Wednesday, November 3, 2010

Father? Daughter? Relationship?

In the Shakespeare's play The Tempest the relationship isn't shown as one of much love from the father Prospero. After being trapped on an island for twelve years, he waits until the information is beneficial to himself as well as his daughter Miranda before telling her about her heritage and why they are on the island. He could have told her years before in order to calm her curiosity as to why her father was the only person she's even seen that she remembers. But Prospero waits until by happenstance, his enemy's ship was blown off course near the island that Prospero and Miranda are stuck on.
It is then, in Act one, Scene 2, that Prospero tells Miranda that he was once the Duke of Milan and a Prince of power until his brother Antonio betrayed him and took his position. After their conversation Miranda "falls" asleep when really Prospero put her to sleep with his magic "Will ever after droop. Her cease more questions./ Thou art inclined to sleep. 'Tis a good dullness,/ And give it way. I know thou canst not choose" so that she is out of the way until he needs her. Throughout the play he seems to be thinking about her happiness by wanting her to fall in love with and marry Ferdinand, the son to the King of Naples. But in reality it was his way of using them to get of the island and possibly get his position back "Ay, with a heart as willing/As bondage e'er of freedom. Here's my hand."
Throughout the Play it seems as though all Prospero cares about is getting off the island and not about what will happen to his daughter. Although in the beginning it says, "You have often/Begun to tell me what I am, but stopped/ And left me to a bootless inquisition,/Concluding, "Stay, not yet." Showing that he was waiting for the right time not caring that Miranda was a little lost and confused because it is in a child to know who they are and he wasn't ready to share that information.

As to say the this particular father/daughter relationship isn't one of much love and devotion, unless that devotion is veered towards the use of one's daughter to benefit for yourself. Although in the end they all win Prospero was more focused on himself but in that he wanted love to form between Miranda and Ferdinand would show that he does love his daughter and wants her to be happy but only if things go his way and he can get off the island.
This shows that Prospero's love for his daughter isn't a traditional one. To gain from the use of others seems to be Prospero's "thing", which is what he does to get what he wants, through his own daughter and his magic.
The traditional father/daughter relationship is usually one of love and the daughter being spoiled and the father being OVER protective. Prospero and Miranda don't fit this traditional mold.