Instruction
Instructions are attached. read through
Topic is on The Tempest by William Shakespeare
A. )At least two pages introducing the work—Who wrote it? Under what circumstances? What is its genre?
etc.—and summarizing it.
B.) At least three pages discussing the work as a Renaissance text. How does it typify Renaissance thought?
What themes from our course are present? How does the work develop those themes? Does the work
seem to illustrate a grand narrative of the period, such as the Burckhardt thesis or the Baron thesis?
What historical landmarks are relevant, e.g. the Reformation, the accession of Leo X, the death of
Elizabeth I, etc.? Does the work prefigure or respond to any text that we have read in class?
C.) At least two pages discussing any ways the work seems unique or atypical of its period. In other words,
where do you think the influence of Renaissance culture ends and the individuality of the author begins?
In what ways does this work seem unique, not like other Renaissance works of the same genre or subject
matter? Does the work contradict any of the grand narratives of the period, such as the Burckhardt
thesis or the Baron thesis?