Comic relief

So here we are with our final play for the semester, and this is my final blog post. A bitter-sweet end that I know many of my peers can agree with. The tempest, oh what to say about The Tempest? I want to start by saying I am actually really enjoying this play so far. It is a nice relief from all the stresses of the end of the semester. It is a play that I would place in the category of a comedy because it is actually funny! I find myself laughing at parts that I really was not expecting to laugh at. One scene in particular is Act 3 scene 2 especially, when we see that Ariel is invisible and is tricking Caliban and Stephano into thinking that Trinculo is speaking rude things while Caliban is talking. I laughed because I was picturing in my head how this particular line would be played out on stage, the line is spoken by Stephano and it is this, “Trinculo, run inot no further danger. Interrupt the monster one word further, and, by this hand, I’ll turn my mercy out o’ doors and make a stockfish of thee” (63-65).

I could not help but think of the Christmas movie that has been on TV lately Home Alone. All I thought of while reading this scene was how funny it would have been to see poor Trinculo getting smacked around when he really was not the one saying anything. I almost picture his character as being the “follower” of the group and therefore the scapegoat of the bunch!

The other thing that I want to comment on is the “lovey, dovey” scene that Shakespeare included in this play between Miranda and Ferdinand. I am specifically talking about Act 3 scene 1. Miranda asks him, “Do you love me?” (68) and Ferdinand replies, “I beyond all limit of what else I’ th’ world do love, prize, honor you” (71-73). I find that something with this much “LOVE” would be in Shakespeare. We of course have seen characters express love in the work we have read for this class, but none that are quite as blunt as this play displays. I am actually a fan of writing like this, and I am interested to know if any of my peers have read other Shakespeare plays that display a similar love scene in which characters are truly expressing a love for one another like this? I am curious if there are no other plays like this, why that is, and why Shakespeare would even use that in this play if it was not characteristic of his work?

I am looking forward to more laughs for the end of the semester as we finish up this play!