Week 9
May 1, 2012 § 3 Comments
The Tempest’s P R O S P E R O
Good, old and wise Prospero is certainly the protagonist of this play. Through him, we embark on beautiful journey towards reconciliation and acceptance that not only harmonizes his past, present and future… but also harmonizes the world as he and Shakespeare see it. This web based resource is personalized by me to explore the simplicities and complexities of Prospero’s character. The image above is exactly how I pictured him to be. But that is not why I have included the image in this web based resource. I was captured by this image, by the actor’s face – the depths of thoughts, his vulnerability and strength showing at the same time. The ragged garment wrapped around his shoulders is his magical cloak that is interestingly earthy looking as supposed to a garment of status.
Using this garment, Prospero releases forces of his imagination to take his daughter and all the other characters in the play, AND his audience of course, on a journey to weather the tempest! Prospero’s complexities are inherent in the roles he plays within the play. Actively, Prospero is a father, magician and arguably a true representation of Shakespeare himself.
The following is my attempt to re-create Prospero’s emotions coming to a reconciliation, using the elegance and power of Shakespeare’s language. This is inspired by Prospero in Act 4, scene 1, 148–158 and Act 5, Scene 1 of Prospero’s epilogue.
To the mercy of destiny I surrender to God’s hands
In faith I trust you to care not for me
But beg you to turn your gaze to shelter Miranda and her beloved Ferdinand
Replaced by prayer
I trust in fate and faith and love
So much so that
I pluck my magic garment and lay it rest.
In mercy I retire to return to sleep
To ressurrect in my dreams where no one will weep
mariegenedejesus 
What I was pleasantly surprised by in the Tempest was Shakespeare’s sense of transformation and reconciliation. Everyone was reconciled, except of course Caliban, who was a monster anyway. I was thrilled by the resurrection of Shakespeare’s use of the stage metaphor for life and death. The continuation of his play within a play. I think it particularly apt that he likens the closing of a play, to the possible ending of his stage writing career. The Tempest has a significantly different feel to his other plays. The sense of reconciliation was enlightening.
[…] https://mgenedejesus.wordpress.com/2012/05/01/week-9-submission/ Share this:TwitterFacebookLike this:LikeBe the first to like this post. […]
Hello! You’re right, through him, we do go on a journey of reconciliation and acceptance, and through him, we are able to see him get off his high horse by discarding his magical cloak which acts as a metaphor for his godliness.
I guess in a sense, by humanising himself, it is a symbolic act of love towards his daughter. Yeah, the actor in your photo portrays how I would expect Prospero to look like, vulnerable and strong at the same time.