The Tempest Act I

There are many instances in Act I of The Tempest in which Prospero uses his words to manipulate those around him to do what he wants. He manipulates his own daughter Miranda, a slave which he despises, Caliban, and his servant Ariel who is just trying to gain his freedom.

He uses the story of how he was taken out of power in Milan by his treacherous brother to gain pity from his daughter. These feelings cause Miranda to love and trust him undoubtingly. He uses her good nature and emotions to win her unwavering loyalty. An example of this is when he was telling her the story of how the brother took him out of power, she says "Alack, for pity! I, not remembering how I cried out then,will cry it o'er again. It is a hint, that wrings mine eyes to ’t". She was so young she does not really remember all this happening, and upon hearing the retelling of the story she believes that she must have been crying when it all happened, but it is such a terrible story she will cry again because of the torment her father went through.

Prospero uses a threat of violence due to his powers of magic to make Caliban comply with his wishes. During their conversation, Caliban is rude to Prospero because Prospero took away the island from him before enslaving him. After Caliban curses Prospero, wishing malicious things on him, Prospero responds by saying, "For this, be sure, tonight thou shalt have cramps, side-stitches that shall pen thy breath up. Urchins shall, forth at vast of night that they may work, all exercise on thee. Thou shalt be pinched as thick as honeycomb, each pinch more stinging than bees that made 'em". After this threat, Caliban remains as rude, but he does not blatantly wish harm on Prospero.

He also uses the good things he has done in the past over Ariel. Ariel was a servant to Sycorax, and she treated him horribly. She locked him up inside a hollow pine tree and died before she could let him out. Only people with magical powers could let him out, and Prospero did so. Ariel was then forced into a certain number of year's servitude, which Prospero took a year off for being a good servant who never lied or complained. When Ariel's time was up, he asked Prospero for his freedom, but Prospero maintained that his sentence was not up and he had another year remaining. He also reminded Ariel what he had done for him saying, "Dull thing, I say so. He, that Caliban whom now I keep in service. Thou best know’st what torment I did find thee in. Thy groans of ever angry bears. It was a torment did make wolves howl and penetrate the breasts to lay upon the damned, which Sycorax could not again undo. It was mine art, when I arrived and heard thee, that made gape the pine and let thee out." This causes Ariel to thank Prospero instead of fight and argue for his freedom that was rightfully his.