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Literature and Science :
An Interdisciplinary Approach.
An Experiment on Shakespeare and 'Science' in The Tempest
This experiment needs four essential elements: First, a copy of
Shakespeare's The Tempest. (find it free online)
Secondly and Thirdly: Take a look at these two short essays
from the British Library. The first is by Emma Smith on the
role of Prospero in the play and the second by Malcolm Hebron on his status as a 'magus.'
Fourthly, and it might be a bit heavy going, but if you read the two short essays first it will go over familiar territory: try this award winning article by Elizabeth Spiller:
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'Shakespeare and the Making of Early Modern Science: Resituating Prospero's Art by Elizabeth Spiller South Central Review, Vol. 26, No. 1/2, Shakespeare & Science (Spring - Summer, 2009), pp. 24-41
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/40211290
To develop and expand your research on this issue start by locating some of the resources on Spiller's Works Cited page.
Sample Essay Prompt: In what ways is The Tempest dealing with what Elizabeth Spiller calls "Aristotelian conceptions about the divide between art and nature." ?
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Pavan: 16th Century. Anonymous
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