It caught me when Gonzalo says:
Now would I give a thousand furlongs of sea for an
acre of barren ground, long heath, brown furze, anything.
the wills above be done! But would I fain
die a dry death.
acre of barren ground, long heath, brown furze, anything.
the wills above be done! But would I fain
die a dry death.
I found this picture that shows all the different deaths in England in one year. With so little deaths being drowning or 'accidental threats to breathing' as the picture puts it, why are we so concerned about drowning whenever we go to a beach or we see children in water? There are typically 3X the amount of deaths on the road or in transport accidents!
Still though, this opening to the play, with the threat of death near, adds an aspect of spectacle and fear. Inciting this early on, I would say that an audience would not really know what to expect for the rest of the play. Usually something so dramatic might be the climax of a play or film and the dramatic question is: Will they survive this storm?? But if this is only the first scene in The Tempest, then of course they will! No one dies in the first scene. It's an interesting element to add so early on to the play.
I didn't think of that, how not only is the first scene exciting but it's usually something that would be the climax of a story. Do you think Shakespeare started out the play with an action scene for spectacle? Or is there more to it?
ReplyDeleteTo me the play begins this way to grab the audiences attention almost the same way a cliff-hanger does. If they are sitting on the edge of their seat waiting for the climax the whole time (a) they are going to have sore bottoms and (b) Shakespeare has accomplished what he wants with the audience: intrigued, attentive listeners.
ReplyDeleteI think we're afraid of drowning because it's terrifying. . . have you ever almost drowned? It's SUCH a helpless feeling.
ReplyDeleteAnyway, I think that this scene was a great hook to bring the audience in as Matt said. It's a different way to start his play some of his others, but maybe it hints at this one being more fantastical and adventurous in style than the others.