Q- In Shakespeare’s “The Tempest”, Prospero has been represented variously as a good, caring man or as a manipulating, devious “puppeteer”. Compare and contrast how he has been represented and make your conclusion as to what kind of character Prospero actually is.
A-Prospero, the protagonist of Shakespeare’s “Tempest”, has been variously presented as a kind, wise man as well as an uncaring, power hungry tyrant. A very real and multifaceted character with plenty of grey shades, Prospero has been seen as some as a manifestation of the play writer himself. I believe that, although Prospero has his faults, all his seemingly callous actions are directed towards a happy ending for every one.
The best side of his personality is reserved for his daughter, Miranda. Though he is, at times, domineering towards her – (“Hence! Hang not on my garments!”) – he loves her deeply. He tells her that he done ‘nothing but in care of her’, and all his actions are for her benefit ad to secure her future. He calls her a ‘cherubin’ and uses various terms of endearment for her – ‘wench’ – which bring out his love for her. However, Prospero also ‘meddles’ a lot with his daughter’s emotions. She is led to fall in love with Ferdinand, and Prospero’s comments, “It goes on, I see” shows that the relationship is all part of his master plan. He spies on her clandestine meeting with Ferdinand, and he is, often, a puppet master and she is his puppet, docile and obedient. This underlines the control he has over her, and his lust for power, but he is redeemed by the fact that he is doing it all for her good, after all, ‘the end justifies the means’. His test for Ferdinand is because Elizabethan romantic convention holds that a man’s love must be proved to be true through feats of tests.
