PROSPERO AND SHAKESPEARE

Meanwhile, Ferdinand and Miranda become engaged, and Prospero uses his magic to give them a beautiful wedding pageant, with spirits taking the form of classical deities. It is probably simplest to think of Ariel as androgynous-that is, neither male nor female) So Prospero and Ariel conjure up a huge storm (the tempest), and try and steer the ship towards the island so that his daughter and himself can return back to civilization. ) meet and fall in love at first sight. From the start of the play he engineers the tempest that brings the other characters to his island, and after that he uses his magic to control where they go. He is Alonso's jester, who washes up alone. These figures include, Antonio, Alonso, the King of Naples, who conspired long ago to help Antonio get rid of Prospero; the good old counselor, Gonzalo; Sebastian, Alonso's own power-hungry younger brother; and Ferdinand, Alonso's son, the Prince of Naples. Shakespeare is stopping his writing and saying goodbye through Prospero, when he lays his magical arts forever down and says a final farewell to an audience whom loved him. He was long ago involved in Antonio's plot to get rid of Prospero. He is also part of the antagonists and is a clownish figure. Prospero's final scene in which he stands alone and is powerless on the stage, is a moving farewell to a great playwright who is about to lay aside his magic by writing into his play "now my charms are all o'erthrown, and what strengths I have's mine own.

Prospero's power of illusion as being a metaphor for the illusion of theater, and his magic and power over other people may be linked to the power, which the playwright himself-Shakespeare-has in creating worlds and characters. Alonso believes that his son Ferdinand has drowned, and he is suffering greatly over this. He is the evil brother of Prospero, from whom he usurped the position of Duke of Milan twelve years ago.