command these elements to silence…use your
authority, if you cannot, give thanks you have
lived so long…out of our way, I say.
(Act I, Scene 1, L 18-24)
This change in power foreshadows trouble and questions authority, yet it shows Boatswain’s control over the ship. The tempest is a time whereby social rank does not exist and that despite the King’s and Noblemen’s higher status they are still subjected to nature and in hands of the more experienced low-status characters.
The opening scene of The Tempest is in direct contrast to the second scene of the play in which Shakespeare introduces the main character, Prospero, Latin for “I cause to succeed, make happy and fortunate.” Prospero is the major source of power within The Tempest, and in a very definite sense he can be seen as the composer of the events of the play. Many critics have given a liking to the analysis that Shakespeare wrote the part of Prospero as a self-portrait, the director who controls the events of the play. Even if so, Prospero still holds the ultimate power as throughout the play he uses his “Art”, his powers to control the characters he brings onto the island, making them performers within his composition, like Shakespeare does. As the rightful, usurped Duke of Milan, Prospero is introduced in the second scene as a powerful magician who caused the tempest. The idea of his magical powers is confirmed in Miranda’s first speech:
If by your art, my dearest father, you have/
Put the wild waters in this roar, allay them.
(Act I, Scene 2, L 1-2)
Constructing his main character as a magician, Shakespeare concentrates all the power and control in the play, into Prospero. Shakespeare doesn’t only give Prospero the “art” to initiate a tempest, he also gives his character great knowledge gained through books which are a symbol of Prospero’s power, as well as his obsession, as he has lost his kingdom in the first place due to his desire for knowledge. While giving thanks to his loyal friend Gonzalo, Prospero states this idea of the loss of his kingdom due to his absorption into books.
Gonzalo…Knowing I loved my books, he
furnished me/ From mine own library, with
volumes that/ I prize above my dukedom.
(Act I, Scene 2, L 161-166)
Shakespeare achieves to construct Prospero’s character as the all-knowing, most powerful persona in the play as he gives him through his knowledge and his “art” the authority and control over other characters in The Tempest.
In the 17th century England there was a strict hierarchy. The king ruled the country by giving orders to nobles. He was in complete control of his kingdom and the nobles were the people who carried out his orders. These social levels are depicted in the microcosm of the English society within The Tempest. Prospero is in charge of everything, due to his magical powers, as he controls what happens on the island, therefore he can be considered as the ‘king’ of the island. A king in the 17th century could mould a society into whatever he wanted as long as he had enough power to enforce it and this is exactly what Prospero does, as Shakespeare constructs his character with the gift of knowledge of the supernatural powers. By constructing his main character as a powerful magician and the all-ruling king of the island, Shakespeare conveys the notion of ultimate power, especially to his early audience, as he reflects the English government of the 17th century. But not only does he effectively convey this idea through Prospero to the audience at the time of the play’s first performance, he also allows for the contemporary readers to understand the concepts of authority and render this play relevant even nowadays.
On the other hand, even though Shakespeare administers all the power to Prospero, his great control wouldn’t be evident without the construction of other characters that carry out his commands. Therefore in order to demonstrate power that Prospero’s character holds in The Tempest, Shakespeare plays with the master-servant relationships. The majority of the play either explicitly or implicitly portrays a relationship between a figure that possesses power and a figure that is subject to that power. The master-servant relationships dominate in the cases of Prospero and Ariel; and Prospero and Caliban. Though the two relationships are different, the one with Ariel is generally positive and the relationship with Caliban is generally negative, both Ariel and Caliban are acutely aware of their subservience. Control and authority of Prospero’s character is evident through the relationships he develops with these two characters. Looking at Ariel, an airy spirit, it is obvious that he carries out the powers and commands of Prospero. He is not seen as a slave, but rather a servant as in his first appearance he greetsProspero with great respect and dignity:
All hail, great master, grave sir, hail! I come/
To answer thy best pleasure; be’t to fly,/ To
swim, to dive into the fire, to ride,/ On the
curled clouds. To thy strong bidding task/
Ariel, and all his quality.
(Act I, Scene 2, L 189-193)
Through the character of Ariel, Shakespeare portrays the idea that the main character of The Tempest, Prospero, holds the greatest power, as Ariel treats his master with great respect somewhat our of fear for losing his freedom if his job isn’t done well. However, even though Ariel’s freedom is at stake for any disobedience of Prospero’s orders, Caliban is the one who’s seen as the slave, the character of the lowest-status possible as he is not even described as being human, but a monster. His relationship to Prospero reassures the power and control Prospero holds because of Caliban’s dissatisfaction with Prospero’s rule over him. This is shown when Caliban curses Prospero when he is first called upon.
As wicked dew as e’er my mother brushed/
With raven’s feather from unwholesome fen/
Drop on you both! A south-west blow on ye,/
And blister you all o’er!
(Act I, Scene 2, L 322-325)
Caliban’s character is evidently upset with the power that Prospero holds over him and henceforth he represents Prospero’s control over the island and other characters. In introducing Caliban’s powerlessness to the play Shakespeare restates the great power of Prospero’s character. Although the two characters, Ariel and Caliban, respond in different manners towards the commands of Prospero, their presence in the play develops the master-servant relationships which furthermore add to the construction of Prospero’s character who has the most authority and power in The Tempest.
Shakespeare’s virtue as a playwright once again has worked in his favour to create another worldly known play, The Tempest, which remains a wonderfully written, highly atmospheric and fairly mysterious text. He explores the idea of power and how the desire for it is the fundamental motivation for humans. Through his construction of the characters he asserts all the power and control in the play into the main character Prospero. Finally he allows for Prospero’s character to conclude the play with an epilogue, once again reinforcing the idea that this character holds the greatest power in The Tempest.
