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Prospero and Miranda are the emotional heart of The Tempest. This lesson explores Prospero's complex, contradictory nature and Miranda's significance as both character and symbol, with key quotes and grade 9 model paragraphs.
Prospero is the play's protagonist and controlling force. He is simultaneously:
PROSPERO
/ | | \
Magician Duke Father Coloniser
| | | |
Controls Rightful Protects Enslaves
Ariel & ruler of Miranda Caliban &
the island Milan commands Ariel
Prospero's "art" (magic) is the source of his power on the island. He uses it to:
"I have bedimmed / The noontide sun, called forth the mutinous winds, / And 'twixt the green sea and the azured vault / Set roaring war" — Prospero, Act 5 Scene 1
Context box: In the Jacobean era, magic was viewed with deep suspicion. James I had written a book condemning witchcraft. Shakespeare makes Prospero's magic benevolent (white magic or theurgy) rather than diabolical, distinguishing him from his predecessor on the island, the witch Sycorax.
Prospero was overthrown because he neglected his political duties in favour of study:
"I, thus neglecting worldly ends, all dedicated / To closeness and the bettering of my mind" — Prospero, Act 1 Scene 2
His brother Antonio exploited this to seize power. The play's action is Prospero's attempt to restore his dukedom — but through reconciliation rather than war.
Prospero's relationship with Miranda is protective but also controlling:
"I have done nothing but in care of thee, / Of thee, my dear one, thee, my daughter" — Prospero, Act 1 Scene 2
Examiner's tip: A grade 9 response would note the tension between Prospero's genuine love for Miranda and his desire to control her. He arranges her marriage partly out of love, partly for political restoration.
From a postcolonial perspective, Prospero can be read as a European coloniser:
"This thing of darkness I / Acknowledge mine." — Prospero, Act 5 Scene 1
This line can be read as Prospero accepting responsibility for Caliban — or as a possessive claim of ownership.
The most important development in Prospero's character is his decision to forgive rather than punish:
| Stage | Evidence | Act/Scene |
|---|---|---|
| Anger and desire for revenge | Raises the storm; punishes his enemies | 1.1–3.3 |
| The turning point | Ariel says "if you now beheld them, your affections / Would become tender" | 5.1 |
| Choice of forgiveness | "The rarer action is / In virtue than in vengeance" | 5.1 |
| Renunciation of magic | "I'll break my staff ... I'll drown my book" | 5.1 |
| Humility | Asks audience for forgiveness in the Epilogue | Epilogue |
Question: How does Shakespeare present Prospero as a complex character?
Model answer (PEE/PEAL structure):
Shakespeare presents Prospero as fundamentally conflicted between his desire for control and his capacity for mercy. In Act 5 Scene 1, Prospero declares "The rarer action is / In virtue than in vengeance," where the comparative adjective "rarer" suggests that forgiveness is both more difficult and more valuable than revenge. The word "virtue" connects to Renaissance ideals of moral excellence, positioning Prospero's choice as a conscious rejection of the vengeful authority he has wielded throughout the play. However, Shakespeare complicates this moment because Prospero's forgiveness of Antonio is met with silence — Antonio never apologises or expresses gratitude, leaving the audience uncertain whether true reconciliation has occurred. A Jacobean audience, familiar with James I's belief in divinely appointed rulers, might read Prospero's mercy as the proper exercise of kingly grace, while a modern audience could interpret his unilateral control of the outcome as a final act of dominance rather than genuine generosity.
Miranda is the only female character in the play. She has lived on the island since she was approximately three years old and has no memory of any other woman.
| Characteristic | Evidence |
|---|---|
| Innocence | She has never met another young man before Ferdinand |
| Compassion | She pities the shipwrecked sailors: "O, I have suffered / With those that I saw suffer!" (Act 1 Scene 2) |
| Courage | She defies Prospero to speak to Ferdinand |
| Wonder | "O brave new world / That has such people in't!" (Act 5 Scene 1) |
| Agency | She proposes marriage to Ferdinand: "I am your wife, if you will marry me" (Act 3 Scene 1) |
Miranda serves several dramatic purposes:
"O brave new world / That has such people in't!" — Miranda, Act 5 Scene 1
Prospero's reply — "'Tis new to thee" — is deeply ironic. Miranda's wonder at seeing the court party contrasts with Prospero's knowledge that these "people" include murderous traitors.
Examiner's tip: Aldous Huxley borrowed Miranda's phrase for the title of his dystopian novel Brave New World (1932), inverting its meaning. This shows how the line has become a symbol of naive idealism confronting a corrupt reality.
This is a common exam debate:
| Argument: Miranda IS passive | Argument: Miranda HAS agency |
|---|---|
| Prospero controls her life and arranges her marriage | She proposes to Ferdinand herself |
| She is put to sleep by Prospero's magic | She disobeys Prospero by speaking to Ferdinand |
| She has no choice about where she lives or whom she meets | She expresses strong opinions about Caliban and compassion for the sailors |
| She is used as a political bargaining tool | Her "brave new world" speech shows independent response to experience |
Examiner's tip: The best answers will argue that Miranda operates within the constraints of her situation but still shows moments of independence. Avoid calling her simply "passive" — the text is more nuanced than that.
Prospero -----> Miranda
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Protective Obedient
Controlling Compassionate
Secretive Curious
Manipulative Trusting
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+--- TENSION: love vs control ---+
Key moments in their relationship:
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