Character sketch Of Miranda
Miranda is introduced in Act 1 scene 2 of the play and the first impression the audience gets is that of a very innocent girl who can empathize with the hardships of a fellow being. That is clear when she say "I have suffered with those that I suffer".
Her most conspicuous quality is her sympathy. Having seen the shipwreck, she has suffered a lot. The cries of the passengers"did knock against her heart". On hearing the father narration of his banishment, her heart is filled with sorrow, thinking of his distress. When see come to know that Gonzalo had helped them, she expressed a wish to0 see him. She is thankful for the fact that all those misfortunes had ended. Thus, the whole conversation revealed that Miranda is intelligent, loving, gentle and sympathetic by nature.
Her pity is aroused while seeing Ferdinand suffering under the burden of toil imposed upon him by Prospero. She pleads her father on behalf of Ferdinand.
Miranda's character is marked by Prospero when she was a little child. Her smile was a source of great comfort and strength to her father. When she learns from her father that he is a princess by birth, she does not feel any regret at having lost the royal life. On the contrary, she asks her father if there might not be a blessing in their adversity.
Miranda's innocence, simplicity, and trusting nature come to fore when she meets Ferdinand. He is the first man that she has seen, apart from her father. She falls in love with Ferdinand at first sight which is quite natural because she had never seen a man with the exception of her father. Her love is deep, guanine and passionate.
She feels sorrow when she sees that his father is very harsh on him. She offers to carry the logs for him as he is not used to such hard work. She is modest but at the same, she expresses her love for him without any hesitation. She openly says,'I am your wife if thou will marry me:/ If not I'll die your maid:" Tjus her love, simplicity, inexperience with life, and her innocent make her extremely lovable character.
Miranda is worthy of admiration is revealed in the way her father describes her. Ferdinand worships her and Alonso admires her. Prospero boasts to Ferdinand that "She will outstrip all praise And
make it halt behind her". Ferdinand, in turn, feels that all the hardship are worth if she could she Miranda once a day. He Finds her peerless; she surpasses all the girls, he has met. He finds her worthy to become his wife and Queen of Naples. Alonso finds her so beautiful that he mistakes her for a goddess.
Miranda is undoubtedly one of the most charming creations of Shakespeare. Without her "The Tempest" would be deprived of its beauty and appeal.