William Shakespeare was truly one of the most influential men of the 17th century. His plays, tragedies, and comedies are an inspiration to us to date.
Today I bring the three life lessons that I learned from The Tempest, which is one of the last plays by Shakespeare. It is also considered Shakespeare’s most “magical work”.
Here they are-
First, Never betray the ones who try to help you. This is in reference to Caliban who was half-human and monster and the only son of the witch Sycorax. Caliban was never loyal to Prospero, his master. Prospero gave Caliban a second life, educated him, fed him and also took care of him but Caliban did not seem to appreciate any of these. Instead, he always plotted to harm Prospero and thwart his missions. However Prospero never punished Caliban but when Caliban crossed all limits by trying to kill him with the help of Stephano and Trinculo, he had enough.
He punished Caliban extremely harshly which had a life-long impact on him. From this, we all learn not to trouble good people to such an extent that they forget their kindness and empathy.
Second, Always respect the work people do to help you.
One of my favourite bonds in the play is that of Prospero and Ariel. Although Ariel was Prospero’s slave he never treated her like one. Prospero always made sure to acknowledge and appreciate Ariel and had also promised to set her free after his mission was completed. His mission would be incomplete if Ariel did not help him execute it.
Prospero’s constant care and love towards Ariel made her the most loyal servant to Prospero.
Third, Always prefer your reason over retaliation. Prospero’s change of heart at the end of the play is an example of a selfless good deed that will be remembered by all.
If Prospero wanted he could have killed or imprisoned King Alonso and his men but decided to drop his plan as he did not want to cause any more trouble in their lives. He choose kindness and partly it was because of his daughter as she was all set to be the Queen Of Naples as the daughter-in-law of Alonso. Prospero even being wronged terribly did not forget to take back what he deserved, this is what I admired the most about him.
He forgave his treacherous brother Antonio and his accomplice Sebastian but he also took back what was rightfully his, the dukedom of Milan.
