4.1.1

Overview

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Overview of Act 2

Here is an overview of the key ideas and themes of Act 2:

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Gonzalo's speech - Utopian society

  • Gonzalo’s lengthy speech of a utopian society highlights the flaws in the British society of Jacobean England.
    • 'I'th' commonwealth...' / 'no name of magistrate' / 'riches, poverty and use of service none' / 'produce without sweat or endeavour' / 'innocent people'.
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Antonio's ambition

  • In this Act, we see the ambition of men such as Antonio - who wishes to overthrow his King.
  • Antonio manipulates 'worthy Sebastian' into a discussion of taking his brother Alonso’s crown, much like Antonio’s betrayal of Prospero years earlier.
  • Even though Prospero is not on stage, the audience’s sympathy for Prospero grows further during this Act. This is because they witness the 'evil nature[s]' within these characters.
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Exploitation of Caliban

  • Trinculo and Stephano both plan to take Caliban away and use him for profit back home - by displaying him for money.
  • Caliban trusts these men, only because they are slightly nicer to him than Prospero.
  • The audience can see that Caliban is being exploited (taken advantage of) by these men, so they may feel some sympathy for him.

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