The Character of Prospero

                In Act 1, Scene 2 of The Tempest, Prospero shares the story of how he ends up deserted on this island. However, not only does the audience learn about Prospero’s past, but also many of his character traits are revealed.  Prospero describes himself as “neglecting worldly ends, all dedicated/ To closeness and the bettering of my mind” (I.ii.89-90). When he was duke, he had this extreme hunger for knowledge. All he wanted was to hide away in his library and read his books. More or less, Prospero was living in another world. Throughout the course of his tale, he depicts his brother as a heartless villain who stole the thrown from under him, but he also explicitly states, “The government I cast upon my brother/ And to my state grew stranger” (I.ii.75-76). Prospero does not even realize that all that has happened to him is his fault. So removed is he from reality that he cannot see that he has harmed himself. In fact, it makes Prospero a pitiable character. One cannot help but feel bad for him not only for his position on the island, but also for his inability to notice his wrongdoing. On the other hand, one can argue that he is a master manipulator as well. He is telling this terribly tragic tale to his daughter who has had no exposure to anyone besides her father. She is listening to his every word and hating her uncle. At the same time, she is becoming even closer with Prospero; she can justify why he has inflicted this tempest. He is manipulating the audience into believing that the men on the boat deserved all that was coming to them. At this point, he is the one that actually has all the power. With his magical spirits and spells, he is in control of the entire island, and he has shipwrecked all the men of power from the mainland. All the next moves are his. This scene reveals Prospero to be a very complex character, a poor, banished soul on one side and a devious, conniving ruler on the other.