The Tempest (Annotated by Henry N. Hudson with an Introduction by Charles Harold Herford)

By William Shakespeare

Believed to have been written between 1610 and 1611, “The Tempest” is likely the last play written solely by Shakespeare. The story concerns the Magician Prospero, the rightful Duke of Milan, and his daughter, Miranda, who have been stranded on an island by Prospero’s jealous brother Antonio. The plot of “The Tempest” itself is however of less importance than in Shakespeare’s other works. Supernatural elements are introduced with great freedom, and the dramatist’s interest was clearly not in the reproduction of lifelike events. The presentation of character and the attractive picturing of the beauty of magnanimity and forgiveness are the things which, along with its delightful poetry, make the charm of this play. It is not to be wondered at that readers have frequently been led to find in the figure of the great magician, laying aside his robes and wonder-working rod in a spirit of love and peace toward all men, a symbol of the dramatist himself at the close of his great career; and it is surely legitimate to play with this idea without assuming that Shakespeare consciously embodied it. One can hardly conceive a more fitting epilogue to the volume which is the crown of the world’s dramatic literature than the romance of “The Tempest.” This edition is annotated by Henry N. Hudson and includes an introduction by Charles Harold Herford.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Digireads.com Publishing
• Release date: Jan 1, 2017
• ISBN: 9781420953411

William Shakespeare

William Shakespeare (1564–1616) is arguably the most famous playwright to ever live. Born in England, he attended grammar school but did not study at a university. In the 1590s, Shakespeare worked as partner and performer at the London-based acting company, the King’s Men. His earliest plays were Henry VI and Richard III, both based on the historical figures. During his career, Shakespeare produced nearly 40 plays that reached multiple countries and cultures. Some of his most notable titles include Hamlet, Romeo and Juliet and Julius Caesar. His acclaimed catalog earned him the title of the world’s greatest dramatist.

Book preview

cover.jpg

THE TEMPEST

By WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE

Preface and Annotations by

HENRY N. HUDSON

Introduction by

CHARLES HAROLD HERFORD

The Tempest

By William Shakespeare

Preface and Annotations by Henry N. Hudson

Introduction by Charles Harold Herford

Print ISBN 13: 978-1-4209-5340-4

eBook ISBN 13: 978-1-4209-5341-1

This edition copyright © 2016. Digireads.com Publishing.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.

Cover Image: A detail of Miranda, 1916 (oil on canvas), Waterhouse, John William (1849-1917) / Private Collection / Photo © The Maas Gallery, London / Bridgeman Images.

Please visit www.digireads.com

CONTENTS

PREFACE

INTRODUCTION

THE TEMPEST

DRAMATIS PERSONAE

ACT I.

SCENE I.

SCENE II.

ACT II.

SCENE I.

SCENE II.

ACT III.

SCENE I.

SCENE II.

SCENE III.

ACT IV.

SCENE I.

ACT V.

SCENE I.

Epilogue

Preface

First printed in the folio of 1623. The play is badly printed, considerably worse than most of the plays originally printed in that volume; though not so badly as All’s Well, Timon of Athens, and Coriolanus. Besides many slighter errors, not very difficult of correction, it has a number of passages that are troublesome in the highest degree, and some that have hitherto baffled the most persevering and painstaking efforts to bring them into a satisfactory state; insomuch that they should, perhaps, be left untouched, as hopelessly incurable. Still I suppose it would hardly do to give up the cause on the plea that the resources of corrective art have here been exhausted. The details of the matter are, I believe, fully presented in the Critical Notes, and therefore need not be further enlarged upon here.

It has been ascertained beyond question that The Tempest was written at some time between the years 1603 and 1613. On the one hand, the leading features of Gonzalo’s Commonwealth, as described in Act ii., scene 1, were evidently taken from John Florio’s translation of Montaigne, which was published in 1603. In Montaigne’s essay Of the Cannibals, as translated by Florio, we have the following: Meseemeth that what in these nations we see by experience doth not only exceed all the pictures wherewith licentious Poesy hath proudly embellished the golden age, and all her quaint inventions to feign a happy condition of man, but also the conception and desire of Philosophy. It is a nation, would I answer Plato, that hath no kind of traffic, no knowledge of letters, no intelligence of numbers, no name of magistrate, nor of politic superiority; no use of service, of riches, or of poverty; no contracts, no successions, no dividences; no occupation, but idle; no respect of kindred, but common; no apparel but natural; no manuring of lands; no use of wine, corn, or metal: the very words that import lying, falsehood, treason, dissimulation, covetousness, envy, detraction, and pardon, were never heard amongst them.

Here the borrowing is too plain to be questioned; and this fixes the writing of The Tempest after 1603. On the other hand, Malone ascertained from some old records that the play was acted by the King’s players before Prince Charles, the Princess Elizabeth, and the Prince Palatine, in the beginning of 1613.

But the time of writing is to be gathered more nearly from another source. The play has several points clearly connecting with some of the then recent marvels of Transatlantic discovery: in fact, I suspect America may justly claim to have borne a considerable part in suggesting and shaping this delectable workmanship. In May, 1609, Sir George Somers, with a fleet of nine ships, headed by the Sea-Venture, which was called the Admiral’s Ship, sailed for Virginia. In mid-ocean they were struck by a terrible tempest, which scattered the whole fleet; seven of the ships, however, reached Virginia; but the Sea-Venture was parted from the rest, driven out of her course, and finally wrecked on one of the Bermudas. These islands were then thought to be a most prodigious and enchanted place, affording nothing but gusts, storms, and foul weather; on which account they had acquired a bad name, as an enchanted pile of rocks, and a desert inhabitation of devils.

In 1610 appeared a pamphlet entitled A Discovery of the Bermudas, otherwise called the Isle of Devils, giving an account of the storm and shipwreck. The sailors had worked themselves into complete exhaustion, had given over in despair, and taken leave of each other, when the ship was found to be jammed in between two rocks, so that all came safe to land. They found the island uninhabited, the air mild and wholesome, the land exceedingly fruitful; all the fairies of the rocks were but flocks of birds, and all the devils that haunted the woods were but herds of swine. Staying there some nine months, they had a very delightful time of it, refitted their ship, and then put to sea again, with an ample supply of provisions, and their minds richly freighted with the beauties and wonders of the place.

There can be no rational doubt that from this narrative Shakespeare took various hints for the matter of his drama. Thus much is plainly indicated by his mention of the still-vex’d Bermoothes, as the Bermudas were then called, and also by the qualities of air and soil ascribed to his happy island. So that 1610 is as early a date as can well be assigned for the composition. The supernatural in the play was no doubt the Poet’s own creation; but it would have been in accordance with his usual method to avail himself of whatever interest might spring from the popular notions touching the Bermudas. In his marvellous creations the people would see nothing but the distant marvels with which their fancies were prepossessed.

Concurrent with all this is the internal evidence of the play itself. The style, language, and general cast of thought, the union of richness and severity, the grave, austere beauty of character which pervades it, and the organic compactness of the whole structure, all go to mark it as an issue of the Poet’s ripest years. Coleridge regarded it as certainly one of Shakespeare’s latest works, judging from the language only. Campbell the poet considers it his very latest. "The Tempest, says he, has a sort of sacredness as the last work of a mighty workman. Shakespeare, as if conscious that it would be his last, and as if inspired to typify himself, has made his hero a natural, a dignified, and benevolent magician, who could conjure up ‘spirits from the vasty deep,’ and command supernatural agency by the most seemingly-natural and simple means. Shakespeare himself is Prospero, or rather the superior genius who commands both Prospero and Ariel. But the time was approaching when the potent sorcerer was to break his staff, and bury it fathoms in the ocean ‘deeper than did ever plummet sound.’ That staff has never been and will never be recovered."

But I suspect there is more of poetry than of truth in this; at least I can find no warrant for it: on the contrary, we have fair ground for believing that at least Coriolanus, King Henry the Eighth, and perhaps The Winter’s Tale were written after The Tempest. Verplanck, rather than give up the notion so well put by Campbell, suggests that the Poet may have revised The Tempest after all his other plays were written, and inserted the passage where Prospero abjures his rough magic, and buries his staff, and drowns his book. But I can hardly think that Shakespeare had any reference to himself in that passage: for, besides that he did not use to put his own feelings and purposes into the mouth of his characters, the doing so in this case would infer such a degree of self-exultation as, it seems to me, his native and habitual modesty would scarce permit.

Shakespeare was so unconscious of his great inventive faculty, so unambitious of originality in his plots and materials, and so apt to found his plays upon some popular chronicle or tale or romance, that he is generally, perhaps justly, presumed to have done so in this instance. Yet no play or novel has been identified as having furnished, in any sort, the basis of The Tempest, or any materials towards the composition. Commentators have been very diligent and inquisitive in the search; still, for aught appears thus far, the probability is, that, in this case, the plot had its origin in the Poet’s mind. Collins the poet, indeed, told Thomas Warton that he had met with a novel called Aurelio and Isabella, dated 1588, and printed in Italian, Spanish, French, and English, upon which he thought The Tempest to have been founded: but poor Collins was at the time suffering under his mental disorder; and, as regards the particular novel he mentioned, his memory must have been at fault; for the story of Aurelio and Isabella has nothing in common with the play.

In the year 1841, however, Mr. Thoms called attention, in The New Monthly Magazine, to some remarkable coincidences between The Tempest and a German dramatic piece entitled The Beautiful Sidea, composed by Jacob Ayrer, who was a notary of Nuremberg, and contemporary with Shakespeare. In this piece, Prince Ludolph and Prince Leudegast answer to Prospero and Alonso. Ludolph is a magician, has an only daughter, Sidea, and an attendant spirit, Runcifal, who has some points of resemblance to Ariel. Soon after the opening of the piece, Ludolph, having been vanquished by his rival, and driven with his daughter into a forest, rebukes her for complaining of their change of fortune; and then summons his spirit Runcifal, in order to learn from him their future destiny, and their prospects of revenge. Runcifal, who, like Ariel, is somewhat moody, announces to Ludolph that the son of his enemy will shortly become his prisoner. After a comic episode, Prince Leudegast, with his son Engelbrecht and the counsellors, is seen hunting in the same forest, when Engelbrecht and his companion Famulus, having separated from their associates, are suddenly encountered by Ludolph and his daughter. He commands them to yield themselves prisoners; they refuse, and attempt to draw their swords, when he renders them powerless by a touch of his magical wand, and gives Engelbrecht over to

Reviews for The Tempest (Annotated by Henry N. Hudson with an Introduction by Charles Harold Herford)

[phoenixterran · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Since I was in Ann Arbor when the Royal Shakespeare Company came through in 2006, with Patrick Stewart in tow, how could I give up and opportunity to attend at least one of the performances? It required camping out the night before the student tickets went on sale, and getting very wet and cold, but I became a happy owner of a ticket to see The Tempest. The RSC interpretation was a little unorthodox (it took place on an arctic island, among other things) I absolutely loved it and decided that I should probably actually read it at some point.The Tempest is the last finished play to be attributed completely to Shakespeare and is the favorite of many of The Bard's aficionados. While I have a preference to see his plays performed, reading them is very enjoyable as well. The Tempest occurs in one location over the course of one day; the plot, while inspired, is entirely Shakespeare's own. Prospero, the usurped Duke of Milan and a great sorcerer, has lived in exile with his daughter Miranda on a nearly deserted island for twelve years. When a ship sails close by carrying those who put him in such an unfortunate state, he quickly devises a plan to achieve his revenge and even more quickly puts it into motion.I read the Signet Classics edition which provides a general introduction to Shakespeare, an introduction to the play, excerpts from the sources it was derived from, and various commentaries in addition to the play itself, all of which were very nice to have.Experiments in Reading

[velmeran · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

It's Shakespeare. Really, what else can I say?

[deckla_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

A great play. Never forget Sir Patrick Stewart in the title role. This version includes: Forward, Intro, essay on The Tempest in performance (through 1984), description of the Globe, essay on Shakespeare's sources (with excerpts), annotated bibliography, memorable lines.

[melissalenhardt · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Even a genius is allowed to be average once in a while. Reportedly the last play Shakespeare wrote on his own, I can't help but wonder if he mailed it in on this. Maybe he needed the money? Maybe he was fulfilling a contract for one more play, much like Hitchcock did with the abhorrent movie Jamacia Inn, his last British production before moving to Hollywood. Whatever the case, The Tempest was neither romantic enough to make me fall in love, tragic enough to make me sad or funny enough to make me laugh. But, it is Shakespheare so even his meh efforts are better than most, but still. Not up to his standards.

I read along with the text while I listened to the audio version, a practice I highly recommend. I wish I could have done that in high school. I'll definitely suggest immersion reading to my children as they enter high school and discover Shakespeare.

[aramissciant · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

A quick reread ahead of seeing Julie Taymor's big-screen adaptation. The first/last time I read this play was aeons ago in school, and since it's not one of my favorite ones --the ones I read/see again and again-- I found I needed some help from time to time. I enjoyed the re-encounter with the play as I only remembered vaguely that there was a sorcerer and his daughter, and the most popular quotations: strange bedfellows, brave new world and such stuff as dreams are made of.. Now, I'm ready but it's still not one of my favorite plays.

[trilliams · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Wizards, man, who knows.

[frozenplums · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I will start this review by saying I liked this play a lot more after I had time to sit and digest it. I knew from the start that I was going to hate Prospero, which does not leave much hope for a favorable opinion because he's behind everything that happens in the play. Prospero plays a good victim, but he's an amazing manipulator. If you can get past that, you will love this story. Characteristic if Shakespeare, The Tempest's pages are full of tragedy, humor, Romance, murder plots, revenge, and a smattering of mysticism. Short, dense, and enjoyable.4 stars.

[bullfinch-1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Saw a magnificent production of this at Nottingham Playhouse. The shipwreck took place before the beginning proper. While we the audience were prevented from entering, the duke of milan and his fellows got swept from the foyer into the auditorium which was roaring orange light. Everything went quiet. Then we were allowed in to see Prospero on stage in a totally serene blue stage.

[martinbodek · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This book a bit different was
From oth'rs of The Bard I've read.
More with of the fantastic
F'r sooth, and f'r the head.
'Twas an amalgam of stylings.
Or mashup, if thou wouldst.
With manipulations, calculations
machinations, Prospero couldst.
All through, as always all
The language play is dear,
And Merrily doth I findeth it
When bent towards William's ear.
7 books of the smith have I read, what, ho!
And now if thou wilt excuseth me, I have 30 more to go.

[nittnut · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This was just OK for me. I am pretty fussy about my Shakespeare I guess (I know, what nerve). I liked the audio production and it was entertaining, but pretty standard fare. Deposed ruler living on deserted island with daughter learns magic. Uses magical skills to cause a shipwreck, bringing a suitor for his daughter and the chance to right wrongs. Happy ending. Some familiar bits of language - "stuff as dreams are made on", "brave new world" and "strange bedfellows" - to note.

[engpunk77 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

I enjoyed this more than other mandatory Shakespeare reads in college because this was required for the best English class ever: "Making Monsters". Ms. Cook's guidance was not annoying like Corum's.

[m_dow · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The story of a prince who is shipwrecked in a strange land on his journey home is a frequent theme of Classical literature. These strange lands are almost certainly snares, attempts to prevent the hero from fulfilling his destiny and arriving at his homeland, and the usual method of entrapment is seduction.Odysseus on Calypso's island, Aeneas in Carthage, and Jason and Medea as told in the Metamorphoses. In The Tempest, Ferdinand finds himself in just such a situation. Washed up on a strange shore, Ferdinand meets the strange and entrancing woman who bewitches him and inspires him to remain in captivity instead of heading home to rule his city. He believes that he is the king (1.2.435 "Myself am Naples"), but will remain on the island for Miranda's sake. What makes The Tempest different from the other stories is the presence of Prospero, the one who is actually orchestrating the lovers' encounter.Prospero was a philosopher-king defeated by a MachiavelProspero was a stranger ot his state, "being transported / and rapt in secret studies." Antonio is described as having set "All hearts i' the' state / to what tune pleased his ear, . . " (1.2.79-116), who realized that he had to learn Machiavellianism if he was to maintain his throne. He speaks in Machiavellian terms of Fortune bringing him the opportunity which he must not neglect (1.2.178-184). He manipulates the situation to his best possible advantage; intersetingly, he does this through Baconian methods. His whole life has been about studying ways to manipulate nature, achieving power over nature. This is what enables him in the end to achieve power over the shipwrecked men -- for the power of man over Nature really means the power of some men over other men with Nature as the instrument.Prospero takes a fundamentally adversarial stance to Nature as portrayed by both of the original inhabitants of the island, Caliban and Ariel. He originally tried being nice to Caliban (1.2.344-348), but learned to his chagrin that this part of nature is tricksy and unyielding. He also freed Ariel from the pine tree, but only because Ariel is useful to him; he dominates Ariel, praising and scorning him by turns even as a large part of his power depends on the sprite. He cannot afford to alienate Ariel as he has alienated Caliban, but he still dominates. Prospero believes that he is manipulating everything for the greater good, but he is still manipulating it all, and this will eventually lead to what we know as the Brave New World (5.1.182-185).It is possible to argue that Prospero's endeavor is not Baconian, since he rarely directly manipulates nature but instead relies on a cooperative spirit. Lewis described the eschatology of our power over Nature in Miracles, this way: "In the walking on the Water we see the relations of spirit and Nature so altered that Nature can be made to do whatever spirit pleases. This new obedience of Nature is, of course, not to be separated even in thought from spirit's own obedience to the Father of Spirits. Apart from that proviso such obedience by Nature, if it were possible, would result in chaos: the evil dream of Magic arises from finite spirit's longing to get that power without paying that price. The evil reality of lawless applied science (which is Magic's son and heir) is actually reducing large tracts of Nature to disorder and sterility at this very moment." But when Prospero hears of Gonzalo's tears, his reason defeats his baser desires for vengeance and he realizes that all his manipulation is of the same school as Medea's.(5.1.15-20) It's not noble, it's selfish witchcraft, and he renounces it by quoting Medea's own description of her powers.

[maferpabe · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

The tragic story of Prospero, a wizard that is actually the duke of Milan. He is send to and island after his jelous brother. Propero is send with his only daughter, Miranda. Tweleve years had pass now and the beautiful Miranda is now fifteen.In the island, Prospero now has under control Arial, a spirt, and Caliban a men that is now his slave. With the help of Ariel and his own magic, Prospero sank the fleet in were his bother and some other friends were trabeling. His plans of revenge for the moment seem to work out perfectly, it is needed time to see what happens.This is a story full of magic, tangles and mysteries. The characters made this play full of life, letting the reader involves in the events. Although the language used get complicated some times the plot is very interesting.

[jenniferthomp75 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Thunder, lightning, magical creatures and islands. A lovely fantasy.

[cyafer · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This is my second read through of the play. I'm still not necessarily a fan; the way that Prospero gives blanket forgiveness to Alonso and Antonio seems forced, even if I have a better understanding of why he did it. In addition, the subplot with Sebastian and Antonio's attempt on the king's life goes nowhere. Prospero is still incredibly unlikeable as a main character.

As far as this specific version goes, it has to be one of my favorite editions in terms of how it handles footnotes. Most versions have ALL notes either lumped into the bottom, or on the facing page to the play. It makes it difficult sometimes to find what you're looking for without disturbing the flow of your reading. This book relegates short notes (one or two word translations of the Renaissance word into modern English) to the left of the line it occurs in, and longer footnotes and explanations to the facing page. Aside from an uncomfortable amount of white space on each page, it is an excellent edition.

[alcracka · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The Tempest is almost a wisp of a thing. There's little plot and almost no character development. It's like a magic trick: you blow into your hand, and a cloud of flame pops up, and a dove flies out of it, everyone claps.

So the play is the spectacle, and the magic is the language. Prospero's speech, "We are such stuff as dreams are made on," is second maybe only to "All the world's a stage" in crystallizing Shakespeare's philosophy (and better, poetically); and there's Miranda's line, "O brave new world, that has such people in't!" - these and others are among the best lines Shakespeare wrote; and the feel of the play, the atmosphere - that magical island, populated by beasts and wizards, the evocation of a world we were still exploring - it sticks with you, even though, as I said, dramatically speaking, almost nothing happens.

And Caliban! Arguably the only memorable character - Prospero is cool, and Ariel differs from Puck, but is no Puck, and the others are just placeholders, a virtuous maid here, a villainous uncle there - but Caliban, that sniveling, backstabbing, savage would-be rapist, searching for a God whose boots need licking - he's a tremendous find. (And what made me love Tennyson.) Caliban's right up there with Iago.

In some ways, this play is all flash. But what a flash!

[jennaelf · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This was the first Shakespeare play I ever read - from an old white-covered paperback I had when I was 9 years old. I probably didn't understand it very well back then. I REALLY liked the title, though.

Now, it's still good stuff.

For me, supplementing my reading with a viewing of Helen Mirren as Prospera... magnified my enjoyment of this book tremendously.

[fernandosfjr-1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

O que dizer?

"O, wonder!

How many godly creatures are there here!

How beauteous mankind is! O brave new world,

That has such people in 't!".

[antao-3 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Published 1998.


On this re-reading I noticed that the word "brave" was used a few times in the movies that I watched (Taymor, 2010 & Jarman 1979).

I like this word. It generates a very good feeling in my heart. This word often makes me think of someone who has a quality to face something difficult with the strength of heart / mind / body... Does not take me much to feel a respect and admiration for this person...

I also come to know that the word "brave" describes something wonderful, admirable in appearance...

And I just got curious to see how often the word "brave" was used in "The Tempest". And I started reading the play to look for the word "brave" and "bravely", and every time I found one of these words, I put a post-it note to the page to keep track of it... No, I did not use any fancy software to sort out the words or count the words... The work was done manually... Though I tried to be as faithful and accurate as possible, there might be a few occasions that I missed finding these words...

It looks like there are 11 occasions that the words "Brave" or "Bravely" were mentioned...

The rest of this review can be found elsewhere.

[regularguy5mb · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Being Shakespeare's last play, The Tempest is a masterful piece in which he uses Prospero as a stand-in for himself within a play full of the magic of stagecraft and his position as playwright.Using all the mystical techniques at his disposal (theatre), Prospero the magician (playwright) writes his tale of revenge as a ship containing his treasonous brother sails near enough to the island for him to set the stage at long last.The Tempest also stands as a magnificent tale even without the allegory. The rightful Duke of Milan (Prospero) is set adrift along with his daughter by his treacherous brother, but manages to survive on an island for twelve years with the help of his magic and the spirits of the island he has impressed into his service. Now, the King of Naples sails home along with Prospero's brother and he can finally seek his revenge, making sure to set his daughter into a happy role as well before things are done.I just love the way this play uses the stage to show Prospero's magic and Ariel's abilities. It truly is a great work by one of the masters.This particular volume I picked up from a local library sale and intend to add it to my Little Free Library for someone else to discover.

[aliceanna-1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

A very visual play -- it is difficult to read because I think it really needs to be seen for impact. Other than Miranda and Prospero, the characters seemed to blend together; they weren't that well-defined in their differences ... except for the monstrous Caliban, of course. Some nice passages -- "We are such stuff as dreams are made on."

[pjulian-1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Amazingg.. It has the ability to enchant every reader through its imagination. The part that I liked less is how (most probably unwittingly I suppose) did Shakespeare show how did Colonisation worked and the attitude of the colonised towards the coloniser. Overall, it gave me a feel of an old tale finishing up. All the negative characters were simply puppets in the hands of Prospers and it was in the understanding of the endurance that we were able to enjoy the present conquests of Prospero. Overall, a wonderful read.

[glenline · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Shakespeare at his best.

[katieloucks · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

love it!!!!

[potterhead9.75 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

His weakest work.

[kennethwdavis_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

For me, the most wondrous of the plays.

[harrod_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

What's not to like about Will

[collingsruth · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

None of the characters sucked me in, but the themes it explores are fascinating within the historical and biographical background.

[scott_hercher · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Not one of the Bard's best.

[aethercowboy · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I picked up the Tempest, I admit, mostly due to Prospero's role in The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen. I was not disappointed.The Tempest tells the story of Prospero, the supplanted Duke of Milan, who takes control of small island. He's freed a spirit from a tree, who now faithfully follows him; and he's enslaved the twisted (physically and mentally) denizen of the island.Prospero discovers that his supplanting brother is nearby on a ship, so he calls a mighty tempest to beach them upon his island. He then tries to work the situation to his advantage, as well as marry off his daughter to the prince, who has likewise washed ashore.The Tempest is a comedy, which may give you some indication of how it ends, but it is not the destination with this play; rather, it is the route traveled.If you have ever read anything by Shakespeare, you're bound to enjoy The Tempest, even if you hated what you read, since you were most likely in high school, dissecting the lifeless dry corpse of literature. Like an airy spirit, breathe new life into your comprehension of literature, and get yourself a copy of the Tempest, and start reading!