospero is very protective over Miranda, having surveyed Ferdinand closely to make sure he was good enough for his Daughter.

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  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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How does Shakespeare present the falling in love of Ferdinand and Miranda in a typically romantic way and what is their relationship to the play as a whole?

How does Shakespeare present the falling in love of Ferdinand and Miranda in a typically romantic way and what is their relationship to the play as a whole? The concept of the relationship between Miranda and Ferdinand is one of the fundamental aspects of the play. In relation to the plot itself, the eventual idea that the pair will eventually end up together is part of Prospero's 'big plan', as it were. Shakespeare not only presents their falling in love and relationship as an important part of the make up of his play, but also uses the two characters to bring up a number of different concepts and themes, in addition to showing the audience the internal struggle Prospero faces and as a means to look more closely at the character of the 'protagonist'. This idea that Prosper is the hero of the play is in many ways justifiable, however Shakespeare makes his main character very interesting through his in depth presentation of his characteristics; he is a man plagued by emotional conflictions, facing both the mental struggle of effectively giving up Miranda to Ferdinand and the feelings of anger and betrayal that are so prominent throughout. There is also his excessive perfectionism and need to be in control at all times, along with a mean and rather cruel side that comes out through his treatment of Caliban. Altogether his character and personal struggles make Prospero a

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  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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