The Tempest

 I really enjoyed reading Act 1 of The Tempest by William Shakespeare; however, it was really hard to understand the way Shakespeare writes, so thank goodness for the modern day translation, because I would have been lost the whole way through it!!!

In the first Act of The Tempest, Prospero manipulates and controls other characters by making them do what he says. Out of everyone, Prospero controls Ariel the most. The character, Ariel, is Prospero's slave; however, Ariel is grateful to be under the control of Prospero. Prospero retells his story once a month to Ariel to reassure him that Prospero saved him from his past, so Prospero's salvation should be imprinted into Ariel's mind. Prospero has a way to almost brain washing Ariel into making him think that he his some kind of hero for saving Ariel from his pervious life. He takes away Ariel's sense of reality and what is and what is not the truth. This type of brain washing and manipulation can be compared to the totalitarian Party in the novel, 1984. Ariel is brain washed into thinking that his life is better with Prospero when in reality, it’s not any better than his previous life. This relates to 1984, because the citizens of Oceania are controlled and brain washed into thinking that their lives are better with Big Brother watching over them. They learn to worship Big Brother and believe that he is their hero, just like the way Ariel thinks of Prospero being his hero and savior. Prospero in The Tempest, and the totalitarian Party in 1984 both know how to distort reality by brain washing, controlling, and manipulating others.