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Shakespeare and Prospero 11701 Views


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Description:

Is Prospero just Big Willy Shakes in disguise? Shmoop amongst yourselves.

Language:
English Language

Transcript

00:02

Shakespeare and Prospero, a la Shmoop. Shakespeare was a master of disguise.

00:08

Think of all the plays he wrote where a character dressed up as someone else, presumably because

00:14

they were undercover spies in service to Ye Olde MI-5.

00:19

It's in The Tempest, however, that Shakespeare pulls off his best disguise yet, with the

00:23

character of Prospero.

00:25

Prospero isn't just the exiled Duke of Milan; he's also a pretty darned talented sorcerer.

00:30

Probably not on par with Dumbledore but, you know, the man can do stuff.

00:36

But did you know that many people think Prospero is a stand-in for Shakespeare?

00:42

Prospero is in control of the characters and spirits in residence on his wee island.

00:46

He uses his sorcery to separate people from one another. He can compel people and spirits

00:52

to become his servants.

00:53

Heck, if he wanted to he could even force the unwilling to come over and play Dungeons

00:57

and Dragons and eat Cheetos with him on a Friday night.

01:02

And let's not forget that Prospero can magic hurricanes out of thin air. That's some serious

01:06

voodoo right there. But who is it that's in control of Prospero?

01:10

Well, ladies and gentlemen, that would be the amazing, astonishing, totally cool William

01:15

Shakespeare himself.

01:16

After all, he's the one who wrote The Tempest, the one who came up with the characters and

01:20

the plot and turned the ideas in his head into words on paper.

01:25

It isn't all about control, however. The Tempest is believed to be the last play Shakespeare

01:31

wrote…

01:31

…and many think that Shakespeare used Prospero's last speech as a way to say adios and hasta

01:37

luego to his audience.

01:39

And what a speech it is. Prospero willingly gives up his magic, but he then asks the audience

01:44

to clap, as their applause is the only thing that can set him free from the island.

01:49

Sounds like a clever way for Shakespeare to get an ego massage but, hey, who are we to

01:55

judge?

01:55

If we could get an audience to clap on command, we'd probably be all over that, too.

02:03

So, you've got a couple of control freaks in Prospero and his creator, Shakespeare.

02:07

You've got Prospero giving a speech that not only echoes Shakespeare's feelings about his

02:12

retirement…

02:13

…but also calls on the audience to clap...and then clap some more...and then keep on clapping.

02:18

You! Yes, you, the red-headed gentleman in the front row! Clap harder!

02:23

Yep, there's a case here for believing that Prospero served as a stand-in for Shakespeare.

02:29

Will we ever know the truth? Probably not, because Shakespeare is dead, and it's not

02:33

like we can ask the man...

02:34

Unless someone has a Ouija board?

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