The Tempest: Shakespeare’s Tale of Magic, Power, and Forgiveness

Written around 1610, The Tempest is one of William Shakespeare’s last plays. It centers on an old magician and former king who has been exiled to a remote island. When his brother (and usurper) suffers a shipwreck and gets washed up on the island’s shore, it seems that the moment for revenge has finally arrived. However, once their daughter and son fall in love with each other, things get a lot more complicated.

The Tempest starts off with a huge storm that wrecks the ship of Alonso, the king of Naples. Soon after, we find out that the storm was in fact set off by Prospero, a magician who happens to be a former duke. Twelve years earlier, Prospero was usurped by his brother Antonio and left to die in a boat at sea. However, Prospero and his daughter Miranda survived and have been living on the island ever since. The two are by far not the only inhabitants of the island, however. When he arrived at the island, Prospero enslaved its native inhabitant Caliban, and turned the spirit Ariel into his servant. Now that Alonso and his crew, which happens to include Prospero’s treacherous brother Antonio, have been washed up on the island, it seems that the time for Prospero’s revenge has finally arrived.

Love at First Sight, Betrayal, and the Renunciation of Magic

As the plot unfolds, the shipwrecked king and his men wander around the island. Among other things, the king’s son Ferdinand meets Miranda, the daughter of Prospero, and they fall in love at first sight. In order to prevent their romance from developing, Prospero puts Ferdinand into isolation and forces him to carry wood. However, it does not take long for Prospero to change his mind and bless the union.

Given the ending of many of Shakespeare’s other plays, one may expect The Tempest to end in bloodshed and murder. But surprisingly, none of that happens. Instead, Caliban’s plot gets discovered and prevented before any true harm is caused to anybody. Having taught his brother a lesson with the help of his magic, Prospero even decides to forgive his brother, free Ariel, and renounce his magical abilities.

The Tempest is considered Shakespeare’s most mature work, and many have interpreted the ending as the playwright’s farewell to the stage. At the end of the play, Prospero abdicates his magic and ends his last monologue with the line, “Let your indulgence set me free.”  Given that Shakespeare retired from the stage soon after, it’s not entirely surprising that many consider Prospero’s last monologue to be Shakespeare’s symbolic retirement speech.

A Play About Power, Responsibility, and Forgiveness 

The Tempest is one of Shakespeare’s most profound works. This is hardly surprising given that Shakespeare wrote it towards the end of a long career in theater. The Tempest touches on various themes including love, betrayal, and forgiveness. It also delves into the relationship between power and responsibility and opens up various moral questions about colonization and the abuse of power.

Power and Responsibility in The Tempest 

For one thing, The Tempest brings up questions about power and the responsibility that comes along with it. Prospero was usurped by his brother from his position as Duke of Milan because he did not take care of the responsibilities that came along with his title. Instead of taking care of worldly matters, Prospero devoted his time to studying magic, which made it easy for someone else to take his place. One could even go so far as to say that Prospero lost his place on the social ladder because he did not fulfill the duties that came along with his power.

On top of that, The Tempest also brings up other questions about the ethics of power. Once Prospero arrives on the island, he uses his magical abilities to enslave Caliban and free the spirit of Ariel. However, he does not give freedom to Ariel immediately. Twelve years later, Ariel is still Prospero’s servant, although the spirit is clearly longing for freedom.

Shakespeare lived during a time when England was starting to create its empire. Just over 200 years later, Great Britain would be ruling over 23% of the world’s population, making it the largest Empire in human history. Of course, there is no way Shakespeare could have predicted the massive growth of Britain’s territory or the many atrocities that would be committed as part of this expansion. However, The Tempest does open up questions about colonialism and the ethics of turning local populations (exemplified by Caliban and Ariel) into servants and slaves.

If we subject The Tempest to a postcolonial critique, we may argue that Prospero has abused his magical powers to gain rulership over the island and its inhabitants. It does not take a lot of imagination to draw a parallel between Prospero’s occupation of the island (and its inhabitants) and the way the British used their advanced weapons to gain control over foreign territories. Prospero used his magic to enslave, rather than free. So if we look at The Tempest through a postcolonial lens, the resentment Caliban feels towards Prospero seems understandable. Caliban is described (and treated) as a sub-human semi-monster, which mirrors the way the European colonizers have dehumanized the native people of their colonies. After all, Prospero is nothing more than a foreign oppressor.

Postcolonial critics have also argued that Ariel and Caliban represent two possible responses to colonial rule. While Caliban stages an unsuccessful rebellion against his master, Ariel continues to be subservient to Prospero in the hopes that the latter will eventually free him.

Throughout the play, Prospero uses magic to control the action and holds a kind of puppet master position. Among other things, Prospero employs his magical abilities to create the storm that washes the sailors onto the beach. He also uses magic (and the help of the spirit Ariel) to drive the action forward and prevent the plot against the king and himself. While Prospero uses his magical capabilities to his advantage, his powers also put him in a position of responsibility.

After all, his magical powers can be used for both good and evil. But it seems that age has given him a greater level of wisdom. Instead of seeking vengeance, he merely teaches his treacherous brother a lesson. While Prospero lets his anger and pettiness get the better of him during some moments of the play, his final choice to take the higher road teaches us that we must expand our hearts at the same rate at which we expand our powers.

The Case of Sycorax: A Postcolonial View of Witchcraft & Magic

According to the play, the island used to be ruled by a witch called Sycorax who used her powers to enslave various spirits of the island. Sycorax is said to have been a powerful woman from Algiers who was abandoned on the island while pregnant with Caliban. The fact that Prospero’s magic (and enslavement of Ariel) is considered morally acceptable, while Sycorax’s powers are deemed dangerous, opens up questions around feminism and colonialism.

Shakespeare lived during a time when the burning of women as witches was still commonplace. Likewise, there is a long history of the demonization of religious, spiritual, and magical practices performed by native people in colonized territories. For these reasons, some postcolonial critics have argued that Sycorax represents the silenced African woman and the demonization of witchcraft practiced by colonized people. The Tempest therefore opens up several questions about the ways in which we look at magic. We may ask ourselves why the practice of a white male magician is acceptable, while the magic made by an African witch is considered evil, for example.

The Tempest is a story full of conflict and power struggles. And yet, the maturity of this play is evidenced by the fact that it ends with Prospero forfeiting his wish to seek revenge, deciding to forgive his brother instead. The play teaches us that a mature person no longer needs or wishes to punish those who have wronged them. After all, it is only when we forgive those who have wronged us that we become truly free.

William Shakespeare’s The Tempest in the 21st Century and Beyond 

The Tempest, like many of Shakespeare’s plays, has been adapted for the screen multiple times. In the 2010 film adaptation, Helen Mirren portrays Prospero. There is also an Opera version with music composed by Thomas Adè, while Rudolf Nureyev created a ballet version of Shakespeare’s magical work. It remains to be seen how future generations of directors and actors will interpret this multifaceted work. However, as we enter the age of AI, the questions The Tempest raises about power and responsibility seem to be more relevant than ever.