Language, Structure and Dramatic Techniques in The Tempest

Genre

The Tempest was classified as a comedy in the First Folio, the first collection of Shakespeare’s plays published in 1623, seven years after his death.

It contains many traits typical of Shakespeare’s comedies but also deviates from his usual comedic formula. This has led some modern critics to classify it as a romance. Romance plays were seen as those containing elements of both comedy and tragedy.

Here is a consideration of how it fits with the two genres.

Genre	Typical features of this genre	Relevance to The Tempest
Comedy	• Young lovers struggling to overcome obstacles • Mistaken Identities • Clever plot twists • Stock characters (e.g. a fool, a clever servant, a drunk) • A villain • A marriage • Happy ending with no deaths	• Ferdinand and Miranda’s relationship • Antonio as the villain • Stephano and Trinculo as foolish, drunken characters used for comedic effect • A happy ending as the family feud is resolved, and Prospero forgives his enemies • Despite the assassination plots, nobody dies
Romance	• A tragic beginning • The lover’s story is not the focus of the main plot • Elements of magic and the supernatural • Resolution of long-standing conflicts	• The storm at the beginning of the play brings a sense of tragedy as some of the characters believe their shipmates are dead • Magic is explored through Prospero’s power • Prospero’s feud with Antonio and Alonso is the plot’s main focus, not the love story of Miranda and Fernando • This feud is resolved at the end of the play

Language and Imagery

Verse and Prose

The Tempest is mainly written in verse, specifically in iambic pentameter, which consists of five pairs of stressed and unstressed beats per line.

Some parts are written in prose, which is a conversational form of speech without a set rhythm or structure. This usually indicates:

• A character is of a lower status or has less refined speech

• A character is drunk or highly emotional (losing their control of language)

• Characters joking informally with each other

Prospero, the authoritative figure, often delivers his lines in poetic verse:

“Ye elves of hills, brooks, standing lakes, and groves,
And ye that on the sands with printless foot
Do chase the ebbing Neptune…”

This language shows Prospero’s status and adds depth to his character.

In contrast, Trinculo and Stephano speak in prose, reflecting their low status and lack of intelligence. Caliban, the island’s native inhabitant, sometimes speaks in prose; however, he usually speaks in verse, as this is the language Miranda taught him.

Imagery

Shakespeare uses vivid imagery to portray the magical elements of the play. For example, Ariel sings:

“Where the bee sucks, there suck I:
In a cowslip’s bell I lie…”

The imagery and rhyme present Ariel as a spirit enjoying the peace of nature, creating a vivid and enchanting picture.

Imagery of the sea is used a lot in the play. For example, in Miranda’s description of the storm:

“The sky, it seems would pour down stinking pitch
But that the sky, mounting to the welkin’s cheek
Dashes the fire out”

These evocative images enhance the sensory experience for the audience, helping the audience visualise the immense power of the storm that Prospero creates.

Structure and Dramatic Techniques

Structure

• The play opens in a dramatic fashion with the storm. This sets the tone for the chaos that will soon take place. The shipwrecked characters are separated, and they believe the rest of the crew to be dead. Alonso’s mourning for his son brings a high emotion to the situation.

• The middle part of the play explores assassination plots, Prospero’s revenge, and the burning love between Miranda and Ferdinand.

• In the end, much of the chaos established at the beginning of the play is resolved. Alonso’s reunion with Ferdinand provides the play’s emotional climax, and the desire for revenge and murder among the other characters falls away.

Dramatic Techniques

Dramatic techniques in the play include:

• Soliloquies

• Asides

• Dramatic irony

Soliloquies occur when characters speak their thoughts aloud in speeches running over several lines. These give us access to a character’s inner emotions and motivations. We see this when Prospero contemplates the nature of power:

“Our revels now are ended… We are such stuff
As dreams are made on, and our little life
Is rounded with a sleep.”

Asides occur when a character speaks directly to the audience, out of earshot from other characters. These are usually shorter than soliloquies, and they offer insight and commentary on proceedings. For example, Trinculo remarks on Caliban’s appearance in an aside:

“What have we here? A man or a fish? Dead or alive?
A fish: he smells like a fish”

The audience gains an insight into Trinculo’s misunderstanding and enjoys a moment of humour. 

Dramatic irony occurs when the audience knows something that a character on stage doesn’t. These moments heighten suspense and create anticipation. An example of this in the play is when the audience knows Ferdinand is alive while his father, Alonso, thinks he is dead.