Time
The Tempest is the only play out of all Shakespeare's works that follows the Aristotelian unity of time - the events in the play take as long as the play itself. This is why Prospero talks for so long at the beginning of the play - there needs to be time for the first shipwrecked victim (the young Ferdinand) to make it to shore and then to be brought to Prospero. The brevity of time carries the play and the plot forward and influences almost every character - Alonso almost kills himself for the supposed loss of his son (he was missing for 20 minutes!), it takes a few hours to grant Ariel his freedom, Ferdinand and Miranda fall in love at first sight and commit after an hour or less. The play also covers all the characters' past events. Caliban's entire life story gets told, and so Miranda's and Prospero's. Moreover, Prospero ends the play referencing the future by saying "every third thought will be my grave".
Theatre
The Tempest often states its nature as a play, frequently comparing Prospero's spells and theatrical illusion, the shipwreck was "a brilliant performance", while Antonio and Sebastian are cast in a troop to act. Prospero may even speak about the Globe Theatre when he describes the world as an illusion: "the great globe ... shall dissolve ... like this insubstantial pageant". Ariel even disguises himself as figures from Classical mythology as he is commanded to assume the "shape" of a creature. Metadrama is used as a weapon, a substitute for reality, something that enhances the dreamlike atmosphere of the events. What Prospero organises is play-within-a-play, directed by Prospero himself.
Magic
Magic was a controversial subject in Shakespeare's day. At his time, in Protestant England, magic was generally considered a taboo; not all "magic", however, was considered a thing of evil. Several scholars took a more rational approach to the study of the supernatural.
Love
On one level Miranda and Ferdinand can actually be seen as 'insignificant' in The Tempest, because they are such a ‘cliché’ romantic couple. So their actions and speeches in the play are fairly limited, because of the simple and typical "love story" and also because they are both young and naive and so their plot is quite static. On the other hand they can also be seen as vitally significant in The Tempest because they are one of the components that contribute to the main theme of the play, “Order”. Prospero's plan is to bring back peace and stability following the injustice done to him and Miranda. To do this he needs to bring harmony between the people with whom he has had conflict with – Alonso. The love between Miranda and Ferdinand is the key to this as Ferdinand is the heir to Alonso's throne and Miranda is Prospero's. Therefore they can be seen as holding the theme in place because they consolidate Prospero's plan of order and reconciliation. Also, by them coming together we are reassured that the future of Milan and Naples will also be close friends for the next generation and the next because now they're allies. So even though their characters are simplistic and so can seem insignificant it is their ultimate function that makes them significant in the play as a whole. They are the future generation that represent a 'fresh start', (which could be the reason why Shakespeare made them both such naive, young characters). [if !supportLineBreakNewLine] [endif]
