Quote 1
PROSPERO
The direful spectacle of the wreck, which touched
The very virtue of compassion in thee,
I have with such provision in mine art
So safely ordered that there is no soul—
No, not so much perdition as an hair,
Betid to any creature in the vessel (1.2.33-38)
Though Prospero seems to be performing evil with his magic, it's actually not black magic, as he has been careful to make sure that everyone aboard the ship was safe. His intentions are good, even if his magic doesn't always seem to be.
Quote 2
PROSPERO
Know thus far forth.
By accident most strange, bountiful Fortune,
Now my dear lady, hath mine enemies
Brought to this shore; and by my prescience
I find my zenith doth depend upon
A most auspicious star, whose influence
If now I court not but omit, my fortunes
Will ever after droop. (1.2.212-219)
Prospero's magic does not rely on his ability alone. Instead, nature has a great impact on his ability, and he is humbled and attendant to this fact. He also realizes that, though he is powerful, he is not omnipotent, and he is respectful of nature.
Quote 3
PROSPERO
It was a torment
To lay upon the damned, which Sycorax
Could not again undo. It was mine art,
When I arrived and heard thee, that made gape
The pine and let thee out. (1.2.343-347)
Prospero's magic is indeed great, as he was able to undo Sycorax's own spell, which she was not able to undo herself. Besides informing us of Prospero's power, this illustrates that he's not above vanity—he's willing to remind Ariel (and the audience) of just how powerful he is. This passage also reminds us that Prospero is willing to use his magic for his own personal gain; instead of granting Ariel's freedom after rescuing the sprite from the pine tree, he keeps Ariel as his servant until he can find a way off the island.
Quote 4
PROSPERO
What, I say,
My foot my tutor?—Put thy sword up, traitor,
Who mak'st a show, but dar'st not strike, thy
conscience
Is so possessed with guilt. Come from thy ward,
For I can here disarm thee with this stick
And make thy weapon drop. (1.2.568-574)
Prospero here uses his magic to protect him in a very simple way, though obviously he is much more powerful than this action implies. He is willing to use his magic as a dumb-show when necessary, in this case to convince Ferdinand that he's not playing around.
Quote 5
PROSPERO
Our revels now are ended. These our actors,
As I foretold you, were all spirits and
Are melted into air, into thin air;
And like the baseless fabric of this vision,
The cloud-capped towers, the gorgeous palaces,
The solemn temples, the great globe itself,
Ye all which it inherit, shall dissolve,
And, like this insubstantial pageant faded,
Leave not a rack behind. We are such stuff
As dreams are made on, and our little life
Is rounded with a sleep. (4.1.165-175)
In describing the results of his magic, Prospero creates a metaphor for the theater: What happens in the playhouse is not any more real than magic, but it has the same effect.
Quote 6
PROSPERO
You elves of hills, brooks, standing lakes, and groves,
And you that on the sands with printless foot
Do chase the ebbing Neptune and do fly him
When he comes back; you demi-puppets that
By moonshine do the green sour ringlets make,
Whereof the ewe not bites, and you whose pastime
Is to make midnight mushrooms, that rejoice
To hear the solemn curfew; by whose aid,
Weak masters though you be, I have bedimmed
The noontide sun, called forth the mutinous winds,
And 'twixt the green sea and the azured vault
Set roaring war; to the dread rattling thunder
Have I given fire and rifted Jove's stout oak
With his own bolt; the strong-based promontory
Have I made shake and by the spurs plucked up
The pine and cedar; graves at my command
Have waked their sleepers, oped, and let 'em forth
By my so potent art. (5.1.42-59)
Before Prospero announces his plans to retire, he delivers a stunning speech that recalls the ways in which he's used his art to harness the forces of nature.
But this rough magic
I here abjure, and, when I have required
Some heavenly music, which even now I do,
[Prospero gestures with his staff]
To work mine end upon their senses that
This airy charm is for, I'll break my staff,
Bury it certain fathoms in the earth,
And deeper than did ever plummet sound
I'll drown my book. (5.1.59-66)
Here, Prospero promises to break his staff and give up his magic forever but immediately after delivering this speech, Prospero holds Alonso in a "charm" and later orders Ariel to make sure the seas are calm so the cast can enjoy a peaceful and safe passage back to Italy. So, is Prospero actually ready to give up his "rough magic"?
Quote 8
Come, temperate nymphs, and help to celebrate
A contract of true love. Be not too late. (4.1.148-149)
As a gift to the young couple, Prospero puts on a masque (a fancy, courtly performance with music and dancing) to celebrate Miranda and Ferdinand's "contract of true love." Interestingly enough, in the winter of 1612-1613, <em>The Tempest</em> (along with thirteen other plays) was performed in honor of the marriage of King James I's daughter Elizabeth to Frederick (the Elector Palatine). Some scholars think that Prospero's "wedding masque" was added by Shakespeare just for this performance but other critics say there's no evidence that it wasn't an original part of the play.
Quote 9
Go bring the rabble,
O'er whom I give thee power, here to this place.
Incite them to quick motion, for I must
Bestow upon the eyes of this young couple
Some vanity of mine art. It is my promise,
And they expect it from me. (4.1.40-45)
Prospero doesn't only practice his art for practicality's sake. Like many artists, he wishes to be admired for his incredible skill.
Quote 10
PROSPERO
I had forgot that foul conspiracy
Of the beast Caliban and his confederates
Against my life. The minute of their plot
Is almost come. (4.1.155-158)
In the middle of the dazzling performance of the wedding masque, Prospero is suddenly reminded of the "foul conspiracy" against his life. This reminds us that the magic of the theater has the capacity to suspend time and make us forget (if only for a short time) the problems of the real world.
Quote 11
Our revels now are ended. These our actors,
As I foretold you, were all spirits and
Are melted into air, into thin air;
And, like the baseless fabric of this vision,
The cloud-capped towers, the gorgeous palaces,
The solemn temples, the great globe itself,
Yea, all which it inherit, shall dissolve,
And, like this insubstantial pageant faded,
Leave not a rack behind. We are such stuff
As dreams are made on, and our little life
Is rounded with a sleep. (4.1.165-175)
This is one of the most famous passages in Shakespeare and reminds us a lot of the big "All the world's a stage" soliloquy in <em>As You Like It.</em> When Prospero announces the wedding masque is over, Shakespeare gives a shout-out to the Globe Theater and makes an astonishing comparison between human life and the theater. As literary critic Stephen Greenblatt points out, Prospero's remarks draw our attention to "the theatrical insubstantiality of the entire world and the dreamlike nature of human existence."
PROSPERO [aside]
It goes on, I see,
As my soul prompts it. [to Ariel] Spirit, fine spirit!
I'll free thee
Within two days for this. (1.2.501-504)
When Miranda falls in love with Ferdinand at first sight, Prospero congratulates himself for making it all happen. This reminds us that Prospero's magic to manipulate people and situations just like artists do. In other words, Prospero acts like he's directing a play when he orchestrates his daughter's meeting with the prince.
Quote 13
Here Prospero discovers Ferdinand and Miranda,
playing at chess (5.1.Stage Direction).
Wait a minute. At this point, Prospero has already promised to give up his "art," so why is he still running around acting like a magician/playwright by pulling back curtains and making dramatic revelations to his audience?
Quote 14
PROSPERO
Now my charms are all o'erthrown,
And what strength I have 's mine own (Epilogue.1-2)
Hmm. Is it just us or does Prospero's final speech sound like Shakespeare (who retired shortly after completing <em>The Tempest</em>) is trying to tell us something? Is this Shakespeare's way of saying goodbye?
Quote 15
[...] Now 'tis true
I must be here confined by you,
Or sent to Naples. Let me not,
Since I have my dukedom got
And pardoned the deceiver, dwell
In this bare island by your spell, (Epilogue.3-8)
This is pretty strange. Why the heck does Prospero need the audience's help if he wants to leave the island and return to Italy? Keep reading...
Quote 16
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.9-20)
When Prospero says the audience's applause is the only thing that can release him from his bondage, he's saying a lot more than "hurry up and clap so I can get off this stage." This final speech says something about the importance of the theater audience. In the end, it's the playgoers' approval that matters the most.
Quote 17
PROSPERO
So dry he was for sway wi' th' King of Naples
To give him annual tribute, do him homage,
Subject his coronet to his crown and bend
The dukedom, yet unbowed—alas, poor Milan!—
To most ignoble stooping. (1.2.133-137)
Even when he was within the bounds of the court, Prospero saw there were certain formalities that were below him. It's not that the island alone influences Prospero to embrace a certain amount of natural dignity, but by his nature he was always a powerful and proud man.
Quote 18
PROSPERO
Behold, sir king,
The wrongèd Duke of Milan, Prospero.
For more assurance that a living prince
Does now speak to thee, I embrace thy body,
[He embraces Alonso.]
And to thee and thy company I bid
A hearty welcome. (5.1.117-122)
The visitors to the island didn't recognize Prospero at first, so he changes into courtly garb, but he also changes his mannerisms from the mystical to the courtly. He doesn't have anything to bid them welcome to but his cell, highlighting the absurdity of these misplaced gestures.
Quote 19
PROSPERO
This blue-eyed hag was hither brought with child
And here was left by the sailors. Thou, my slave,
As thou report'st thyself, was then her servant,
And, for thou wast a spirit too delicate
To act her earthy and abhorred commands,
Refusing her grand hests, she did confine thee. (1.2.322-327)
Ariel was initially in the witch's service, but refused to do her awful commands, which landed the sprite in a pine tree prison.
PROSPERO
[to Ferdinand] Follow me.
[To Miranda.] Speak not you for him. He's a traitor.
[To Ferdinand.] Come,
I'll manacle thy neck and feet together.
Sea-water shalt thou drink; thy food shall be
The fresh-brook muscles, withered roots, and husks
Wherein the acorn cradled. Follow. (1.2.555-561)
Prospero does have a knack for thinking up really nasty enslavements. When he enslaves Ferdinand, one wonders if he was always like this, or if this can be attributed to his getting comfortable as "king of the sandcastle" over the last twelve years.