- Finalizing the rules and expectations of close reading
- Essaying to simplify the rules for finding and articulating a thesis statement
- In lecture this week we have looked at multiple ways of reading Prospero and Caliban, first by looking at images from productions to see how they are presented as characters (Druid or Bishop; monster or victim) and then by looking at the sorts of speech acts they use.
Do the same thing with Miranda, in the following order:
- Google for images of Miranda from productions of The Tempest -- you might want to print out one or two to bring to class so you can make your point
- Identify the different ways we can read Miranda's character: we know that Prospero can be read as manipulative or as gentle, and that Caliban can be read as monstrous and as victimized. What are two options for our reading of Miranda?
- Read Miranda's first speech -- I.ii.1ff (1662a)
- Identify the sorts of speech acts she uses (commands? curses? storytelling?)
- Close read her speech in at least two ways you identified as being possible approaches to her character
- When Prof. Dubrow was talking about her own recent analytical work, she explained, first, that the topic she was interested in was the relationship between space and storytelling. Then she defined that relationship a bit more specifically: How does storytelling create or control space? This process is fairly straightforward: Prof. Dubrow chose two topics* that we have tackled this semester -- space and storytelling -- and asked a question that tried to articulate the relationship between them.
Now you try! Pick two topics that pertain to The Tempest and formulate a question that asks about the relationship between these topics. Does one topic control or shape the other? Are they interdependent?
* Note that a "topic" is not necessarily the same thing as a theme. A theme can certainly be a topic, but we've never really thought about space as a theme, or closure. Also, you should not feel tied down to the themes Prof. Dubrow has put on the board in lecture.
3 comments:
Concerning the first question, I noticed that Miranda used a lot of conditional statements. Note all of them were "if-then"; various other constructions in this speech serve the same purpose. Perhaps this indicates a certain degree of wishful thinking, with Miranda seeing a power that is beyond her grasp. On the other hand, it might also illustrate a type of power through speech. Miranda, without being forceful (commands, cursing and the like) imposed her ideas and words over a scene, which follows those ideas,
It also could be Miranda's way of speaking her mind to her father, but still avoiding to get into trouble with him. By using "if" and "had" and other similar words, it's almost as though she's saying something that she doesn't really believe in herself, but is simply speaking it for the sake of saying something; merely talking about the weather. Or she could be testing her power against her father's by seeing his reaction but still having the ability to take it back. In that way she could be using casuistry in that she is making an argument, but still has the ability to take it back if her father gets mad.
With the first question, it appears that Miranda is quite angry about the plight of the sailors. However, she seems to believe that it was the work of her father, as "If by your art, my dearest father, you have Put the wild waters in this roar, allay them." seems to be a type of command towards her father, but uncertain, as if she was covering herself in case the shipwreck had not been his fault, or if it would anger him that she would contest his will. It seems that she is essentially attempting to place blame, but covering herself while doing so, similiarly to what shannon said.
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