THE TEMPEST WITH ALLIE: Act 4, Scene 1 Summary/Analysis

Prospero gives Ferdinand his blessing to marry Miranda, saying that Ferdinand has stood up well to Prospero’s tests of his love.  He threatens harsh consequences, however, if Ferdinand takes Miranda’s virginity before an official wedding ceremony takes place.   Ferdinand pledges to obey Prospero’s wishes. 

Ferdinand wins his freedom and love because he faced his loss of power without bitterness.  Every character who bears loss in this way in The Tempest is ultimately rewarded so far. 

Prospero orders Ariel to gather his band of spirits to put on a celebratory masque, or performance, for the new couple.  The masque begins when Iris, the Greek goddess of the rainbow, calls Ceres, the harvest goddess, to come and join her in celebrating the marriage. Juno, wife of Zeus and queen of the gods, appears next.  Juno bestows her blessing on the couple, wishing them wealth and honor, while Ceres blesses them with wishes of prosperity.  In awe, Ferdinand wishes he could stay on the island forever, with Miranda as his wife and Prospero as his father.  Iris commands nymphs and harvest spirits to perform a country dance.

Prospero has been using his magic to manipulate and control the play’s other characters.  Now he steps into the role of playwright and “writes” the masque.  In the process, he displays his full power, so amazing and humbling Ferdinand that the boy is now in awe of his father-in-law.

Suddenly, Prospero recalls Caliban, Stephano, and Trinculo‘s conspiracy to kill him. He calls an abrupt end to the festivities and the spirits vanish.  Ferdinand is unsettled by Prospero’s change in demeanor.  Prospero reassures him, saying that an end must come to all things: “We are such stuff as dreams are made on; and our little life is rounded with a sleep”.  He instructs the lovers to go and rest in his cave without telling them any more details of what is going on.

At this moment, Prospero almost seems to lose control. It’s as if he got so caught up in his “art” that he lost track of real life (which is also what led to Prospero’s fall in Milan).  Though Prospero’s speech can be seen as a meditation on age and mortality, many critics believe that it refers to the impermanence of Shakespeare’s own craft and legacy.

Prospero summons Ariel, who reports that he has led the drunken conspirators on a torturous walk through briar patches and a stinking swamp. He describes their plot to steal Prospero’s cloak and books before killing him. Prospero curses Caliban, calling him “a born devil, on whose nature nurture can never stick”.

Prospero’s remark about Caliban echoes Miranda’s observation in 1.2 that certain races are naturally indecent and inferior. This rationale was a common justification for colonization and slavery.