THETEMPEST-ActOne-SceneOne

William Shakespeare

MASTER - Master of the Ship

BOATSWAIN - Servant of the Ship's Master

ALONSO - King of Naples

ANTONIO - The King's Brother

SEBASTIAN - The King's Brother

GONZALO - The King's Counsellor

Onashipatsea:atempestuousnoiseofthunderandlightningheard.

EnteraMasterandaBoatswain.

MASTER

Boatswain!

BOATSWAIN

Here, master: what cheer?

MASTER

Good, speak to the mariners: fall to't, yarely[1], orwe run ourselves aground: bestir, bestir.

Exit.

EnterMariners[2].

BOATSWAIN

Heigh, my hearts! cheerly, cheerly, my hearts! Yare, yare! Take in the topsail. Tend to the master's whistle. Blow, till thou burst thy wind, ifroom enough!

EnterALONSO,SEBASTIAN,ANTONIO,FERDINAND,GONZALO,andothers.

ALONSO

Goodboatswain, have care. Where's the master? Playthe men.

BOATSWAIN

Ipray now, keep below.

ANTONIO

Whereis the master, boatswain?

BOATSWAIN

Doyou not hear him? You mar our labour: keep your cabins: you doassist the storm.

GONZALO

Nay, good, be patient.

BOATSWAIN

Whenthe sea is. Hence! What cares these roarers forthe name of king? To cabin: silence! Trouble us not.

GONZALO

Good, yet remember whom thou hast aboard.

BOATSWAIN

Nonethat I more love than myself. You are a

counsellor; if you can command these elements to

silence, and work the peace of the present, we will

not hand a rope more; the if you

cannot, give thanks you have lived so long, and make

yourself ready in your cabin for the mischance of

the hour, if it so hap. Cheerly, good hearts! Out

of our way, I say.

Exit.

GONZALO

Ihave great comfort from this fellow: methinks he hathno drowning mark upon him; his complexion is perfectgallows. Stand fast, good Fate, to his hanging: make the rope of his destiny our cable, forour own doth little advantage. If he be not bornto be hanged, our case is miserable.

Exit.

Re-enterBoatswain.

BOATSWAIN

Downwith the topmast! Yare! Lower, lower! Bring herto try with main-course.

Acrywithin.

Aplague upon this howling! They are louder than theweather or our office.

Re-enterSEBASTIAN,ANTONIO,andGONZALO.

Yetagain! what do you here? Shall we give o'er anddrown? Have you a mind to sink?

SEBASTIAN

Apox o' your throat, you bawling, blasphemous, incharitabledog!

BOATSWAIN

Workyou then.

ANTONIO

Hang, cur! Hang, you whoreson, insolent noisemaker! Weare less afraid to be drowned than thou art.

GONZALO

I'll warrant him for drowning; though the ship were nostronger than a nutshell and as leaky as an unstanchedwench.

BOATSWAIN

Layher a-hold, a-hold! Set her two courses off to seaagain; lay her off.

EnterMariners,wet.

MARINERS

Alllost! To prayers, to prayers! All lost!

BOATSWAIN

What, must our mouths be cold?

GONZALO

Theking and prince at prayers! Let's assist them, Forour case is as theirs.

SEBASTIAN

I'm out of patience.

ANTONIO

Weare merely cheated of our lives by drunkards: Thiswide-chapp'd rascal--would thou mightst lie drowning Thewashing of ten tides!

GONZALO

He'll be hang'd yet, Thoughevery drop of water swear against it Andgape at widest to glut him.

Aconfusednoisewithin: 'Mercyonus!'-- 'Wesplit,wesplit!'--'Farewell,mywifeandchildren!'-- 'Farewell,brother!'--'Wesplit,wesplit,wesplit!'

ANTONIO

Let's all sink with the king.

SEBASTIAN

Let's take leave of him.

ExitANTONIOandSEBASTIAN.

GONZALO

Nowwould I give a thousand furlongs of sea for an acreof barren ground, long heath, brown furze, any thing. The wills above be done! But I would fain diea dry death.

Exit.

The Boatswain's command that the Mariners "Blow, till thou burst thy wind" is meant to emphasize that their situation is

Select one:

a.

senseless

b.

gloomy

c.

loud

d.

dire

Clear my choice

The Boatswain suggests that he values his life more than he respects authority MOST CLEARLY in the line

Select one:

a.

"They are louder than the weather or our office."

b.

"if you cannot, give thanks you have lived so long"

c.

"None that I more love than myself."

d.

"What cares these roarers for the name of king?"

Gonzalo suggests that the Boatswain's attitude will cause him to die by

Select one:

a.

fighting

b.

aging

c.

drowning

d.

hanging

In the line "They are louder than the weather or our office", the Boatswain compares the noise of the storm to the

Select one:

a.

sails

b.

yelling

c.

whistling

d.

orders

The King's attendants react to the Boatswain's orders with

Select one:

a.

arrogance

b.

distrust

c.

indifference

d.

regard

The Boatswain figuratively expresses his realization of doom in the line

Select one:

a.

"Have you a mind to sink?"

b.

"Lay her a-hold, a-hold!"

c.

"A plague upon this howling!"

d.

"What, must our mouths be cold?"

Clear my choice

Gonzalo's final lines convey his desire to

Select one:

a.

reach land

b.

die peacefully

c.

stop the storm

d.

control the sea

A synonym for FAIN in the line "But I would fain die a dry death" is

Select one:

a.

rather

b.

never

c.

fight

d.

forgive

Gonzalo's final lines are an example of

Select one:

a.

a soliloquy

b.

a prologue

c.

an epilogue

d.

an aside

The stage directions - characters leaving and reentering, and voices yelling from off-stage - add to the scene's feeling of

Select one:

a.

chaos

b.

suspense

c.

hopelssness

d.

animosity