Tab Article

ratings: ★★★★★ (4.7/5)
Genre: Drama, Romance, Comedy, Classic

Book Review:
''Be not afraid; the isle is full of noises, / Sounds, and sweet airs, that give delight and hurt not.'' These words, spoken by the spirit Ariel, capture the magical, dreamlike quality of Shakespeare's The Tempest. It is a play unlike any other in the canon, a work of profound beauty and deep mystery that has captivated audiences and readers for over four centuries.

The play opens with a spectacular storm, a tempest conjured by the powerful magician Prospero. He watches from his island shore as the ship carrying his treacherous brother Antonio and the King of Naples is wrecked. All are saved, but they are separated and believe each other lost. Prospero's plan for revenge is set in motion.

What follows is a story of many threads. There is the comic plot involving the drunken butler Stephano and the jester Trinculo, who are seduced by the monster Caliban into a plot to kill Prospero. There is the beautiful romance between Prospero's daughter, Miranda, and the King's son, Ferdinand, a love at first sight that is both innocent and profound. And there is the dark, brooding presence of Caliban, the island's original inhabitant, a figure of immense pathos and rage, whose relationship with Prospero raises complex questions about colonialism and power.

At the heart of it all is Prospero, a figure often seen as a stand-in for Shakespeare himself. He is the master of ceremonies, the orchestrator of events, the one who controls the magic. But as the play progresses, we see him grapple with the meaning of his power and the purpose of his revenge. His journey is one of transformation, from a desire for vengeance to a capacity for forgiveness.

The Tempest is a play about many things: art and nature, power and freedom, illusion and reality. It is a work of extraordinary lyrical beauty, filled with some of Shakespeare's most memorable poetry. The famous speech in which Prospero renounces his magic, ''Our revels now are ended,'' is a meditation on the nature of life itself, comparing it to the insubstantial pageant of a dream.

This Penguin Shakespeare edition, edited by Martin Butler and with a general introduction by the renowned scholar Stanley Wells, is an excellent way to experience this masterpiece. It includes a wealth of background material, including an introduction to Shakespeare's life and times, a detailed introduction to the play, and notes on performance history.

The Tempest is a play that rewards repeated reading. It is a work of such depth and complexity that you will discover something new every time you encounter it. It is a magical, moving, and ultimately hopeful play, a fitting farewell from the greatest writer in the English language. As Hector Berlioz, quoted on the cover, said, it ''struck me like a thunderbolt.'' It will strike you the same way.