Subplots in The Tempest

A detailed Summary of Subplots in The Tempest

In William Shakespeare's The Tempest sub plots are used to crystallize the commentary on what it means to be a civilized man. Prospero, the evil magician on the island, is a main character in all of these plots. He cast a spell to make a ship full of royalty crash land onto an island. This ship includes many characters such as: Alonso - The King of Naples, Sebastian - Alonso's brother, Antonio - Prospero's brother, Ferdinand - Alonso's son, Trinculo and Stephano - the fools, Ariel - Prospero's magical servant, Caliban - Prospero's slave, and Miranda - Prospero's daughter. These many characters are very easily organized into three main subplots. The first subplot is the one in which Antonio and Sebastian plot to kill the king Alonso. The second subplot involves the fools, Stephano, Trinculo, and Caliban and their plot to kill Prospero. The third subplot is that of the lovers. This subplot involves Ferdinand and Miranda and their plan to get married. Prospero's part in all of these subplots is apparent and in the first subplot because he is trying to show them that they should not assassinate the king who is with them and that they shouldn't have gotten rid of Prospero himself back before the play begins.

These three go to fulfill their plot, but when they get there they are distracted by some fancy clothes. "The conspiracy of Caliban, Stephano, and Trinculo against Prospero culminates in the theft of the gaudy garments and the pursuit of the drunken trio by a pack of spirit hounds(IV,i)"(Smith 4). In the end Prospero and his books survive the attack and no one was harmed.

For yet ere suppertime must I perform

Having first seized his books, or with a log

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Approximate Word count = 1627
Approximate Pages = 7 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: English

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