Utopia in the TempestIn The Tempest, Shakespeare allows the audience to appreciate the possibilities of utopian society, the good and the bad, so that they can understand the problems that the pursuit of a utopian environment can cause. The Tempest is a window on the dimensions of utopian societies. Shakespeare's play depicts the good and bad sides of the perfect life. As his characters take on the role of leaders of utopian societies, Shakespeare depicts social issues and society's beliefs about what a utopian environment should be. The definition of a “utopia” is essential to the discussion of this aspect of The Tempest. . For different characters, this “utopia” means different things. First, and perhaps most importantly, as she says, Miranda's utopia consists of a world populated with many other human beings. Other characters have a variety of different ideas about utopia and versions of their “utopia.” Caliban's utopia changes throughout the play and Gonzalo's seems somewhat confused because he has two ideas that seem to contradict each other. One facet of Prospero's utopia is an example of what society at the time considered a utopia. An easy existence, free of manual labor, ...... middle of paper ...... helps that the central utopian power of poetry amounts to true liberation and that it "makes familiar objects unfamiliar." However, I think the ending of the play is the true form of utopia as it truly celebrates the reconciliation of the characters from their past, the two main themes being reformation and restoration as the play begins in chaos and recovers at the end. .Works Cited and Consulted Boss, Judith E. "The Golden Age, Cockaigne and Utopia in The Faerie Queene and The Temepest." Georgia Review 26 (1972) 145-55.Shakespeare, William. The Tempest. Ed. Franck Kermode. Cambridge: Harvard UP, 1958.