The Tempest Act III Journal Entries

Chloe Wrote:
The beginning of Act III was very endearing to me and a bit humorous. It is very reflective of the Elizabethan era and the roles of men and female. Ferdinand is being very much a gentleman and very chivalrous in setting up the fire and not letting Miranda do it. He is also sweet talking her and flattering her with his words. She in turn lets him have this attitude and plays into it as that’s how things were then and there were nothing different. It was all very polite and flirtatious and the reason it was humorous to me was because of how drastically different things are today. People are a lot more honest and straight forward about what they are thinking and feeling as opposed to beating around the bush and using flattery. However as I continued reading they were very straight forward and basically proclaimed their love to one another and it was really corny but sweet and I enjoyed reading this.

Julie Wrote:
This play is so exiting. There is love, betrayal, in more than one case, and funny lines. I couldn't help buy laugh during the scene between Caliban, Stephano and Trinculo. And the fact that Ariel came and pretended to be Trinculo, then Trinculo got smacked, funny stuff, funny stuff. I find it interesting that not only is Caliban betraying Prospero, but Sebastian and Antonio want to kill Alonso. What I find strange is that they all seemed to be responsible for taking Prospero’s throne from him, and now they are getting more greedy and want to get rid of the king. Very interesting. Shakespeare sure has an amazing writing technique. At this point, I don’t find the language all that difficult and I can so vividly see the play in my head that the story makes perfect sense. I am enjoying this play.

Katherine Wrote:
I am really starting to like Miranda. She is so sweet and innocent. In act III, scene i she is very kind to Ferdinand. I thought it was cute how Ferdinand said that he knows women but none like Miranda. The romance of this play is very fairytale like. Miranda the princess, never talking to a man and Ferdinand the prince falling for her. I thought Stefano, Trinculo, and Caliban plot to kill Prospero is a bit much. As Caliban explained how he is the owner of the island and that, they must burn Prospero's books. They want to do this so that after Prospero is dead, Stefano can marry Miranda and make her his queen of the island. The magic in act III, scene iii was great. I liked how when they drew their swords they could not move them because they were frozen in place by magic. I am really enjoying this play. It definitely has gotten better over time.

Everett Wrote:
All three scenes within Act three show very different events occurring all at the same time, Ferdinand and Miranda's passionate love, the plot to murder Prospero and become king made by Stefano, Trinculo, and Caliban, and the fear coming from Alonso and his men as they realize they are in a place surrounded by the magic of their enemy, Prospero. They all live their lives completely unaware of the others probably only miles away from them and I really find it ironic.

As well, this act has had a lot of character development and my opinions have changed a lot for many characters. The main changes are about Prospero. In class today we discussed Prospero's desire for power and his greed and aggression. Now really act III I feel like he's changing and becoming a little less self-centered. He admits to himself that the love between Ferdinand and his daughter is true and he not only approves but finds himself happy for them. Through the whole chapter he is kind to Ariel and shows no aggressions at all. More irony is that as soon as it seems as if Prospero is changing his ways, he is set to be killed. Before I thought I hated Prospero and felt pity for his sister and slaves, but now I feel so sad knowing that Prospero might die and I do not like Caliban. I thought he was strong and independent. I felt sympathy because his life was so hard. Although I can't deny how rude he way and how terrible it was to try and rape Miranda. But now, he caved so quickly and is now groveling to this drunkard and his buddy. I obviously over estimated his judgment of people and underestimated Prospero's heart.

As far as Alonso goes, with all of his men, I can't predict what will happen. Their journey will no doubt be dangerous with the spirits following them but I can't really see it going anywhere specifically. I look forward to finding out though.


Stacey Wrote:
A lot has happened throughout Act III. In scene i, Miranda and Ferdinand had a connection between one another, and decided to get married. They claimed to truly love each other. Ferdinand had never met someone as amazing as Miranda, and she had never known anyone other than her father. We learned that Miranda feels that Ferdinand does not deserve her, but if his wish is to marry her, than so be it. Miranda’s father, Prospero is against the marriage, however he had no choice but to let it persist. It is quite obvious to me that this is going to be an unhealthy marriage.

Scene ii opens up with the drunken men, Caliban, Stephano and Trinculo. It is in this scene that Caliban’s hate towards Prospero truly shows. As Caliban explains his hatred of Prospero to the other men, Ariel, Prospero’s little invisible friend appears. He listened to everything the men said, and even reported back to Prospero everything that was to be planned. Caliban made a deal with Stephano that if Prospero is killed, and his “magic books” are stolen, Stephano will have the role of being ruler of the island and boss of Caliban as well. Stephano will also be able to wed Miranda, after they capture her.

In scene iii, Sebastian, Francisco, Alonso, Gonzalo and Antonio are still hanging around the island. The men are becoming very worn out. So tired, that Alonso even gave up looking for his son. In this scene, Prospero threw a huge feast. However, when everyone was just about to eat, the food disappeared. Ariel did this to punish the men due to what they did in their past.

While reading parts i and ii of Act III, I began to feel a lot more comfortable with the script. I had a much better understanding of the story line. However, once I read part iii, I was a little confused. I found myself going back to previous lines to understand it better. I feel there was a lot going on in this scene, which is probably what contributed to my confusion.

Tsvetan Wrote:
I’m still wondering why the love between Ferdinand and Miranda is so important to Prospero’s plan. It was interesting, however, that when they were announcing their love to each other, they were completely honest about who they are. I think Shakespeare shows that for true love to exist, people must have no secrets.

While love is on one side of the island, everyone else that is there is plotting something. Caliban wants Stefano and Trinculo to help him kill Prospero, while Antonio and Sebastian want to kill Alonso and take overt the crown. I have a feeling that all of this is somehow a part of Prospero’s plan and he knew that they would turn against each other. I think that Caliban, however, will be punished for his treachery, because Ariel knows all about his intentions.

Bobby Wrote:
In act three, the plot really begins to move. We see that Miranda and Ferdinand have fallen in love, Caliban and his new group of friends plot to kill Prospero, and Antonio still wants Alonso dead. With so many characters that each has their own goals, this is sure to end in a tragedy. Knowing Shakespeare, that is the most likely ending. While most of these characters aim is revenge or of self-interest, only Ferdinand and Miranda’s wish is pure. Perhaps Shakespeare wrote this play to show the value of love in society and in human nature as a whole.

As I read the scene with Caliban, I thought that this part of the play is the comedy part. I still think it is, but I did not see the plot to kill Prospero coming. I might have expected from Caliban by himself but not when he is with his group. The three act like fools so much that anything serious out of them was inconceivable. Although it could just be the liquor talking.