The Tempest Summary for Students

The Tempest, written in 1611, is said to be William Shakespeares last play. It is a tale of magic, power, and justice, and some readings even see it as Shakespeares way of taking his own final bow. To touch on the most important aspects of this iconic play, here is a summary of The Tempest.  Ã‚   The Tempest Summary of the Plot A Magical Storm The Tempest begins on a boat being tossed about in a storm. Aboard are Alonso (the King of Naples), Ferdinand (his son), Sebastian (his brother), Antonio (the usurping Duke of Milan), Gonzalo, Adrian, Francisco, Trinculo, ​and Stefano. Miranda, who has been watching the ship at sea, is distraught at the thought of lost lives. The storm was created by her father, the magical Prospero, who reassures her that all will be well. Prospero then explains how the two of them came to live on this island: They were once part of Milan’s nobility—he was a Duke—and Miranda lived a life of luxury. However, Prospero’s brother usurped him and exiled them. They were placed on a boat, never to be seen again. Then, Prospero summons Ariel, his servant spirit. Ariel explains that he has carried out Prospero’s orders: He destroyed the ship and dispersed its passengers across the island. Prospero instructs Ariel to be invisible and spy on them. Ariel asks when he will be freed, but Prospero tells him off for being ungrateful, promising to free him soon. Caliban: Man or Monster? Prospero decides to visit his other servant, Caliban, but Miranda is reluctant—she describes him as a monster. Prospero agrees that Caliban can be rude and unpleasant but says he is invaluable to them because he collects their firewood. When Prospero and Miranda meet Caliban, we learn that he is native to the island, but Prospero turned him into a slave. This raises issues of morality and fairness in the play. Love at First Sight Ferdinand stumbles across Miranda and, much to Prospero’s annoyance, they fall in love and decide to marry. Prospero warns Miranda off and decides to test Ferdinand’s loyalty. The rest of the shipwrecked crew are drinking to simultaneously celebrate their survival and grieve for lost loved ones, as Alonso believes that he has lost his beloved son, Ferdinand. Caliban’s New Master Stefano, Alonso’s drunken butler, discovers Caliban in a glade. Caliban decides to worship the drunken Stefano and make him his new master in order to escape Prospero’s power. Caliban describes Prospero’s cruelty and persuades Stefano to murder him by promising that Stefano can marry Miranda and rule the island. The other shipwreck survivors have been trekking across the island and stop to rest. Ariel casts a spell on Alonso, Sebastian, and Antonio and derides them for their previous treatment of Prospero. Gonzalo and the others think that the spellbound men are suffering from the guilt of their past actions and promise to protect them from doing anything impulsive. Prospero finally concedes and agrees to the marriage of Miranda and Ferdinand and goes off to foil Caliban’s murderous plot. He orders Ariel to hang out beautiful clothes to distract the three fools. When Caliban and Stefano discover the clothes, they decide to steal them—Prospero arranges for goblins to â€Å"grind their joints as punishment. Prospero’s Forgiveness and Absolution At the end of the play, Prospero has forgiven his countrymen, pardoned Caliban, and promised to set Ariel free after he helps the ship leave the island. Prospero also breaks his magical staff and buries it, and  tosses his book of magic into the sea.  All of these things redeem his earlier behaviors and hearken back to the belief that hes not truly evil.  The last thing Prospero does in the play is to ask the audience to set him free from the island with their applause, for the first time leaving his future  in the hands of others. Major Characters Prospero While Prospero can be viewed as an evil character, he is more complex than that. His negative actions can be chalked up to his being angry, bitter, and controlling; the tempest that he conjures to shipwreck his countrymen is often said to be a physical manifestation of Prosperos anger.  Still, he doesnt kill any of his countrymen despite having the opportunity, and he even eventually forgives them. Miranda Miranda represents purity. Prospero is obsessed with keeping her virginity intact and ensuring that when she is finally handed over to Ferdinand, her new husband will honor and treasure her.  Miranda is often seen as a very innocent character and the antithesis of the witch Sycorax, the mother of Caliban. Caliban Caliban is the demon son of the witch Sycorax and the Devil, and it is unclear whether he is human or monster.  Some scholars believe that Caliban is an evil character because he has tried to rape Miranda in the past, is the son of the  Devil, and plots with Stefano to kill Prospero.  Others say that Caliban is merely a product of his birth and that it is not his fault who his parents were.  Many also view Prosperos mistreatment of Caliban (making him a slave) as evil and that Caliban is simply responding to his unfortunate circumstances. Ariel Ariel is a magical spirit that inhabited the island long before anyone else. He uses male pronouns but is a gender-ambiguous character.  Sycorax imprisoned Ariel  in a tree when he refused to do Sycoraxs bidding because Ariel viewed her desires as evil. Prospero freed Arial, and the remained faithful to Prospero the entire time the protagonist inhabited the island.  At his core, Ariel is a kind, empathetic creature, sometimes viewed as being angelic.  He cares for humans and helps Prospero see the light and forgive his kinsman.  Without Ariel, Prospero may very well have remained a bitter, angry man on his island forever. Major Themes The Tripartite Soul One of the major themes from this play is the belief in the soul as three parts Plato called this the tripartite of the soul, and it was a very commonly held belief in the Renaissance. The idea is that Prospero, Caliban, and Ariel are all a part of one person (Prospero). The three factions of the soul were vegetative (Caliban), sensitive (Ariel), and rational (Ariel and Prospero).  Sigmund Freud later adopted this concept into his id, ego, and superego theory.  By this theory, Caliban represents the id (the child), Prospero the ego (the adult), and Ariel the superego (the parent).   Many performances of the play after the 1950s have the same actor playing all three roles, and it is only when all three characters can come to the same conclusion (forgiveness) that the three factions are brought together. When this happens to Prospero—when the three parts of his soul unite—he can finally move on. Master/Servant Relationships In The Tempest, Shakespeare draws on master/servant relationships to demonstrate power and its misuse. In particular, control is a dominant theme: Characters battle for control over each other and the island, perhaps an echo of England’s colonial expansion in Shakespeare’s time. With the island in colonial dispute, the audience ​is asked to question who the rightful owner of the island is: Prospero, Caliban, or Sycorax—the original colonizer from Algiers who performed evil deeds. Historical Context: The Importance of Colonialism The Tempest takes place in 17th century England, when colonialism was a dominant and accepted practice, particularly among European nations. This is also contemporary with Shakespeares writing of the play. It is no coincidence, therefore, that the plot shows the deep influence of colonialism, especially in terms of Prospero’s actions: He arrives at Sycorax’s island, subdues it, and imposes his own culture on its inhabitants while calling them undignified and savage. Shakespeare also seems also to have drawn on Michel de  Montaigne’s essay  Of the Cannibals, which was translated into English in 1603. The name of Prospero’s servant, Caliban, may have come from the word â€Å"cannibal.† When picturing the storm in  The Tempest, Shakespeare may have been influenced by 1610 document â€Å"A True Declaration of the Estate of the Colonie in Virginia,† which describes the adventures of some sailors who had returned from the Americas. Key Quotes As with all of his plays, Shakespeares The Tempest contains plenty of pithy, striking, and moving quotes. These are a few that set up the play. A pox o your throat, you bawling, blasphemous, incharitable dog!(Sebastian; Act 1, Scene 1) Now would I give a thousand furlongs of sea for an acre of barren ground: long heath, broom, furze, anything. The wills above be done, but I would fain die a dry death(Gonzalo; Act 1, Scene 1) Canst thou rememberA time before we came unto this cell?(Prospero; Act 1, Scene 2) In my false brotherAwakened an evil nature, and my trust,Like a good parent, did beget of himA falsehood in its contrary as greatAs my trust was, which had indeed no limit,A confidence sans bound.(Prospero; Act 1, Scene 2) Good wombs have borne bad sons.(Miranda; Act 1, Scene 2) Hell is empty,And all the devils are here.(Ariel; Act 1, Scene 2)

Is Google Really Making Us Stupid Essay - 2355 Words

In a lecture hall, a professor stands in front of a classroom full of students as he waits for an answer to his question. A student raises his hand and answers â€Å"no,† but he is unable to explain his conclusion. In Deborah Tannen’s article â€Å"The Roots of Debate in Education and the Hope of Dialogue,† she talks about how we should not just focus on stating that other people’s points are wrong and that the only way to seem original or creative is to prove other people’s points are wrong. This topic is highly important for students who are just entering college where they will encounter open discussions and the test of their ability to think outside of the box to prove an answer. Tannen’s ideas about the topic of debate may be quite beneficial†¦show more content†¦In Twenge’s article, she builds upon individualism, self-esteem and narcissism while Tannen’s article discusses the insecurity and difficulty among female s when expressing opinions against men. Through Tannen’s article, students can learn the importance of debate in discussion and defending opinions, which will broaden their scope on a particular topic. Incoming UCONN students can benefit from Tannen’s article where they can be introduced to the concept that there is a need to develop a meaningful context into which subsequent ideas and skills can be assimilated in the involvement of debate. â€Å"The Roots of Debate in Education and the Hope of Dialogue† presents a whole new way of thinking that could be helpful for a new UCONN student. It focuses on how negative approaches to debate is not the way to go. Quickly Tannen discusses how at the beginning of our early life, we are all taught, sometimes inadvertently, that we should not have to bring down other peoples ideas to bring up our own. Following this, she teaches a tactic to regulate our approach on how we think about things or how we feel about things and i n the end it is about how we perceive the world. 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The Phenomenon of Late Marriage in China Free Essays

The Phenomenon of Late Marriage in China It is a generally noted phenomenon that Chinese tend to get married later than they used to especially in big cities. Across the country, we observe virtually everywhere that the rate of marriage becoming lower year after year. Chinese used to marry before twenty- five years old. We will write a custom essay sample on The Phenomenon of Late Marriage in China or any similar topic only for you Order Now But now, some youngsters go study further; some devoted in their career; some who have dated one after other still refuse to step into the palace of marriage. Careful observation and elaborate thinking convinced me that the issue happens because of the objective and subject.According to a survey conducted by Chinese Academy of Social Science, the number of marriage continues to decline especially in big city. (The Chinese get married late increasingly)But why does this happen? And how will it affect the future? While thinking deeply, I came up with some ideas about this issue. Objectively thinking, the overload burden takes too much pressure to the youngsters. Pressure like educations, works, transportations, houses, love comes form every where occupy youngsters’ whole lives.Firstly, the price of houses is too high for youngster to support. House slaves, also called Ant people, stands for people who usually work in big city have lots of housing debt to support. You definitely need to have a shelter before getting married. Secondly, transportation occupies too much time. Neither do they have time to date someone, nor do they get married. Thirdly, low employment rate nowadays, youths trend to study further than before in order to avoid the pressure. All of above will probably make youths get married late.Thinking logically at first, many people get married later just because they are not ready to get married. It can be divided into two aspects. One is material basis, the other is mental. Speaking of material basis, youths between twenty and thirty don’t have economy standard. And people still in school are fed by their parents. Apparently their mental isn’t mature enough. In fact, getting married is the start of a new life. Setting up your own family means a lot of responsibility. As an old saying goes,† It’s easy to get the spark of love, but it’s difficult to keep it†.For instance, after getting married, wives need to get up early to prepare the breakfast for husbands; husbands have to work harder than before in order to support the family; couples suppose to remember the date of each other’s birthday; and they’d better to have a good relationship with lover’s relatives. No wander of saying goes,† Marriage is the tomb of love†. Secondly, owing to the pressure coming from all over the work, study, house debt and transportation, love may fade away. All these scared the youth who are in the right age of marriage. For example, pressure like transportation occupies too much time.Neither do they have time to date someone, nor do they get married. And the issue of house slaves coming to an essential topic these days has deeply been debated. House slaves, also called Ant people, stands for people who usually work in big city have lots of housing debt to support. In China, a shelter is definitely a necessity before getting married. But the price of the house is too high to be paid by poor youths. What’s more, youths who graduated from school just started work need to pay most of the time on their work. With the low employment rate nowadays, youths trend to study further than before in order to avoid the pressure.All of above will probably make youths get married late. Moreover, thoughts of Chinese are changing today! In the ancient time, Chinese got married mainly because they want to have babies to carry on the family lines. But nowadays, Chinese get married because they finally find their soul mates. Form person perspective, ‘One Child Policy ‘makes Chinese grown up in the 80’s be used to being alone. They grew up in the age of Internet. Variety kinds of entertainments scarify them and they spent less time with friends. So, many of them may probably have troubles in communicating with others.Finally, taking some individual cases into account, some environmentalists believe that the fewer newborns we have, the less polluted the planet will be. Because people have carbon emissions during their whole life and too much carbon emissions will intensified greenhouse effect and enlarge the hole in the ozone layer. This case may not hold an important role as the upper points. It still be mentioned considering of academic cautious. After considering of all these causes, let’s focus the attention on its effects. Thinking of the present only, single people will have more time hanging out late at night.And this will probably raise the rate of crime. While thinking further, some people believe that getting married later can slow down the population growth rate of China. As the large population provides heavy burden for China, it benefits to the whole country because. While others advocate that this point of view is short-sighted. Assuming birth rate continues decreased in decades. Time flies fast and youths won’t be young anymore. Fewer youths working than before will slow down the speed of economic developing. An awareness of this issue, Chinese government has already put out series policy to change the status.Considering of the high price of house, government has taken some specific measures to restrain the high speed increase of price. They also built up some apartments in low price and provided for the poor. New policies are beginning to effect. But there still have lots of things to do. While observing all over the world, many countries especially the developed countries are disturbed by the low rate of birth. So this issue becomes a global issue that should be aware by all the people. Chinese Academy of Social Science. The Chinese get married late increasingly. 2008. 17 Jan. lt; http://jnrb1. e23. cn/html/dsnb/20080117/dsnb43308. htmlgt; How to cite The Phenomenon of Late Marriage in China, Papers