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SHAKESPEARE’S ROMANCES

The Tempest, Act I

William Shakespeare

Shakespeare’s plays fall into several categories, including tragedies,

comedies, histories, and romances. The Tempest is a romance, which
combines characteristics from comedy and tragedy. Romances tend to have
happy endings, but the characters go through challenges to reach the end, and
the play will have dark moments. Other characteristics of romances include
• unrealistic events or situations with magic or supernatural influences
• a protagonist, or main character, who is an older man
• a subplot featuring young characters
• characters who represent a variety of social levels, from laborers to nobility
• dark emotions with hints of violence

Shakespeare’s romances include moments of whimsy as well as threats of

violence or suffering. Although those threats are not fully developed, they add
a sense of darkness as the plot unfolds to a happy ending.

DIRECTIONS: Answer these questions about The Tempest. Use textual

evidence from the play to support your responses.

1. Describe the settings in Act I. Does the setting depart from the real world in any
way? Explain your answer.

2. Who is the protagonist, or main character? What appears to be the protagonist’s

main challenge or obstacle as introduced in Act I?

3. Which characteristic of a Shakespearean romance is obvious in Act I Scene i?

4. Describe an example of dark emotions introduced in Act I.

5. Describe a character or situation in Act I that will add whimsy or fun to the play.

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POETIC STRUCTURES

The Tempest, Act II

William Shakespeare

Blank verse is a type of poetry that does not rhyme and is written in a specific
rhythm called iambic pentameter. The prefix penta means “five,” so one line of
iambic pentameter has five iambs. An iamb is a pair of syllables, not necessarily
in the same word. The first syllable of an iamb is unstressed, and the second one
is stressed, as in the word enjoy. A way to think about the unstressed and stressed
syllables is as a heartbeat. In iambic pentameter, that would be “da DUM, da
DUM, da DUM, da DUM, da DUM”. Here is an example of a line broken into
iambs, with underlined syllables showing the stress:
Example: Beseech you, sir, be merry. You have cause.

Clap (or tap) the example, saying the words as you clap, and clapping harder
on the second syllable of each iamb.
Sometimes, a playwright may break lines of iambic pentameter between
characters, as in Act II, Scene i, lines 261–262. Sebastian starts line 261 and
Antonio ends it.
Sebastian. Me thinks / I do./

Antonio. And how / does your / content

Tender your own good fortune?

DIRECTIONS: Select 3 lines from the play that are in blank verse. Write each line,
and then add slashes between the iambs and underline the stressed syllables, as in the
example above.

1.

2.

3.

4. Write one sentence of your own in iambic pentameter. Mark the iambs and stressed
syllables. Then clap the beats as you say it for a partner.

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DRAMATIC STRUCTURE

The Tempest, Act III

William Shakespeare

The dramatic structure of a story or play includes the plot and subplot. The
main plot of a story or play is the sequence of related events that tell what
happens from beginning to end. The plot—and how it affects the characters—
is key to revealing the story’s theme. A subplot is a secondary story, or side
story that is intertwined with or complicates the plot. There may be more than
one subplot in a story. In a play, the subplots can sometimes be identified by a
change of scene or by a change in which characters are interacting.

A. DIRECTIONS: Choose one of the four subplots centered around one of

these groups of characters: Prospero, Miranda, and Ferdinand; Prospero
and Ariel; Sebastian and Antonio; Stephano, Caliban, and Trinculo. Use
the chart below to describe the characters involved in the subplot and
their relationships to each other or to others in the main plot.
Character Description Relationships
List the characters in the Describe the personality or Describe each character’s
subplot. behavior of each character as relationship or background with the
shown by their dialogue, others.
monologues, and stage
directions.

B. DIRECTIONS: Describe what happens in the subplot. Use the information

above to describe the background and relationships that help explain the
motivations of the characters.

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DRAMATIC STRUCTURES

The Tempest, Act IV

William Shakespeare

In a play, most of the action occurs by way of the dialogue, the conversations
between the characters. In many plays, dramatic speeches also occur that are
not part of dialogue, but rather one character alone speaking. In a monologue,
one character (mono means “one”) has a lengthy speech directed to other
characters on the stage. In a soliloquy, one character speaks, but he or she is
usually alone on the stage (solo means “alone”). An aside is typically a brief
remark addressed to the audience. Imagine the character turning his or her
head aside to talk secretly to the audience. Soliloquies and asides allow the
audience to see a character’s more private thoughts or feelings.

DIRECTIONS: Reread each set of lines in the play. Then, answer the questions.

Act IV, Scene i, lines 139–145

1. Starting with line 139, Prospero speaks. The stage directions indicate that this is an
aside. What makes this an aside?

2. What does Prospero remember? How does he feel when he remembers? How do
you know?

Act IV, Scene i, lines 146–163

3. Is this a monologue, a soliloquy, or an aside? Explain.

4. Identify lines to support the idea that things that can seem real are only illusion.

Act IV, Scene i, lines 188–193

5. Is this a monologue, a soliloquy, or an aside? Explain.

6. What does Prospero mean when he says Caliban is a born devil?

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PLOT STRUCTURE

The Tempest, Act V

William Shakespeare

In Shakespeare’s plays, the last act is where the resolution occurs. Typically,
the plots and subplots finally come to an end. In a comedy, the ending is
happy, with misunderstandings explained, relationships strengthened, and
order restored. In a tragedy, the resolution is not as happy. The protagonist
and others may die or be utterly disgraced. In some cases, a character may
speak an epilogue as final words after the resolution. An epilogue usually
includes comments on the conflict and its resolution as well as lessons the
characters and audience have learned.

DIRECTIONS: The way the resolution affects each character helps convey the
play’s theme. Recognizing a character’s changes can help you see the effects
of the resolution. Read the chart below to review what happened to Prospero
over the course of the play. Then, complete the chart for another character of
your choice, detailing that character’s progression through the play.

PROSPERO

When first Ruler of a magical island

introduced in
the play A sorcerer, with command over
supernatural beings
The rightful, but deposed, Duke
of Milan

What does the He wants revenge against those

character who deposed him, so he brings
want? What them to his island and casts
does the spells on them to settle the score.
character do
to get it? He wants Miranda to take her
place in the world.

What gets The spells are broken.

resolved
He forgives his deposers and
gets his Dukedom back.
He gives up sorcery and the
island.
Miranda will marry and become a
queen.

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COMPARISON-AND-CONTRAST ESSAY

En El Jardin De Los Espejos Quebrados, Caliban Catches a

Glimpse of His Reflection | Caliban
Virgil Suárez | J.P. Dancing Bear

Some characters in literature are so engaging or mysterious that they continue

to inspire people’s imaginations long after they first appear. In this
assignment, you will write a comparison-and-contrast essay that examines
the way Shakespeare portrayed Caliban and the way a poet portrays him more
than 400 years later. For a comparison-and-contrast essay about a character,
identify specific characteristics that appear in both works, such as the
character’s appearance, experiences, thoughts and feelings, and behavior.
Then examine similarities and differences in how those characteristics are
described in the works.

DIRECTIONS: Choose one of the two poems, identify two characteristics of Caliban that
are portrayed in the poem, and enter them in the left column of the chart. Add specific
examples from the poem to support each characteristic. Then review what Caliban says
and what other characters say about him in The Tempest. What impressions about the two
characteristics of Caliban does this text convey? Add that information, along with
specific text evidence, to the right column of the chart. Note similarities and differences.

Poem title: The Tempest

I. Characteristic:

A. Example: A. Example:

B. Example: B. Example:

II. Characteristic:

A. Example: A. Example:

B. Example: B. Example:

III. Compare and contrast the portrayals of Caliban:

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