The Tempest

By William Shakespeare

Read & Co. Classics presents this new beautiful edition of William Shakespeare's play, "The Tempest”. Featuring a specially commissioned new biography of William Shakespeare, it is a must for Shakespeare enthusiasts and newcomers alike. “The Tempest” is a story about Prospero, a wronged man, and his retribution. Left isolated on an island with his daughter, Miranda, he seeks to punish his enemies. Commanding the elements with magic, he conjures a storm, shipwrecking his suspected wrongdoers. As the castaways wash up onto his shores, they discover the island is far from normal. The supernatural overtones in the play have inspired some to consider that Shakespeare was writing about matters of the human soul. William Shakespeare (1564 - 1616) was an English playwright, poet, and actor. He is considered to be the greatest writer in the English language and is celebrated as the world's most famous dramatist.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Read Books Ltd.
• Release date: Aug 17, 2018
• ISBN: 9781528785631

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.

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THE TEMPEST

By

WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE

THE TEMPEST

A Comedy

By

WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE

First published in 1623

This edition is published by Classic Books Library

an imprint of Read Books Ltd.

Copyright © 2018 Read Books Ltd.

This book is copyright and may not be

reproduced or copied in any way without

the express permission of the publisher in writing

British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data

A catalogue record for this book is available

from the British Library

Contents

William Shakespeare

DRAMATIS PERSONÆ

ACT I.

SCENE I. On a Ship at Sea; a Tempestuous Noise of Thunder and Lightning Heard.

SCENE II. The Island. Before Prospero's Cell.

ACT II.

SCENE I. Another Part of the Island.

SCENE II. Another Part of the Island.

ACT III.

SCENE I. Before Prospero's Cell.

SCENE II. Another part of the Island.

SCENE III. Another part of the Island.

ACT IV.

SCENE I. Before Prospero's Cell.

ACT V.

SCENE I. Before Prospero's Cell.

EPILOGUE

TO THE MEMORY OF MY BELOVED THE AUTHOR, MR. WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE

By BEN JONSON

William Shakespeare

William Shakespeare, as any reader of this book will presumably know, was an English poet, playwright and actor, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language - and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. His plays have been translated into every major living language and are performed more often than those of any other playwright. Referred to as England's national poet, and the 'Bard of Avon', his extant works, including some collaborations, consist of about 38 plays, 154 sonnets, two long narrative poems, and a few other verses, (some with unconfirmed authorship). Few records of Shakespeare's private life survive, and there has been considerable speculation about matters as wide ranging as his physical appearance, sexuality and religious beliefs.

William Shakespeare was the son of John Shakespeare, an alderman and a successful glover originally from Snitterfield, and Mary Arden, the daughter of an affluent landowning farmer. He was born in Stratford-upon-Avon and baptised there on 26th April 1564. His actual date of birth remains unknown, but is traditionally observed on 23rd April, Saint George's Day. Although no attendance records for the period survive, biographers agree that Shakespeare was probably educated at the King's New School in Stratford, a free school chartered in 1553, about a quarter-mile from his home. Grammar schools varied in quality during the Elizabethan era, but grammar school curricula were largely similar. Basic Latin education had been standardised by royal decree, and the school would have provided an intensive education in grammar based upon Latin classical authors.

At the age of eighteen, Shakespeare married the twenty-six year old Anne Hathaway (who was pregnant at the time), with whom he had three children: Susanna, and twins, Hamnet and Judith. After the birth of the twins, Shakespeare left few historical traces until he is mentioned as part of the London theatre scene in 1592. The exception is the appearance of his name in the 'complaints bill' of a law case before the Queen's Bench court at Westminster, dated Michaelmas Term 1588 and 9th October 1589. Between 1585 and 1592, he began a successful career in London as an actor, writer, and part-owner of a playing company called the Lord Chamberlain's Men, later known as the King's Men. By 1598, his name had become enough of a selling point to appear on the title pages.

Shakespeare continued to act in his own and in other plays after his success as a playwright. The 1616 edition of Ben Jonson's Works names him on the cast lists for Every Man in His Humour (1598) and Sejanus His Fall (1603). During this time, Shakespeare divided his time between London and Stratford, and in 1596 bought ‘New Place’ as his family home in Stratford, whilst retaining a property in Bishopsgate, North of the river Thames. He moved across the river to Southwark by 1599, the year his company constructed the Globe Theatre there. By 1604, Shakespeare had moved north of the river again, to an area north of St Paul's Cathedral with many fine houses. He appears to have retired to Stratford around 1613 at the age of forty-nine, where he died three years later.

Shakespeare produced most of his known work between 1589 and 1613. His early plays were mainly comedies and histories, genres he raised to the peak of sophistication and artistry by the end of the sixteenth century. The first recorded works of Shakespeare are Richard III and the three parts of Henry VI, written in the early 1590s during a vogue for historical drama. Shakespeare's plays are difficult to date however, and studies of the texts suggest that Titus Andronicus, The Comedy of Errors, The Taming of the Shrew and The Two Gentlemen of Verona may also belong to Shakespeare's earliest period. Shakespeare's early classical and Italianate comedies, containing tight double plots and precise comic sequences, give way in the mid-1590s to the romantic atmosphere of his greatest comedies. A Midsummer Night's Dream, one of his earliest comedies, is a witty mixture of romance, fairy magic, and comic lowlife scenes. The wit and wordplay of Much Ado About Nothing, the charming rural setting of As You Like It, and the lively merrymaking of Twelfth Night complete the sequence of great comedies.

Shakespeare then wrote mainly tragedies until about 1608. Many critics believe that his greatest tragedies represent the peak of his art. The titular hero of one of Shakespeare's most famous tragedies, Hamlet, has probably been discussed more than any other character, especially for his famous soliloquy beginning; ‘To be or not to be; that is the question.’ Unlike the introverted Hamlet, whose fatal flaw is hesitation, the heroes of the tragedies that followed,

Reviews for The Tempest

[katieloucks · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

love it!!!!

[crowyhead · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This is one of my favorite of Shakespeare's plays, in terms of the richness of the story and the language.

[fleurdiabolique · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Absolutely my favorite of Shakespeare's plays. His vision and poetic skill have come to full maturity in this fantasy of loss and redemption.

[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.

[kennethwdavis_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

For me, the most wondrous of the plays.

[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.

[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.

[datrappert · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

One of Shakespeare's more unusual an fanciful plays. Not as silly as most of the comedies (and I don't mean silly in a good way). Full of great characters and some of Shakespeare's best quotes. And, of course, the inspiration for Forbidden Planet.

[elmyra_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I was prompted to read this by my re-reading of the entire Sandman series by Neil Gaiman - and now I can go back and read the last chapter. I only read the play, and very little of the additional material in this edition - I probably will go back and read the rest and re-read the play. I kept expecting something horrible to happen at the end. I did like it rather more than Midsummer Night's Dream.

[rmagahiz · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

A strange but moving work, performed here by a wonderful set of players.

[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."

[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!".

[glenline · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Shakespeare at his best.

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

His weakest work.

[leslie398 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

3½ stars - I found I had some trouble in parts with following the action just reading this rather than seeing a performance. I also found Prospero's sudden reconciliation with his brother rather unconvincing.

[jpsnow · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This wasn't quite a comedy and isn't a tragedy. Prospero is an interesting character -- a scholar, a duke, a stranded man, a plotter, and a dad.

[velmeran · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

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

[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.

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

 Dramatized audio recordings of are difficult for to listen to because there are so many minor characters. This one was a bit more manageable.

[harrod_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

What's not to like about Will

[davefragments · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I read this before I saw it staged at the Pittsburgh Public Theater. This is Shakespeare's masterpiece.

[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.

[jenniferthomp75 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

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

[dancingant · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

It is so-said Shakespeare's last play. Very clear plots attracted me as my first peek at English literature.

[trilliams · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Wizards, man, who knows.

[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.