| The Tempest | Title foreshadows chaos and disarray of the play. Not by Mother Nature but Prospero. Unnatural. Seen as just in Prospero’s eyes |
| “pluck my magic garment from me” | Act 1 Scene 2 – Physical part of his being? Can’t perform magic without it? Corruptible. Helps hum construct illusions |
| “lie there my art” | Act 1 Scene 2 – “my” – possessive determiner – indicates ownership and dependency on his magic. Is his art corrupting? Important? Personified – as if his magic is a real physical being |
| “Thou art inclined to sleep” | Act 1 Scene 2 – inclined: almost like an imperative. Enchants her forcefully. Doesn’t want a challenge? Suppressing. Manipulative. Uses magic for his personal gain |
| “The great globe itself … shall dissolve” | Act 4 Scene 1 – Prospero as playwright. Breaks 4th wall. Metaphor for theatre. Shakespeare indirectly speaking to audience? Comparing the play and his magic to life – both will end. Imagery associating with “dissolve”. In reality magic isn’t real – brought to life in the theatre |
| “Spirits, which by mine art I have from their confines called to enact my present fancies” | Act 4 Scene 1 – shows limitations of his magic. No access to the real gods. Suggests a glass ceiling when it comes to the divine? |
| Symbols | Robe, books, wand |
| Elements | Earth, fire, wind, sea – Prospero controls both the natural and the supernatural |
| Magic Performances | Banquet, Masque |
The Tempest – Magic/Illusion Quotes
July 1, 2019