The Tempest

William ShakespeareProject Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

4.8

Word count: 146K words
Chapters: 15

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.The Tempest by William ShakespeareAuthor: Shakespeare, William, 1564-1616,Language: English, Class: PR: Language and Literatures: English literature, Release Date: Oct 26, 2007

Editor's review

The Tempest is a representative late romance by Shakespeare and is generally regarded as the last play he completed independently among those that survive complete. This Project Gutenberg electronic edition presents the English original in a compact length that combines romantic fantasy with profound humanistic reflection. The island, magic, spirits, and shipwreck form a fantastical frame, while the relationships between Prospero and Caliban and Ariel, along with themes of forgiveness and reconciliation, offer ample room for discussion. It serves both as a light entry into Shakespeare's dramatic world and as a rereading for those familiar with his plays, conveying the relaxed, introspective quality of his late style. The electronic edition is easy to search and compare, suitable for classrooms, reading groups, or self-study. Note that this is a public-domain English original without Chinese annotation; readers should have a dictionary or reference translation at hand.

Who it's for

A good fit for

English learners who want to encounter Shakespeare's original plays in a shorter length
Students in university English literature or drama courses who need to read the original text
General readers interested in the fantastical island setting and the theme of forgiveness
Reading group members looking for a classic that invites discussion of colonialism and power

Not a good fit for

Beginners with no English reading ability who need Chinese annotation
Readers expecting modern long-form fantasy or fast-paced plot
Researchers who need an authoritative scholarly edition with detailed annotation

Reading tips

Read through once to understand the plot's direction, then return to close-read Prospero's long speeches.
Keep a Chinese translation at hand for comparison and look up archaic expressions and allusions promptly.
Use Caliban's and Ariel's lines to think about the relationship between power and freedom.
For a reading group, assign reading by act and discuss around the theme of forgiveness.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

Is this book a Chinese version or the English original?

This is the English original eBook released by Project Gutenberg; the text is Shakespeare's English play without Chinese translation or annotation, so readers need some foundation in English reading.

Can I read this directly without having read other Shakespeare works?

Yes. The Tempest is relatively short and concentrated in plot and is often regarded as one of the entry points to Shakespeare, but the play contains many archaic expressions and allusions, so reading with a translation or annotations is recommended.

Is this electronic edition suitable for classroom use?

It is suitable as the original text for classroom reading and is easy to search and print; however, it contains no scholarly annotation or introduction, so teachers will usually need to supplement background materials and edition notes for a course.

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About the author

William Shakespeare Author · English · 1564–1616

William Shakespeare (1564–1616) was the greatest playwright, poet and actor of the English Renaissance. Born in Stratford-upon-Avon, England, he is known as the "Bard of Avon." He wrote roughly thirty-seven to thirty-nine plays, one hundred and fifty-four sonnets and narrative poems. His representative works include Hamlet, Othello, King Lear, Macbeth and Romeo and Juliet. His works span tragedy, comedy and history play, distinguished by rich, poetic language and profound characterization. His explorations of human nature, power, love and fate have had a lasting influence, and his works have been translated into many languages and circulated widely around the world.