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The Role Of Miranda In The Tempest

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Recommended: A feminist interpretation of the tempest

In attempts to shelter children from a cruel and harsh world, parents often create a utopia in which their children can grow and flourish. This plan of perfection has flaws because children eventually grow up and develop into someone curious of the outside world and its magical wonders. A similar situation occurs in William Shakespeare’s The Tempest. Prospero arrives on a stranded island with his three-year-old daughter, Miranda. This causes him to want to make her life perfect and free of cruelty. Because Prospero sets up a utopia for Miranda on the island, Miranda tries to explore every new aspect of life; however, Prospero carefully guides her out of the island’s perfection, while letting her believe that this world still holds beauty and magnificence. …show more content…

In this perfect world that Miranda lives in, created by her father, she does not know pain or suffering. So when she learns of the storm that Prospero creates to harm those on the ship, she instantly expresses mortification: “O, I have suffered / With those that I saw suffer!” (1.2.5-6). Miranda’s lifestyle does not allow her to feel much pain, so when she sees others suffer, she feels their pain. Prospero also keeps much of his personal life away from Miranda. Throughout The Tempest, Prospero hides his servant, Ariel, from Miranda. Prospero wishes for Miranda to stay innocent and sheltered away from Ariel, insisting that Miranda feels “inclined to sleep,” before letting Ariel come out of hiding (1.2.220). These factors prove that Miranda lives in Prospero’s fantasy, free from pain, suffering, and

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