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Themes are the ideas that Shakespeare explores through the play's characters, events, and language. This lesson focuses on the interconnected themes of power, control, and colonialism — among the most frequently examined topics at GCSE.
Power takes many forms in the play. Almost every relationship involves a power imbalance.
| Type of Power | Who Holds It | How It Is Used |
|---|---|---|
| Magical power | Prospero | Controls the storm, spirits, and island inhabitants |
| Political power | Alonso (King of Naples), Prospero (Duke of Milan) | Governance and authority over subjects |
| Usurped power | Antonio | Took Milan by conspiracy; attempts further usurpation |
| Knowledge/intellectual power | Prospero | His books are the source of his magic |
| Physical power | Caliban (implied), Stephano (through alcohol) | Labour; intimidation |
| Emotional power | Miranda | Ferdinand is "enslaved" by love for her |
Prospero's magic is the dominant form of power in the play. It allows him to:
"Graves at my command / Have waked their sleepers, oped, and let 'em forth / By my so potent art." — Prospero, Act 5 Scene 1
Examiner's tip: Note that Prospero's power is ultimately temporary and voluntary. He chooses to give it up. This makes his renunciation of magic one of the most significant moments in the play — it transforms him from a figure of absolute control to one of vulnerability.
Prospero's power comes from his books:
"First to possess his books; for without them / He's but a sot, as I am" — Caliban, Act 3 Scene 2
Even Caliban understands this. When Antonio usurped Prospero's dukedom, Gonzalo ensured Prospero's books were saved — without them, Prospero would have been powerless.
Context box: In the Renaissance, knowledge was increasingly linked to power. Francis Bacon's famous phrase "knowledge is power" (1597) captures this idea. Prospero's magical books represent the way learning can give an individual extraordinary influence — but also how absorption in study can lead to neglecting worldly responsibilities.
Prospero's defining characteristic is his need to control everything.
PROSPERO'S WEB OF CONTROL
=========================
Ariel -------- forced to serve until freed
Caliban ------ enslaved, punished physically
Miranda ------ put to sleep, marriage arranged
Ferdinand ---- tested with log-carrying
Alonso ------- brought to island, tormented with guilt
Antonio ------ brought to island for judgement
Shipwreck ---- entirely manufactured by Prospero
The Masque ---- conjured and dismissed at will
Even the weather is under his command
"Dost thou forget / From what a torment I did free thee?" — Prospero, Act 1 Scene 2
Prospero uses emotional manipulation — reminding Ariel of the debt of freedom — to maintain control. Ariel must repeatedly ask for liberty.
"I must eat my dinner. / This island's mine" — Caliban, Act 1 Scene 2
Caliban resists control through curses and verbal defiance, but is physically unable to overthrow Prospero. Prospero uses threats of physical punishment:
"If thou neglect'st or dost unwillingly / What I command, I'll rack thee with old cramps, / Fill all thy bones with aches" — Prospero, Act 1 Scene 2
Prospero controls Miranda subtly:
Examiner's tip: Consider whether Prospero's controlling nature is presented as a flaw or a necessity. A grade 9 answer would argue both: his control is necessary to achieve justice, but Shakespeare shows it comes at the cost of genuine human connection.
The play is structured around multiple master-servant pairings:
| Master | Servant | Nature of the Relationship |
|---|---|---|
| Prospero | Ariel | Conditional service for promised freedom |
| Prospero | Caliban | Forced enslavement after alleged betrayal |
| Alonso | Gonzalo | Loyal, willing service |
| Stephano | Caliban | Caliban willingly serves; duped by alcohol |
| Antonio | Sebastian | Antonio leads; Sebastian follows |
The theme of freedom versus imprisonment runs through every relationship:
| Character | Imprisoned By | Freed How |
|---|---|---|
| Ariel (previously) | Sycorax — trapped in a cloven pine | Prospero freed him |
| Ariel (currently) | Prospero — bound to service | Promised freedom after tasks completed; freed in Act 5 |
| Caliban | Prospero — enslaved | Not clearly freed; status at end is ambiguous |
| Ferdinand | Prospero — imprisoned and tested | Proves himself worthy; gains Miranda |
| Prospero | His own desire for revenge | Frees himself by choosing forgiveness |
"Merrily, merrily shall I live now / Under the blossom that hangs on the bough." — Ariel, Act 5 Scene 1
Since the mid-twentieth century, The Tempest has been widely read as an allegory of European colonialism:
EUROPEAN MODEL THE TEMPEST
============== ============
Europeans arrive in Prospero arrives on
the "New World" the island
| |
Claim land already "This island's mine ...
inhabited Which thou tak'st from me"
| |
Impose language, "You taught me language"
religion, culture
| |
Enslave or exploit Caliban forced to
indigenous peoples carry wood, serve
| |
Describe natives as "A freckled whelp, hag-born"
"savage" or subhuman "This thing of darkness"
"This island's mine, by Sycorax my mother, / Which thou tak'st from me. When thou cam'st first, / Thou strok'st me and made much of me ... and then I loved thee." — Caliban, Act 1 Scene 2
This quote encapsulates the colonial narrative: initial friendly contact followed by exploitation and dispossession.
"You taught me language, and my profit on't / Is I know how to curse." — Caliban, Act 1 Scene 2
Language is both a gift and a weapon. The coloniser's language enables the colonised to articulate their oppression.
Shakespeare explores whether any authority is truly "legitimate":
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