The Biblical Archetypal Model and Its Embodiment in <i>The Tempest</i>

Abstract

The Tempest, written by William Shakespeare, is highly influenced by The Holy Bible, the western culture and literature source. This paper utilizes Northrop Frye’s mythic archetypal criticism theory to study the play’s embodiment of the biblical archetypal model. Previous studies have only dealt with one aspect of the biblical archetype in The Tempest. This essay discusses that the characters, structure, plot, and imagery of The Tempest can all find the archetypes in The Holy Bible. It is found that the play is the Scriptures’ double to some extent, through which Shakespeare wants to spread biblical values such as morality and fraternity.