Quote 21
PROSPERO
Now my charms are all o'erthrown,
And what strength I have 's mine own,
Which is most faint. Now, 'tis true
I must be here confined by you,
Or sent to Naples. Let me not,
Since I have my dukedom got
And pardon'd the deceiver, dwell
In this bare island by your spell,
But release me from my bands
With the help of your good hands.
Gentle breath of yours my sails
Must fill, or else my project fails,
Which was to please. Now I want
Spirits to enforce, art to enchant,
And my ending is despair,
Unless I be relieved by prayer,
Which pierces so that it assaults
Mercy itself and frees all faults.
As you from crimes would pardoned be,
Let your indulgence set me free. (Epilogue.1-20)
This passage is pretty awesome. It asks us to think about the playwright not as a famous actor or author, but simply as an artist whose only pay for his craft is the clapping of our own hands. The play is both put on for us, and requires our affection—kind of like that servant/master relationship. Who's really in charge here? Talk about tricksy.
Quote 22
PROSPERO
To cry to the sea that roared to us, to sigh
To th' winds whose pity, sighing back again,
Did us but loving wrong. (1.2.177-179)
Nature has always interacted in Prospero's affairs. Here, he highlights that nature is not one big capital "N" Nature, but a mix of different elements, each with moods and tendencies. At the time of their exile, Prospero remembers the sea like an enemy, and the wind like a lover.
PROSPERO
Thou most lying slave,
Whom stripes may move, not kindness, I have used
thee,
Filth as thou art, with human care, and lodged
thee
In mine own cell, till thou didst seek to violate
The honor of my child. (1.2.412-418)
Was it in Caliban's nature to ignore Prospero's nurturing? When Caliban tried to violate Miranda, was he compelled by his own natural forces, greater than his moral reasoning?
Quote 24
PROSPERO
Then, as my gift and thine own acquisition
Worthily purchased take my daughter. But
If thou dost break her virgin-knot before
All sanctimonious ceremonies may
With full and holy rite be ministered,
No sweet aspersion shall the heavens let fall
To make this contract grow; but barren hate,
Sour-eyed disdain and discord shall bestrew
The union of your bed with weeds so loathly
That you shall hate it both. Therefore take heed,
As Hymen's lamps shall light you. (4.1.14-24)
Miranda's virginity, outside of its socio-cultural implications, is really also a simple mark that she is just as she was created: being a virgin, she is still in her natural state. If we think about virginity as a mark of childhood and naturalness, not as some deep moral and religious issue, we can take the edge off. What is Miranda's state of nature, and is anything natural being lost in her union to Ferdinand?
PROSPERO
A devil, a born devil, on whose nature
Nurture can never stick; on whom my pains,
Humanely taken, all, all lost, quite lost;
And as with age his body uglier grows,
So his mind cankers. (4.1.211-215)
Is Caliban a victim of his nature, or is Prospero foolish for thinking it could ever be otherwise? Can both of these things be true at the same time? (It's a mental Venn diagram!)
PROSPERO
Both, both, my girl.
By foul play, as thou sayst, were we heaved thence,
But blessedly holp hither. (1.2.77-79)
Prospero has the distance and perspective of wisdom when thinking about how they ended up on the island. Antonio's treachery put them there, but the help of the natural elements, and Gonzalo's loyalty, allowed them to survive and prosper.
Quote 27
PROSPERO
Being once perfected how to grant suits,
How to deny them, who t' advance and who
To trash for over-topping, new created
The creatures that were mine, I say, or changed 'em,
Or else new formed 'em, having both the key
Of officer and office, set all hearts i' th' state
To what tune pleased his ear, that now he was
The ivy which had hid my princely trunk
And sucked my verdure out on 't. (1.2.98-106)
Prospero values the brotherly bond more than Antonio; Prospero assumed his brother would be loyal to him. Instead, Antonio learned all the tricks of political treachery while serving in the place of Prospero, and used them to betray his brother.
Quote 28
PROSPERO
I pray thee, mark me.
I, thus neglecting worldly ends, all dedicated
To closeness and the bettering of my mind
With that which, but by being so retired,
O'erprized all popular rate, in my false brother
Awaked 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 had indeed no limit,
A confidence sans bound. (1.2.108-117)
Prospero suggests that Antonio's taste of power awakened in him an even bigger desire for power. Prospero's loyalty to his brother was so great, and his trust so complete, that he really didn't see this coming. That, of course, allowed Antonio to take it farther.
Quote 29
PROSPERO
The rarer action is
In virtue than in vengeance. They being penitent,
The sole drift of my purpose doth extend
Not a frown further. (5.1.35-38)
Prospero is honest here, as he forgives everyone that's wronged him as soon as they're in front of him. It is pretty clear, though, that neither Antonio nor Sebastian is penitent about their awful behavior. Does it make sense that Prospero entirely ignores this?
Quote 30
PROSPERO
If thou more murmur'st, I will rend an oak
And peg thee in his knotty entrails till
Thou hast howled away twelve winters. (1.2.349-351)
Prospero may not be forgiving or compassionate by nature, as he's accustomed to being unquestioned and a little tyrannical. It's interesting that Ariel is actually the one who inspires Prospero to be merciful to his enemies in the end.
Quote 31
PROSPERO
Thou most lying slave,
Whom stripes may move, not kindness, I have used
thee,
Filth as thou art, with human care, and lodged
thee
In mine own cell, till thou didst seek to violate
The honor of my child. (1.2.412-418)
For Prospero, some things are beyond forgiveness. This is one of them.
Quote 32
PROSPERO
At this hour
Lie at my mercy all mine enemies.
Shortly shall all my labours end, and thou
Shalt have the air at freedom. For a little
Follow, and do me service. (4.1.291-295)
Prospero definitely delights at having his enemies at his mercy, but again, is it okay to enjoy their suffering in the meantime? Would it be too much to ask, or too unrealistic, for Prospero simply be wholeheartedly forgiving? Is this kind of total forgiveness within the realm of human possibility?
Quote 33
PROSPERO
[Aside to Sebastian and Antonio.] But you, my brace
of lords, were I so minded,
I here could pluck his highness' frown upon you
And justify you traitors. At this time
I will tell no tales.
SEBASTIAN
[aside] The devil speaks in him. (5.1.142-147)
Sebastian must be deluded. He speaks in an aside, we're not sure to whom, but he's definitely not denying his attempted betrayal of the King. Can Sebastian really think that Prospero is the one in the wrong? Does he recognize the mercy that Prospero is showing him?
Quote 34
PROSPERO [aside to Sebastian]
No.
[To Antonio.] For you, most wicked sir, whom to
call brother
Would even infect my mouth, I do forgive
Thy rankest fault, all of them, and require
My dukedom of thee, which perforce I know
Thou must restore. (5.1.148-154)
It's shocking, but important to note that Antonio doesn't speak to Prospero. We doubt he's cowed into silence by shame, especially because he's back to jesting and taunting once Stefano and Trinculo enter. Is Antonio beyond hope? Is it even meaningful to forgive him?
On the other hand, it's the King who has the power to return Antonio's dukedom to Prospero. Is this really Prospero being gracious and forgiving of his terrible brother, or is it Prospero rubbing it in his brother's face that he triumphed after all?
PROSPERO
O, a cherubin
Thou wast that did preserve me. Thou didst smile,
Infusèd with a fortitude from heaven,
When I have decked the sea with drops full salt,
Under my burden groaned, which raised in me
An undergoing stomach, to bear up
Against what should ensue. (1.2.182-188)
Even Prospero, who at the time of his exile no doubt had some grasp of his art, found strength in Miranda, who seemed "infused with the fortitude of heaven." This is Prospero's own rejoinder—he doesn't work against the divine, but is subject to and inspired by it.
Quote 36
PROSPERO
Then, as my gift and thine own acquisition
Worthily purchased take my daughter. But
If thou dost break her virgin-knot before
All sanctimonious ceremonies may
With full and holy rite be ministered,
No sweet aspersion shall the heavens let fall
To make this contract grow; but barren hate,
Sour-eyed disdain and discord shall bestrew
The union of your bed with weeds so loathly
That you shall hate it both. Therefore take heed,
As Hymen's lamps shall light you. (4.1.14-24)
Though Prospero has succeeded in bringing Ferdinand and Miranda together by magic, their union is not in any way meaningful until it is recognized by holy rites and ceremonies. Religious traditions and what they stand for are as important, if not more important, than the practical accomplishments of magic.
Quote 37
PROSPERO
You do yet taste
Some subtleties o' th' isle, that will not let you
Believe things certain. (5.1.139-141)
Prospero is playing false here—he knows it is his magic, and not the island, that plays with others' views of reality. Or does Prospero really believe that all his magic is helped by the magic inherent in the island?