The audience may also have seen Prospero as a type of magus - an educated man who studied science and was believed to gain magical powers through their studies. A magus could use their powers for good or might be tempted to use dark magic. A belief in folklore and magic was common in Shakespeare’s day and many people believed in the existence of fairies and spirits.

Miranda Character Analysis in The Tempest | LitCharts Miranda Character Analysis in The Tempest | LitCharts

Meanwhile Miranda proposes marriage to Ferdinand! Prospero’s all “Aw, cute”. But not for long. It’s wizard revenge time! He lures Antonio and Alonso to a magical banquet and Ariel changes herself into a big nasty bird lady. Here lies your brother / No better than the earth he lies upon / If he were that which now he’s like, that’s dead’ (Antonio, 2:1) Stephano is butler to Alonso, King of Naples. He was washed up on the island alone and wanders around drunk until he meets up with his friend Trinculo, who is hiding under a cloak with Caliban. Stephano shares his wine with them and Caliban thinks he is a god. Stephano agrees to kill Prospero, rule the island and become Caliban’s new master. However, Ariel watches them and makes sure they do not cause any real trouble.

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Ariel then brings in Caliban, Stephano and Trinculo, wearing their stolen clothes. Prospero sets Ariel free.

Miranda (The Tempest) - Wikipedia

Miranda, who is a teenager, has lived on the island since she was three years old with only her father and Caliban for company. If I can recover him and keep him tame, and get to Naples with him, he’s a present for any emperor’ (Stephano, 2:2) King of Naples and father of Ferdinand. Alonso aided Antonio in unseating Prospero as Duke of Milan twelve years before. As he appears in the play, however, he is acutely aware of the consequences of all his actions. He blames his decision to marry his daughter to the Prince of Tunis on the apparent death of his son. In addition, after the magical banquet, he regrets his role in the usurping of Prospero. AntonioProspero is the main character in The Tempest. He is the Duke of Milan who was overthrown by his brother Antonio fifteen years before the start of the play and cast adrift in a boat with his baby daughter, Miranda. During those fifteen years he studied and taught himself how to do magic. Why is Prospero important in The Tempest? Ariel asks for his freedom. Prospero agrees to set Ariel free after two more days. Meanwhile, he asks Ariel to remain invisible to everyone and to perform more tasks for him. A character analysis of Prospero is complicated by his being a magician. So the question is, what are we seeing when we look at Prospero? A complete human being who has to rely on his natural resources, or someone above the need for that, who lives his life by practicing magic? Prospero is the central character of the play. He is a powerful magician who was once the Duke of Milan. In the comic book series The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen by Alan Moore and Kevin O'Neill, Prospero appears as a founding member of the first such grouping in 1610, alongside his familiars Caliban and Ariel.