Thematic elements aid to enhance the plots of various types of literature. In The Tempest, Shakespeare uses the elements of magic, and the structural use of music and sounds to strengthen the play. In addition to incorporating these elements into the play, Shakespeare intertwines the use of magic, through Prospero and his books, with the way magic enable songs to hypnotize characters in the play. Weaving magic throughout the play, Shakespeare proved that it was the most crucial motif of the play, being that the play is centered around it.

For the duration of the play, magic takes on many different forms: the Tempest— the shipwreck—, Prospero’s books and the appearance of the characters. Losing his throne and being cast away to an uninhabited island, Prospero wanted to gain a sense of power and control over not only his life, but the lives of others. In addition, he wanted to get revenge on the people who overthrew him. To do so he began using magic, which was his manifestation of power and control, through the knowledge he gained from his books during his “secret studies” and his spirit servant Ariel, who would not have been freed from a tree if it weren’t for Prospero’s magic, and Caliban.

Without the power of magic, there would not have been the shipwreck, which was created with the help of Prospero’s magic and was the catalyst for the play. Ariel, who performed Prospero’s magic tasks, recounts the shipwreck: I boarded the king’s ship. Now on the beak,
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