Act IV, Scene 1, lines 1-163 Questions and Answers
Study Questions
1. Why did Prospero punish Ferdinand by forcing him to carry logs?
2. What was Ferdinand’s reward for standing up under the test of log-bearing?
3. What is Prospero’s warning to Ferdinand?
4. What does Prospero instruct Ariel to do in this scene?
5. Which characters are given dialogue in the masque?
6. List the characters who sing the masque song?
7. Explain the reason why Ceres does not want Venus to attend the masque?
8. In whose honor is the masque given?
9. Why does the masque suddenly vanish?
10. In what way does Prospero compare life to the masque or the stage?
Answers
1. Prospero’s punishment was a trial of Ferdinand’s love for Miranda.
2. Prospero rewards Ferdinand with a “rich gift,” his daughter Miranda.
3. Prospero warns Ferdinand that he should not break the “virgin-knot” before he and Miranda have recited their marriage vows.
4. Prospero instructs Ariel to summon his spirits and bring on the masque.
5. Iris, Ceres, and Juno speak during the masque.
6. Juno and Ceres sing the masque song.
7. Venus and her son, Cupid, helped Pluto abduct Ceres’ daughter Proserpine.
8. The masque is given in honor of Ferdinand and Miranda, the betrothed couple.
9. The masque vanishes when Prospero remembers that Caliban and his new-found friends are conspiring to kill him.
10. All the material things of life, including life itself, will eventually dissolve.
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