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Question: Discuss about the Shakespeare Literature. Answer: Significance of music in the play the Tempest Introduction The Tempest is one of the plays of William Shakespeare that has included a lot of singing and dancing in its narrative. There is at least one musical element in every act. The scope of the entire play is on a deserted island that is inhabited by just three people. In such a case, music adds a sense of solemnity for the audience that is there to witness the play. Also, the music has a strange pleasing effect on Caliban, who has been portrayed as rude and uneducated. Caliban is seen to be getting fascinated by the isle [which] is full of noises, / Sounds, and sweet airs that give delight and hurt not. Taking a closer look, we find that music gets a center stage in all the proceedings of the play. Music is used not as a background tool like it is usually done in most cases. We can clearly see that music, in fact, dictates whatever happens throughout the course of action of the play. The role of Music If we were to follow the neo-platonic idealization, we would know that music has the ability to be a tool of both a source of riot and disorder and an imitation of the divine. When we look at The Tempest, we can find that it has been used in both the ways very efficiently by Shakespeare(Lindley). Right at the beginning of the play, we find the storm being brought about by Prospero. As we progress, we find a lot of song and music being played by Ariel(Blackstone). All these pieces of music have played an important part throughout the play to give it a framework or something to support the entire course of action. Almost all of the pieces of music that Shakespeare uses in The Tempest contain a message in some or the other form. From what can be seen, the message is either one that is used to convey to the characters some piece of information or idea, or it is for providing some kind of idea to the audience. Ariels second song, which can be found in Act I scene II, lines 396-403, contains an idea of this nature. This is where we find an important message that is being conveyed through a song(Butler 120-122). Ariel does not for once convey directly to Ferdinand that his father has not survived the shipwreck. However, Ferdinand does not fail to understand the message and also reveals that it was something that he had already anticipated. The next big deciding factor in the plays narrative also comes when Ariel sings a song to prevent Alonso from getting murdered(Guo). In this scene, Ariel makes the entire company fall asleep except for Sebastian and Antonio. As they are awake and Ariel is invisible, he listens to the entire conspiracy plans being made by the two of them. It is here that we find Ariel once again make use of music to avert an impending disaster. Ariel softly sings into Gonzalos ears to wake him up. Gonzalo wakes up and finds Sebastian and Antonio with unsheathed swords. Ariel was invisible in the scene but music played a part in portraying him as being present on the stage. Also, music is an important factor that is being used by Shakespeare to give his narrative a direction. Joshua Cohen in his article, The music of The Tempest, says that this is an important factor, as it is not clear whether Ariel is Air, spirit, nature, song. However, Music is the only factor that provides the audience to understan d that Ariel does possess a physical existence as well. Joshua Cohen delves deeper into the background of Shakespeares usage of music in the play. He links it to the Greek tragedy where music was used as a tool for evoking emotions in the hearts of the audiences. He says that Shakespeare borrowed the tool from the Operas, which were taking shape during that period. One of the earliest Operas, Monteverdis Orfeo, was being premiered in 1607, which was just four years prior to the premiere of The Tempest. Joshua Cohen believes that it is quite possible that Shakespeare incorporated the musical element into his plays in accordance with the contemporary trend. The Opera, in turn, was a product that was inspired by the musical pieces in the Greek tragedies that were created by a section of Florentine poets and musicians known as the Camerata(Moseley). In such a case, the use of Shakespeare can be traced back to the Greek tragedies. Shakespeare took note of the contemporary trend, and used it in a manner similar to how it was originally used. Thus, from what we have seen, it is quite evident that Shakespeare does not treat music as an external element in this play(Howard 474-478). Although Shakespeare utilized music in a lot of other plays, this one is where he utilized it in an integrated manner. As Shakespeare had a dedicated team of musicians who would play music for his plays, he put them to full use in this play. While in the other plays, music did exist as an external factor, that was in the background and was utilized solely for providing a kind of concreteness to the action on the stage, The Tempest can be considered to be Shakespeares only play that integrates music as a part of the play itself. When we speak of The Tempest, we see that the music is shown to be taking place in the course of action. The songs, the music, are in fact part of the entire action. The songs are shown as being entwined with the air of the magical island. Finally, the most important pieces of music can be seen in the masque that is performed in the end and the song that Ariel performs in the end. The masque performed by Juno and Ceres is one of the most attractive pieces of music that can be seen throughout the play(Petrobelli). The song by Juno and Ceres contains a marriage for the newly engaged couple and as a result is a part of the narrative. While Shakespeare utilized the concept of a play within a play, he decided to take full advantage of the situation. He used this scene to convey a message to the audience and also to give an idea about the future direction. What is further notable in this scene is that the characters who perform the masque are not the kind of entities that Ariel is(Naylor). Although they are spirits much like Ariel, they are visible to the audience as well as the characters. Their extravagant show is, in fact, a technique to draw the attention to the importance of the scene and the message. In the end, we hear the last song by Ariel which gives us an idea of what the future holds for the characters. This is a brilliant touch by Shakespeare as he utilized music throughout the course of the play as its driving force. Conclusion While The Tempest is one of the most musical plays of Shakespeare, it is important to notice that it is also different. While the other plays merely utilized music as a kind of support, The Tempest gives it a prime spot as the driving force of the play. References Blackstone, William. Commentaries On The Laws Of England. Print. Butler, K. "Shakespeare, Sound And Sense". Early Music 40.1 (2012): 120-122. Web. Guo, Yuehua. "A Rebel Against Colonization A Comparative Study Of CesaireS Caliban In A Tempest With Shakespeare's Caliban In The Tempest". Asian Social Science 4.2 (2008): n. pag. Web. Howard, Skiles. "Shakespeare And Music, And: Shakespeare And Comedy (Review)". Shakespeare Quarterly 57.4 (2006): 474-478. Web. Lindley, David. Shakespeare And Music. Arden Shakespeare, 2014. Print. Moseley, C. W. R. D. William Shakespeare. Tirril, Penrith: Humanities-Ebooks, 2007. Print. Naylor, Edward Woodall. Shakespeare Music. [Place of publication not identified]: Best Books, 2001. Print. Petrobelli, Pierluigi. Music In The Theater. Princeton University Press, 2014. Print. Shakespeare, William, and Sheila Innes. The Tempest. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2007. Print.