The Tempest
William Shakespeare · 1611 · Paper 1 Section A
Context
Written c.1611 and considered Shakespeare's farewell to the stage, The Tempest engages with early colonial encounters in the New World. Written during the expansion of the Virginia Company, it reflects Jacobean debates about mastery, servitude, and the ethics of empire, while the metatheatrical epilogue sees Prospero relinquish his art — often read as Shakespeare's own farewell.