This document provides a psychoanalytical interpretation of characters in The Tempest by William Shakespeare. It analyzes Prospero as having a conflict between his superego and ego, manipulating others on the island for his own benefit despite appearing sympathetic. It views Ariel as the personification of Prospero's malevolence towards those who wronged him. It argues Prospero reconciles with his enemies and frees Ariel once he forgives their actions. The document examines Prospero's ego having power over his autocratic rule on the island and short temper, while his super-ego remains prevalent in his personality.
10. Psychoanalytical theory
Immediately we can see that Prospero is a sympathetic man. Although he shipwrecks the vessel carrying his
enemies, he is adamant not to cause physical harm to any soul aboard the ship. His sympathy towards his
enemies, however, does not stop him from manipulating every single person on the island, including his
daughter, for his own personal benefit. This is indicative of a simmering conflict between Superego and ego.
I believe that Ariel is the personification of Prospero’s malevolence for those involved with his usurping. It is
Prospero’s long-held grudge which fuels his actions, such as (obviously) wrecking the ship, leading Alonso to
believe his son has drown, or sending the “Harpy” to intimidate Antonio and the others; which is why these
tasks are carried out vicariously through Ariel. It is only after Prospero is able to reconcile with his enemies and
forgive them for their actions, he is able to set Ariel (the personification of his malevolence) free.
Prospero’s ego has the upper-hand when it comes to his autocracy on the island, as he short-tempered and ill
mannered towards his servants, demonstrating just how highly he holds himself above the others. Although the
super-ego is prevalent in Prospero’s overall personality, there seems to be a strong connection between the ego
and Ariel. Prospero believes he is among gods with his power, as long as he has his spirit to do the dirty work.
I chose Act 1, scene 2 because it immediately follows the opening scene, which some suggest is the most important scene of the entire work. Scene 2 contains the exposition and the inciting incident, which sets the plot afoot.
I can see that Shakespeare has a fixation with storms. In many works, Shakespeare uses storms to symbolize anger, power, chaos, and uncertainty. These archetypal themes follow suite with “The Tempest” as the storm symbolizes Prospero’s anger and thirst for revenge towards those involved with removing Prospero from his dukedom. This became clear as Prospero began to unfold the story of how he and Miranda arrived stranded on an island.
Just as the hull of the ship has been compromised, so has the stable relationship of those who were aboard the vessel. For example, Alonso believes his son is dead, and Sebastian & Antonio plan to murder Alonso.
Is it just me, or does “Sunk the sea within the Earth” conjure up images almost unimaginable? The imagery in this piece is used to communicate the extent Miranda’s naïve sorrows towards the occupants of the now wrecked vessel.
This imagery portrays Antonio as the evil, power hungry brother; exploiting Prospero’s quest for knowledge to rise usurp him.
This selection is sung to Fernando (who believes his father is dead) by invisible Ariel singing and playing music. This can be identified as dramatic irony because the lyrical content is in reference to Fernando’s father, who is known to still be alive by the audience, but not by Fernando. Upon hearing the song, Fernando is unable to identify it’s significance.
In fact, the entire scene is dramatic irony, as all the characters who fell victim to the shipwreck believe it was merely fate or an act of gods that brought them there. However, the audience already knows the tempest was a product of Prospero’s magic.
This fine example of an allusion refers to the power possessed by the ancient gods of Greek mythology.
I know I’ve already done psychoanalytical theory for Macbeth, and believe me, I wanted to use an alternative theory. I honestly tried to apply Marxist theory, Feminist theory and Reader response theory to this excerpt, but I struggled for too long mould it in a way that I was satisfied with, and felt I was wasting valuable time trying to fit a theory where it doesn’t belong.
