The Tempest

William Shakespeare · 1564–1616 · England

Why it matters

A sorcerer-duke shipwrecks his usurpers on his island, torments them with spirits, then chooses forgiveness and drowns his book. Shakespeare's late farewell to his own art, and, in Caliban, a text colonial writers have answered ever since.

At a glance

Short and fable-clear in plot, with late-style compression in the verse.