A review by sunkernplus
The Tempest by William Shakespeare

adventurous challenging lighthearted fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

This play is still very interesting for all that could be unsaid (yaaaaay poststructuralist theory yaaaaaaaaaay) but unfortunately, I don't find it as compelling as I once did when I read it at 12-13 years old. The characters are fairly flat, and the characters who aren't flat (namely, Prospero) are misogynistic, spiteful, hypocritical pigs (though arguably, that's the point: don't go after me for being a typical Goodreads user who lacks reading comprehension, I do have a fair bit of that). I particularly dislike the portrayals of Caliban and Miranda; Caliban has some sympathy points with me for being an enslaved African (and always had sympathy with me), but I lost interest in him once I realized that Shakespeare had created him to be a flat caricature of Afro-Indigenous slaves on purpose: carnally sexual, so stupid that he didn't even have the will to learn to read, and barely human. Miranda fared better, but she's barely a character, so I could hardly comment on her. I'd honestly give it about 3.5 stars. The mercury had probably gotten to Shakespeare's brain by this point.
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