Jeanne C I wanted to illustrate the toll of the experiences Miranda has gone through because of conflicts that are outside of her control that she is still a fundamental part of. This two part drawing is a conceptual draft of what this might look like. I began with the idea that she often serves as a mediator figure from the beginning of the play, calming her father's more violent acts of magic and trying to maintain the peace in the opening of Act 1 Scene 2, telling him "If by your art, my dearest father, you have/ Put the wild waters in this roar, allay them". Prospero pushes her into a relationship with Ferdinand without her knowledge and meddles in her life for his own ulterior motives and goals, with the dashed 'strings' on Miranda in the drawing on the left symbolizing her confinement to the island with Prospero and the control he exerts over her. She gets something close to a 'happy ending', with her father choosing to forgive, something Miranda has been trying to work towards throughout the play. As a result, she gets a life with Ferdinand and more people. She is still following the path her father willed for her, and the play's happy resolution comes at the cost of her naiveté. The second frame shows Miranda in muted colors that blend more into the background, with this new 'peace' in similar bright yellows that highlighted her in the first. Now, the yellow tones are still slightly shown on her skin, but come from this new 'peace', rather than herself. However, given that she's no longer confined to the island or under the same pressures to calm her father, she is able to help hold and maintain the play's resolution by marrying Ferdinand and continuing to support Prospero.
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FADE IN: INT. THERAPIST’S OFFICE - DAY A homely sort of office: floral wallpaper, cushioned seats, dimmed lights. On the left, FERDINAND, 22, sporting an expensive business suit and a long-suffering look. On the right, his wife MIRANDA, 20, looking as though she had just attended an edgy rock n’ roll concert. Across from the couple, a vaguely disheveled THERAPIST, scribbling notes on a clipboard. THERAPIST Let’s go over this again. Ferdinand, Miranda, why are we here? Both Ferdinand and Miranda move to speak. THERAPIST Ah, how about ladies first? Ferdinand spares a stiff nod toward his wife, who responds in turn with a withering glare. MIRANDA We are here, against my better judgment, to see if we can salvage what remains of this poor, pathetic relationship. In fact, if it weren’t for him dragging me out here, I wouldn’t have bothered. THERAPIST Now, there’s no need to get accusing. I daresay we’ll have plenty of time for that later. Ferdinand, why don’t you explain your reasoning for, ah, ‘dragging’ Miranda out here? FERDINAND I’m not going to apologize for trying to make her see that I’m the best man she’s ever met-- MIRANDA The only man I’ve ever met, other than my father, you mean? FERDINAND (to THERAPIST) There she goes again, blaming everything on her oh-so-sheltered childhood. MIRANDA If I had a normal childhood, I wouldn’t have jumped into the arms of the first brawny, witless guy who told me he loved me. THERAPIST Miranda, there’s no need to get insulting. I’m sure you and Ferdinand both are here to work out your differences in a civil manner. FERDINAND (under his breath) I wouldn’t be so sure. THERAPIST What’s that, Ferdinand? FERDINAND (louder) I said I wouldn’t be so sure. Her dad is a manipulative psychopath, you know. MIRANDA He is not! FERDINAND You know it’s true. (to THERAPIST) D’you know how we met in the first place? The therapist shakes his head. FERDINAND (con’t.) In a ruddy car crash. We were coming back from my sister’s wedding, driving through some abandoned countryside who-knows-where, when Bosen--that’s our chauffeur--lost control of the car. And you wouldn’t believe what happened when I woke up. Most traumatic few days of my life, I swear. MIRANDA (scoffing) Oh no, the pampered prince of Italy got a few scratches and scrapes. Whatever shall we do? FERDINAND First of all, I’m not a prince. My family’s just...well-off, that’s all. MIRANDA (to THERAPIST) By ‘well-off,’ he means ‘the owners of a multi-billion pound company.’ FERDINAND Secondly, the crash wasn’t traumatic. It was your damn lunatic father. I wake up in some rotten barn--on a hard, uncomfortable haystack, might I add--and some nutter’s telling me my pop’s died. Then, when I open my eyes, there’s this lady in a blasted seventeenth-century gown. MIRANDA (to THERAPIST) My fashion sense has changed slightly since then. FERDINAND If that’s not enough, five minutes into our conversation her psychotic father comes barging in, accusing me of being a spy! Raving about plots to take over his land, as if I would ever have use of some musty farmland belonging to a family of nutcases! THERAPIST We want to stay respectful, remember... FERDINAND And that’s not all! He threatens to kill me, forces me to do all the hard labor around the farm, carrying logs, feeding the chickens-- MIRANDA (sotto) First time he’s ever done some good, honest work in his life. FERDINAND And I must have lost my mind because I proposed to the lunatic’s daughter right there. Must’ve been Stockholm syndrome or whatever they call it. MIRANDA Excuse me, you fell in love with me at first sight! Blathering about all your ex-girlfriends and being my slave. Freaked me out. FERDINAND Freaked you out? I thought my father and friends had just died and I was being held hostage by a wild hermit, his guileless daughter, and his two slaves! MIRANDA (hastily to THERAPIST) He means servants. Paid servants. FERDINAND No, I don’t! Cal-something and the Disney princess. They were definitely not there by their own free will, I can tell you that much. I’m not surprised, either. Your father’s an evil, conniving bastard. He was manipulating us the whole time so we’d get married and he’d be free to mooch off the family fortune as he pleases. In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if he caused the crash in the first place. You’re lucky the first thing I did when we got out of there wasn’t reporting him to the authorities. MIRANDA Maybe I should’ve let my father have his way with you. FERDINAND I could take on Prospero any time of the day. In my sleep. MIRANDA In your dreams, more like. THERAPIST May I ask what happened after you left the farm? Why did you not report this...what sounds like illegal behavior? FERDINAND I guess Prospero was...somewhat decent, around the end. Blessed our marriage, prepared our wedding--which I still can’t quite remember for the life of me--and went a bit barmy, talking about spirits and plots and illusions. Turns out my father and his friends were alive and had phoned for help. THERAPIST And why did you not report Miranda’s father? FERDINAND Well, I didn’t have any evidence, did I? And I didn’t want another scandal in the news. And Miranda has always been annoyingly protective of the old coot. Anyway, it’s been five years; I’m over it. Mostly. THERAPIST Let’s go back to why we’re here today. Would you say that the root of the problems in your relationship is Miranda’s father, Ferdinand? FERDINAND I guess. I know Miranda’s been locked away from human civilization for a decade or whatever, but it’s been five years since we got married. And she should know by now that normal fathers don’t usually live with their daughters and sons-in-law. Or stalk them. Or listen in on their private conversations. Or-- MIRANDA I don’t like it, either! FERDINAND Well, you have a funny way of showing it. When have you ever told Prospero to bugger off? When have you ever backed me up when I try to kick him out of the house? MIRANDA He’s just protective, that’s all. He wants to make sure I’m safe. I think we can afford to give up a bit of privacy if it gives him peace of mind. FERDINAND Oh, and I suppose my peace of mind doesn’t matter? For five years, my insomnia has gotten worse, I’m paranoid, I can barely take a shower without seeing him there. MIRANDA Don’t blame your not being able to sleep on him! In case you haven’t noticed, I’ve lived with him for twenty years and I turned out perfectly fine. FERDINAND I guess we have different definitions of ‘perfectly fine.’ Mind, I’m not the one looking like I just raided the back shelves of a Hot Topic. MIRANDA First you’re complaining that I’m too innocent, now you want me to go back to Elizabethan dresses? FERDINAND You know that’s not what I meant. You’re expressing your individuality from that horrible excuse of a father, and I’m happy for you. A poignant pause. THERAPIST It seems like we’re at an impasse. Ferdinand, you are understandably upset at your privacy being violated. Miranda, you are naturally loyal to and care for your father. But the fact that both of you were willing to sit down and have a discussion is a very good sign. MIRANDA Sign of what? THERAPIST Sign that both of you care enough about this relationship to try to fix it. We’ve seen both of your points of view, and hopefully, you can put yourselves in each other’s shoes. Would you agree? MIRANDA I suppose...I guess my father can be...difficult to deal with sometimes. He had a difficult time before we moved to the farm. He had to deal with his own family and friends betraying him, and I think that’s part of why he’s so controlling...and invasive. He cares a lot. I wish you’d understand that. THERAPIST And you, Ferdinand? FERDINAND I guess I’ll never understand the relationship between you and Prospero. But I know how much he means to you and that’s why I never said anything before. If we do end up...separating, it’d only be because I don’t want you to have to choose between your father and me. MIRANDA I don’t want to have to choose, either. FERDINAND (earnest) You don’t. We just need a little bit of space from Prospero. We can still visit him; he’s still going to be part of your life. But we’ll get to live our lives, too. MIRANDA (doubtful) I don’t know if he’d want that… FERDINAND It doesn’t matter what he wants, though! It matters what you want. Isn’t that right, Doc? THERAPIST Quite. If your father truly cares for you, Miranda, which I’m sure he does, he will understand that you need space. MIRANDA I suppose... FERDINAND I know you want to be independent of him. That’s why we’re here in the first place. Prospero said he hates therapists, but we went anyway. MIRANDA He hates everyone. FERDINAND Right, he’s a miserable lonely old sod, but we don’t have to be. You can tell him to shove his lies, deceit, and manipulation right up his-- THERAPIST I’m sure Miranda gets the picture. MIRANDA You’re right. You’re right. FERDINAND (hopeful) You’ll talk to him? MIRANDA Yes. I value our relationship far more than I value my father’s petty comfort. I’ll have to break the news lightly, but I’ll do it. THERAPIST That’s wonderful, Miranda! Our time is nearly up, but I’m glad we got to the bottom of this. Miranda, Ferdinand, any last concerns? FERDINAND No, but thank you so much. It’s been an agonizing few years. MIRANDA Same here. I can’t thank you enough. A rather overwhelmed Ferdinand and Miranda walk slowly to the door, hand-in-hand. After the sounds of their footsteps fade, the room goes dark. A slight pause, then WHOOSH! A bright light illuminates the room. The therapist’s face is contorting and spasming...the light grows until he doubles over with a cry. Slowly, the therapist rises to his feet, considerably taller than before. We catch a glimpse of his face--it’s PROSPERO! PROSPERO And that is couples therapy done right. FADE OUT: Link to my story
Analysis: Overview: In my project, I attempted to explore Miranda and Ferdinand’s relationship beyond the scenes we get of the pair in The Tempest. In particular, I was curious to analyze the extent of Prospero’s manipulation of their feelings — do Miranda and Ferdinand truly love each other, or was their union formed solely due to Prospero pulling the strings? In my adaptation, I imagined an alternate universe to The Tempest set in modern times, five years after the events in the play. Here, Miranda and Ferdinand, fed up with each other, consult a couples therapist for some much-needed guidance. Inspiration: I’ve always been a bit skeptical of how Shakespearean characters seem to fall perfectly in love with each other at first sight. I thought I would write a scene where Miranda and Ferdinand confront the problems in their relationship. Since we analyzed the implications of Brathwaite’s modern-day interpretations of Caliban’s character, I decided to write about a modern-day scenario where relationships are examined thoroughly: couples therapy. I reviewed a few transcripts of real-life couples therapy to write my adaptation, which inspired me to do it in the screenplay format. My story was inspired by Miranda and Ferdinand’s relationship in general, but a few lines I focused on were “All thy vexations / Were but my trials of thy love and thou / Hast strangely stood the test” (4.1.5-7). Here, Prospero says that he punished Ferdinand only to test him as worthy of Miranda’s love. Since Prospero clearly has no qualms about meddling in their relationship under the guise of fatherly concern, I thought it’d be natural to assume that he doesn’t stop meddling after the events of The Tempest. I then thought about the implications of this, along with the modern-day setting, on the story and each of the characters:
Analysis:
When creating this drawing, I was inspired by the chess game played by Miranda and Ferdinand in Act 5 Scene 1 of The Tempest. Miranda tells Ferdinand, "Sweet lord, you play me false," confronting him for cheating (5.1.172). He denies this accusation, and Miranda responds, "[F]or a score of kingdoms you should wrangle, / And I would call it fair play" (5.1.174-175). Although Miranda is unafraid to be assertive with her future husband, she relents because of her love for him. I did not see her ultimate passiveness as weakness, but as her way of living with a situation in which she is mainly a playing piece to those around her. From there, I began to think that the queen chess piece is most reflective of her character. The queen in chess is the most powerful and mobile piece, as it can be moved in any direction spanning any number of squares on the board. Aside from the fact that Miranda will literally become a queen, she is capable of such power herself; she voluntarily disobeys Prospero's (apparent) wishes in order to speak to Ferdinand, and proposes to him first, stating, "I am your wife, if you will marry me; / If not, I'll die your maid" (3.1.83-84). However, Miranda's real power in the play lies in others' conceptions of her as an object of value. Caliban attempts to rape her, intending to gain control of the island with his own offspring (1.2); Ferdinand says that he admires her because she does not have "some defect," unlike other women he has taken interest in (3.1.44); and Prospero, who controls Miranda's relationship with Ferdinand in order to return to power, says outright to Ferdinand, "[A]s my gift and thine own acquisition / Worthily purchased, take my daughter" (4.1.13-14). Miranda is the central component in each of their plans for power, marriage, and offspring. She is a powerful playing piece, but a playing piece nonetheless, and Prospero is the player controlling her every move. A chess player holds their queen piece in high regard because of its power, but may choose to sacrifice it in order to protect their own king piece or checkmate the opponent's king. If Prospero's king piece is his own power, and his chess opponents are his political rivals (Antonio and Alonso), then Prospero indeed sacrifices his queen (Miranda) in order to protect his own power and trap Antonio and Alonso into allowing his return to status. To encapsulate this analysis in my drawing, Queen Miranda, I first positioned Miranda in the center of the piece to reflect her centrality in the other characters' plots. She rests her hand on a large queen chess piece, representing her future position as queen and emphasizing the qualities she shares with the queen chess piece. Prospero grasps her shoulder, just as she holds the chess piece; although she is the queen, he is the player using the queen, and ultimately has control over her actions. Miranda wears a nightgown-like dress, conveying her vulnerability, but also looks directly at the viewer, displaying her aware and assertive side. Like a gnarled hand hanging over Miranda, the leafless tree branch represents Prospero's deeply-rooted control over his daughter and the events of The Tempest. As for details lost and gained through this visual art adaptation, none of the other characters are present in the drawing, so Miranda and Prospero's interactions with them are lost. In addition, the drawing has no particular setting, removing the imagery of the island in favor of emphasizing the conceptual nature of the drawing. At the same time, the lack of realistic background and other characters allows the viewer to focus on the relationship between Miranda and Prospero alone, as well as reflect on the meaning of the queen chess piece and tree branch. Drawing the concept of Miranda as chess-queen led me to examine Miranda's character more closely than I had before, and gave me a clearer sense of the hierarchy in The Tempest. Y
I The Wedding Day A Poem by Gage Miles Ferdinand and Miranda, joined in communion, Their effusive love, this happy union. The fountain gushed its jaunty springs, While the singing birds unfurled their wings. Lip to lip, our couple met, As the avian choir sang in sweet quartet. Ceres’ hand struck the sacred bough, “Nuptial vines,” she said, “Grow and grow!” Husband and wife, together in hand, Inspired the growth of the jewel of the land, The overwhelming splendor as it sprung from the earth, Drew the eye and suspended the mirth. Miranda’s pure gown, slipped down to her feet, Her naked bosom, sweet love did secrete. Her fair consort also, kingly robe descended, As the branches of the tree slowly extended. Crisp, enticing apples, with blushes of red, Did form along the branches, right over their head. One may have fallen, in the hand of our maiden, But it was dropped at the sight, for it was heavy and laden. Blissfully eager the original couple departed, Out into the garden, a new life had started. The fallen apple at the altar did lay, Blackened flesh, as it withered away. Analysis: The primary inspiration for this poem comes from Act 4 Scene 1, lines 110 though 117 in The Tempest, Ceres’ marriage blessing over Ferdinand and Miranda. However, I chose to extrapolate this into a symbolic wedding that I envisioned for the couple. I was particularly struck by the Edenic imagery the goddess of agriculture employs in her blessing, and several connections to Milton’s Paradise Lost at once began to fall into place. I chose to expand upon an angle of analysis I briefly pursued in my Tempest Paper, which related Ferdinand and Miranda’s marriage to that of the original couple, “a surrogate,” even, situated in an alternate universe where Eve would have never expressed a desire to eat the forbidden fruit. Thus, my poem attempts to make an implicit argument for how Ferdinand and Miranda’s marriage is similar, yet diverges at key points, from the relationship of the original couple. To establish the connection and parallels between the two scenes/settings, Ceres’ blessing and Milton’s Eden, I alluded to key details from both sources. “Ceres’ hand struck the sacred bough, / ‘Nuptial vines,’ she said, ‘Grow and grow!’” is a direct reference to the lines “Vines with clustering bunches growing / Plants with goodly burden bowing;” from her speech in The Tempest (4.1.112-13). Likewise, the lines “The fountain gushed its jaunty springs,” are a reference to the sacred, life-giving fountain in Milton’s Eden: “Rose a fresh fountain and with many a rill / Watered the garden” (4.229-30). These allusions establish several points of intersection between the world of The Tempest and a Miltonian Eden, effectively importing the symbolic imagery of the latter into a description of the former. The two worlds fuse as Ferdinand and Miranda themselves transform into an image of the original couple (even referred to as such) by the end of the poem: naked, blissful, and unafraid. Before I continue, I must acknowledge that for the sake of establishing a clearer, more decisive parallel, I did sacrifice some of the other meritable facets of Miranda’s character: most notably, her acknowledgement of her deprivation of knowledge and a desire to receive it (the story of her journey to the island with Prospero). This does, in part, mirror Eve’s own thirst for knowledge, but in the end, Miranda does not pursue it. While Miranda may be a curious, inquisitive girl, this is not the path she ultimately chooses; her love for Ferdinand suppresses these inclinations. This is the crux of the argument: whether each woman ultimately decides to breach or maintain their contracts of marriage. The “jewel of the land” introduced in the fifth stanza and described throughout the remainder of the poem represents the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, and its appearance in the poem alludes to how the unity, constantly enforced, of Adam and Eve to shield Eve from temptation is ultimately what offends her and leads to her temptation. As the tree looms over the heads of Ferdinand and Miranda, so does the question: will Miranda be subject to the same fate as Eve? It would seem not. Her dropping of the forbidden apple, “laden” with evil, demonstrates the complete marital deference of her bosom to her “fair consort,” Ferdinand. Unlike Eve, who is unwilling to subject herself and accept permanent servility to Adam, Miranda freely places herself in this position, and relishes in it, out of her love for Ferdinand: “I am your wife, if you will marry me / If not, I’ll die your maid. To be your fellow / You may deny me, but I’ll be your servant / Whether you will or no” (3.1.83-86). The apple cannot entice her, for she wholeheartedly embraces the servitude of marriage, above all else. Miranda expresses no discomfort in her sexuality or the natural gender hierarchies she is subjected to, and thus the apple's power over her is rendered fruitless (pun intended), causing it to "wither... away." Eve, on the contrary, does not embrace the ontological hierarchy: her feelings of inferiority ultimately cause her to sever her connection from Adam and fall into Satan’s snare. To drive home this distinction, the poem’s ending scene attempts to mirror that of Milton in Paradise Lost, with one crucial departure. Instead of leaving Eden at the conclusion of Paradise Lost, the couple, hand-in-hand, is entering into the garden for the first time, for Miranda, our Eve, rejected the temptation of the fruit and demonstrated that her love would forever be absolute. A truly pure, enduring love that supersedes all other convictions merits a transcendence into the divine, to Eden. At the same point where Adam and Eve fall, Miranda and Ferdinand rise. As a whole, the poem attempts to capture the Shakespearean imagination of an original couple without Eve giving into temptation. For our Renaissance playwright, Miranda is an Eve that chooses love over knowledge, earning her way into a paradisal eternity. (Of course, however, there are treacheries that lie in any human relation… The serpent can slither through even the smallest crack in the rock of solidarity...) My inspiration started with the line “thou wast that did preserve me” (1.2.155) in which Prospero is telling Miranda that she is why he was able to keep going after reaching the island, and indicating that she is also why he wants to gain back what he lost. The meaning of this line, that Miranda preserved and motivated Prospero, is found in his actions throughout the rest of the play.
This image represents Prospero and Miranda’s relationship in The Tempest. Prospero consistently used and manipulated Miranda on the island in order to bring his plans to actualization. The outdoor background is reminiscent of the island, with green plants and water and a clear sky. It’s a beautiful day, which contrasts with the intensity of the subjects. “Prospero” is standing on the ladder, holding him above Miranda and giving him the ability to see further and know more about what’s coming. Not only is the ladder a tool used to increase his sight, it also represents the ladder of power on which he is constantly trying to climb higher. Prospero wants to be above everyone on the island, and eventually hold more power than them off the island too, and he is willing to do what it takes to climb that ladder. The strings that Prospero uses to manipulate Miranda, as if she were a puppet, are noninvasive in color in order to keep Prospero’s plans camouflaged to his enemies and Miranda. They’re also soft, not meant to harm Miranda. They vary in degrees of tautness, giving her the ability to make her own decisions with mild guidance in some areas but strongly pulling her in others. The strings are tied to his fingers, rather than any type of wooden device, because his manipulation of her was careful and personal. Prospero’s movements were precise when it came to the moves concerning Miranda because he did want her to be happy, and it was important that she was unaware of the manipulations. He treated his daughter as a puppet but he did so with love and good intentions. The strings attached to Miranda also represent that Prospero is going to pull Miranda up the ladder with him as he continues to ascend. Prospero is looking directly into the camera, with a stern expression, because he was always aware of what was happening at any given moment. His plans had layers and different pieces taking place simultaneously. Prospero was always aware and alert, and his fixed gaze looking straight in the lens evokes this. This is especially apparent when contrasted with Miranda, who looks into the distance, unaware of the strings attached to her arms and the camera pointed up at her. This image showcases Prospero’s strength and focus in his intensive planning, and the way he is willing to use Miranda to get what he wants and what he thinks will be best for her. It brings forth a physical representation of his need for power and how he is going to get there while also caring for his daughter. Dance: https://youtu.be/zmZc9mhQHNY
(Poem is in the description as well) Poem: My Safety versus Hungry Eyes I saw the way He looks at me With hungry eyes Enough to murder me. I want to hide Even with Prospero by my side I... Nevermind. It has almost happened once before Once… Before... I shivered in fright On that dreadful night Helpless Lost Confused Prospero has plans for me That I am oblivious, too But I am sure Caliban is and was… not of their invention I saw Caliban as a brother Once That is When I was naive Illogical Innocent And I was so close to letting my innocence go Not by my fault I never should have let him close Taught him the language Allowed him to curse A part of me feels… Grave and I Unfortunately I Lie awake Terrified What is to come of tomorrow? If he peoples Prospero’s island with Calibans? If he succeeds It is my fault If he peoples Prospero’s island with Calibans, I will... Die Of shame Of embarrassment Of ignorance And labor I wouldn’t be able to bear it. At least Prospero Sees. Protects. Plans. And now, Caliban is Done. Doomed. Destroyed. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Analysis: (There are so many things I can talk about for meaning and such so I apologize if not all is covered and it was hard to choose what to talk about) My poem is mainly inspired by from lines 1.2.412-46 from The Tempest where Prospero and Caliban are bickering and Miranda joins to show her anger at Caliban. I chose to write my poem from Miranda’s point of view because I wanted to create a better insight into her true inner fears and emotions that hide behind her seeming strength in lines 1.2.422-36, where Miranda is undeniably angry and bitter about Caliban’s attempt at raping her and his current verbiage/stance. Most importantly, she is able to express those feelings/lash out at Caliban because Prospero is right by her and Miranda knows he has power over Caliban (Thus, he is “Done. Doomed. Destroyed” in the end because he is controlled by Prospero). However, being almost raped has its consequences and Miranda was not always so powerful and brave after it. She is is still emotionally distraught on the inside. In my poem, she questions her feelings. When I write, “Grave and I / Unfortunately / I / Lie awake / Terrified”, not only does she feel those feelings but, the first letter of every first line spells out guilt and she cannot escape it. Although she subconsciously knows it isn’t her fault, “Not by my fault”, for the most part, she is afraid that seeing Caliban as a brother, treating him well, and teaching him language at a certain point, lead her to be vulnerable and enabled Caliban to act the way he did. As such, she is confused, terrified of Caliban, and in a way, feels regretful of her previous interactions, believing that it is somehow her fault that she almost lost her innocence. She is somehow afraid that Caliban will overpower Prospero or that Prospero will falter (peoples Prospero’s island with Calibans), because it has almost happened once before, and worries about the future, even though she knows that Prospero does have complete control over the entirety of the island, hence “Prospero’s island” and “Prospero has plans for me / That I am oblivious too”. The “too” is also not a grammar mistake. It represents that neither she nor anyone else (like Caliban) knows of Prospero’s plans yet, she feels comfort in them, while Caliban does not. My dance is actually, mostly an improv (few moments were thought out) and it just happened that that was the way my emotions flowed to the poem. I think part of letting it be an improv with parts being thought about ‘in the moment’ really corresponds with and reflects the poem as Miranda doesn’t plan her emotional reactions. And, parts of the dance aren’t perfected and clean, just like Miranda’s situation which adds a dimension of reality. There were parts of the dance where it looked like I was thinking and I feel that it actually contributes to the dance and is meant to show Miranda thinking and contemplating her situation. I must admit that several of the movements corresponded quite well and were obvious to the poem, like the “I saw the way he looks at me” and “ I want to hide / even with Prospero by my side” because I did a hand motions that resembled watching, hiding, and then someone by my side. When I said that I “almost let my innocence go”, I added an action that opened me up and made me seem vulnerable until I hugged myself, which showed an effort to preserve the innocence and the fight to keep it. A less obvious hand motion is when I move my hand up and down to represent tiny Calibans all around me given that the fear or rape came true and Caliban succeeded and a less obvious idea is that I kept going onto the floor to show vulnerability. I also tried to keep a worried face that was often intermixed with a childish like innocence when Miranda is reminiscing about the good in her life, while still being tense and perplexed about her emotional state. The one thing that I think has a great effect is the ending, “Done. / Doomed. / Destroyed,” because Miranda (whom I play) makes a cross with her arms that not only shows that she rejects and despises Caliban, but it also shows her empowerment that she was able to stand up to him (with Prospero’s help). Though she is still iffy with her inner emotions, she is able to show strength in regards to Caliban and connects back to the original lines of The Tempest where she is angry and ‘powerful’ in her lines. It is the conclusion-al uprising. Though Miranda lost some of her confidence and power throughout most of my interpretation, Miranda gains a new dimension of reality and contemplative emotion full of worry that exposes her personal thoughts and feelings that were not so explored in The Tempest. I learned that there is so much more going on internally for Miranda than the play lead on and it is important to read into the scenarios of the character in any situation. While this rap battle makes references to various aspects of the play, most of them being general points in the plot. The most notable quotation being that of Caliban: “Be not afeard. The isle is full of noises, / Sounds and sweet airs…” (3.2.135-136), referring back to
Reviewing our discussions in class, I realized that we didn’t put too much attention into the significance of Ariel in the play. While we were able to analyze the symbolism of Caliban and Prospero, little detail went into Ariel’s existence. I decided to use a rap battle as it would be an interesting way to convey the message. As participants usually make derogatory comments towards one another, I believed it would provide the perfect format to ‘reveal’ the flaws hidden within Ariel’s character. I used the rap battle to highlight some noteworthy details about Ariel to emphasize his importance to the play and his possible symbolism. Rather than analyze Ariel’s character as a whole, I decided to ‘throw shade’ and focus on the questionable aspects of his nature, from his undying loyalty to Prospero to his significance to the play despite his lack of stage time. The addition of Miranda to the rap battle was mainly to provide Ariel’s character with someone to rap against, although I acknowledge that the portrayed feeling towards Ariel and Prospero do not necessarily line up with Miranda’s feelings towards them in the actual play. The length of Miranda’s lyrics are intended to be longer in order to place the majority of the focus on Ariel. By listing different aspects of Ariel, ranging from personality to actions he’s taken throughout the play, Miranda establishes that Ariel isn’t necessarily as minor as the play may make him seem. (lyrics below) Miranda stood next to the fresh dirt covering her father’s grave while the sky above rumbled in anticipation of a storm. She could sense her guards’ horses shifting nervously behind her, but she wanted to remain just a little longer. “I’ll miss you, Father,” Miranda whispered as her thoughts wandered back to past memories. Miranda and Ferdinand’s wedding day had been one of the happiest days of Miranda’s life. Just before the ceremony, King Alonso had sent a box to Miranda’s room containing a beautiful diamond necklace. A note sent with the necklace read: The jewel is a family heirloom which the late queen wore at our wedding. I would like you to wear it at yours as well. After the wedding, Miranda had difficulty settling into her new role, but the noble ladies of the royal court were instrumental in helping Miranda through her first weeks as Ferdinand’s queen. They taught Miranda how to speak and behave as a proper, dignified queen should. Miranda had learned quickly and soon became indispensable to Ferdinand not only as a companion, but also as an advisor. Two years later, Miranda had been overjoyed to discover she was pregnant. Miranda, Ferdinand, and the entire royal court were even happier when the baby turned out to be a boy. “What should we name him?” Miranda had asked Ferdinand, cradling their newborn son. Ferdinand was quiet for a moment, then replied, “Our country already has a King Alonso. We should name him after your father, Prospero.” Now standing in front of her father’s gravestone, Miranda smiled as she pictured her son’s bright face. “You would be proud of him, he’s just like you,” Miranda spoke softly, lingering for one last moment. Just as she turned away, the skies opened up and started to pour, thunder booming and lightning flashing in the distance. “Goodbye, Father.” Analysis:
The lines I chose to reference in the story are from Act 3 of The Tempest in which Miranda says to Ferdinand, “One of my sex, no woman’s face remember – / Save, from my glass, mine own. Nor have I seen / More that I may call men than you, good friend, / And my dear father. How features are abroad / I am skilless of, but my modesty / (The jewel in my dower), I would not wish / Any companion in the world but you, / Nor can imagination form a shape, / Besides yourself, to like of. But I prattle / Something too wildly, and my father’s precepts / I therein do forget” (3.1.49-58). I wrote my short story as an epilogue for Miranda’s character. (I initially wanted to write an epilogue in the same style as Prospero’s, however I do not write poetry well). I was inspired by Prospero’s epilogue, and I was curious what might have happened to Miranda after the end of The Tempest. I was specifically interested in how we discussed Miranda’s life being controlled by Prospero, and the story touches on those themes tied to Miranda’s character by highlighting specific memories. Miranda wearing Ferdinand’s mother’s diamond necklace (“the jewel in [her] dower”) at their wedding and her joy at having a baby boy reflect the theme that Miranda is a sort of prize to be won, a prize whose worth is determined by her womb and ability to bear heirs. The ladies who help Miranda in the third paragraph represent her gaining the maternal influence that Miranda lacked in her life as well as the idea that Miranda must conform to society’s gender roles. The epilogue takes place at Prospero’s grave in order to explore the extent of Prospero’s control over Miranda. Miranda names her child after Prospero and has essentially followed the exact ‘proper’ path of marrying well, being a good wife, and bearing a son, that Prospero wanted her to. Finally, the story takes place during a storm which is representative of the initial tempest that Prospero conjured to control events in The Tempest and implies that Prospero’s control extends, perhaps indirectly, even beyond death. by Lea Rysavy by Julia Wang
“Stone,” I said slowly enunciating every sound. “Ss-tone,” he repeated back. “Yes! That’s it!” I confirmed joyously. We continued walking through the woods looking at the nature around us. “Maggo luk abba kap lalablu!” Caliban exclaimed as he jumped up and down excitedly. I looked to where he was pointing and there, drinking from the stream, stood a young fawn with its mother. “It’s a deer,” I told him with a smile. “Dee,” he repeated back to me. We sat down by the stream and I picked up a stone in one hand and a small twig in the other. “Stone,” I said handing him the stone. We practiced naming these items until Caliban could easily recall their names when I pointed to each object. He was doing well with speaking and it was obvious how he preferred our English language to his native tongue. He was constantly requesting my aid to teach him more vocabulary in order to move away from the gibberish he was accustomed to using. The sun was at the top of the sky now and space under the trees was beginning to get hot. As I stood up to leave, Caliban rushed past me and jumped into the stream. The cool water splashed onto my bare legs. I laughed as I watched Caliban jump in the water, picking smooth stones from the bottom of the river and throwing them into the trees yelling “Stone! Stone! Stone!” I felt accomplished noting Caliban’s confidence with the day’s new terminology. His excitement in the water was contagious, and I soon waded into the stream too. I loved the feeling of the smooth hard stones lying beneath my feet. Spotting a thin round stone, I scooped it up and proceeded to skip it through the water watching it jump up from underneath. As it hopped by Caliban, he quickly reached out, attempting to catch the flying stone, but instead lost his balance and fell into the water with a loud splash. I laughed as I turned away, hoping to avoid the inevitable—a wave of water drenched my hair and my clothes. With no further incentive to prevent my clothes from getting soaked, I jumped into the deeper part of the stream and splashed water onto Caliban in retaliation. We laughed gaily as we continued to throw handfuls of clear water at one another. As the sun began to set, we got out of the water to make our way back to the beach where my father would be making dinner. “Stone!” Caliban exclaimed he handed me a smooth flat stone. “Stone,” I said as I skipped it through the stream, watching jump up and down in the water just as we had that entire afternoon. Analysis I based my short story on the passage in Act 1 Scene 2 of The Tempest when Caliban, Miranda, and Prospero reminisce about their early interactions and how they worked together to promote mutual happiness. Prospero claims that “I have used thee / In mine own cell till thou didst seek to violate / the honor of my child” (2.1.347-348). Prospero speaks as if Caliban has been treated as a part of their family, taken in as a son. I tried to capture this loving and playful sibling-like relationship between Caliban and Miranda in this story. I also wanted to bring attention to the educational experience Miranda provided to Caliban in terms of language. “I pitied thee, / Took pains to make thee speak, taught thee each hour / One thing or other: when though didst not, savage, / Know thine own meaning, but wouldst gabble like / A thing most brutish” (2.1.353-356). Miranda seems to have been constantly teaching Caliban new words which explains why he could speak so fluently by the time of The Tempest despite the fact that he had been raised in a completely different environment. Although Caliban openly embraces westernization through language, his primitive nature is highlighted by the manner in which he jumps and splashes in the stream and tries to catch the skipped rock. Miranda demonstrates her more cultivated culture by reserving herself from jumping into the stream in hopes of keeping her clothes clean. However, after noticing Caliban’s enjoyment of the activity, she soon follows and joins him in the water. This story is meant to show how both characters are a product of both western and native cultures. Even though they were born into completely different households, the way they have been raised contributes greatly to their character and as a result, neither of the two can claim to be only “native” or “European” and can identify with both cultures. I think it is really interesting to think about how the three characters got along before Caliban attempted to rape Miranda. In this story, I portray a rather loving relationship, and it is intriguing to consider how dramatically an act of rape could completely mangle the friendly bonds that could have existed among these three characters. Title of Poem: “Tale to Cure Deafness” ~ By: Sinclaire Schaefer
MIRANDA: O, How strange it strikes me that I almost never Recognize how or when I fell into slumber. The home I know runs like an ever ticking Clock: perfectly on schedule all around me. The creamy morning sun rises above The abrupt, non wavering, horizon At precisely the time that the clouds And heavens part, as theater curtains, to Unveil the spectacle of their nature. The creatures stir, rustling the foliage, As audience members scrambling back After a restful intermission. Nothing here runs on a physical tick tock Clock. I could never read one if I tried, Having no knowledge of that ticking in my Life. O but I do possess knowledge of The real’ty around me, which seems to be Unchanging. One does not need a King’s learning To be wise about the ground and sky around them. Ah, but my world seems to tick off right pace. I do not wake with the creatures or the sun, But instead I wake with my father’s call. Sometimes I don’t even hear the sound of His yell. I only hear the inaudible Whisper of his will. My tock comes Before my tick. How, I can never know, But I seem to be distanced from the patterns And real’ty of the nature surrounding me. O, how I wish to be one with the steady sun And the heavens and the crawlers, Instead of lying, caged, in an Unpredictable reality. What Gods oversee a whole ticking world With A tocking woman? The force Which moves me seems demonic, in nature. Rather than a consensual pattern, I am hypnotized against will, Not cognizant of my next move, But still cognizant of my next thoughts. That demon may not control my musings. But if the demon controls my ticking, How may he not control my mind’s talking? I must rebel against my demon’s bidding--- But first, I must awake. I hear my father’s Whisper. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Once I decided to choose the creative writing option for this assignment, the first character that jumped into my mind to explore was Miranda from Shakespeare’s The Tempest. As a Shakespearean actor of nine years, I’ve always wanted to play her character and explore her psyche, so I decided to take this chance to do just that. Some of the roles I love to take on by Shakespeare are his more underdeveloped female roles. Just because they are underdeveloped, many readers and actors perceive and portray them as weak and submissive, however, there is evidence in each of Shakespeare’s texts that proves just the opposite for each of these female characters. My favorite part of tackling these characters is figuring out their inner monologue through some of their quieter, less developed moments by using Shakespeare’s subtle textual clues. Miranda is under full control of Prospero’s dark magic for the majority of her life. Prospero yearns for complete control, even if it means destroying the natural and real world Miranda knows by using his manipulation, making her life seem almost entirely fabricated (as seen in the controversy over whether Prospero’s manipulation of Ferdinand and Miranda’s love makes their romance any less real or authentic). We have also seen controversy over the true power of Prospero’s magic, and I wanted to incorporate this into my creation of Miranda’s inner monologue. I wanted to write from her perspective, exploring the possibility that Prospero’s magic is never strong enough to completely control another human being’s thoughts, only their actions (as seen, also, in Ariel and Caliban’s mental disobedience). Though, in Shakespeare’s text, Miranda seems to be completely entrapped by Prospero’s magic, bending to its every request, I wanted to explore a state in which she could subconsciously recognize Prospero’s manipulation and be subconsciously cognizant of the fact that her reality may not in fact be a reality at all. I also chose to write in iambic pentameter, switching purposefully between perfect iambs, feminine and masculine endings, trochees, etc. to symbolize the hills and valleys of her internal struggle with her reality. Of course, the inspiration for my title came from Miranda’s line “Your tale, sir, would cure deafness” (Temp. 1.2.107). My piece explores whether or not Miranda is actually “deaf” to the manipulation and strings being pulled around her. Some of the lines that subtly prove Miranda’s inner strength include her endearingly witty, “Sweet lord, you play me false…/ Yes, for a score of kingdoms you should wrangle, / And I would call it fair play” (Temp. 5.1.170-4). Though lines such as, “How many goodly creatures are there here! / How beauteous mankind is! O brave new world / That has such people in’t,” give Miranda a child-like naivety and innocence, her burning curiosity prompted me to want to look deeper into how far this curiosity extended (perhaps extending to my piece on whether she subconsciously recognized Prospero’s manipulation). (Temp. 5.1.183-5) The heated exchanges in Scene 1.2 between Miranda and Caliban prove her strength, then immediately after, she succumbs to Prospero’s magic. I hope to connect this deep curiosity and strength to her possible subconscious knowledge on her role as puppet. Creating this piece gives me some incredible insight into the strength and intelligence that Miranda possesses: important, three-dimensional attributes which Shakespeare doesn’t ignore completely but rather keeps very subtle and open for interpretation. Though she is often portrayed as naïve, innocent, and completely under her father’s influence, giving her this power makes me realize that there may be an underlying, subconscious negativity she feels towards her father. I choose to keep her a bit innocent by recognizing her father’s control but not connecting it to the demon she believes controls her reality. That hatred she may bear towards her father may arise from an even deeper subconscious connection between those two pieces for her. Rather than complete worshiping of him because of his knowledge, she may possess some of her own, giving her the right to subconsciously question his dominion over her. In my interpretation, Miranda loses a bit of the innocence and perfect female attributes favored in Shakespeare’s time. However highlighting these subtleties of strength, which Shakespeare included, allows me to paint her as a much more well-rounded, self-aware, modern woman. Though Shakespeare’s Miranda may not have very much worldly knowledge, my interpretation gives and highlights her subconscious moral and emotional sense and knowledge, which should be seen as inherent in every human being, regardless of world experience. |
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