Let's assume that the play is an allegory, and that Prospero is the central character in that allegory, and then ask, "How do all the parts of the play fit together?"

The first question to be answered is, "What is the quest of the allegory?"
Examples of quests in famous English allegories:

• In Everyman, Everyman is summoned by Death to give account of his life in this world. His quest to be admitted to heaven.
• In The Faerie Queene the first book concerns the Redcross Knight (Holiness), to whom The Faerie Queene gives the task of fighting a terrible dragon (Satan). In that book, the quest of the Redcross Knight is to defeat the dragon.
• In Pilgrim's Progress concerns Pilgrim's journey from the "City of Destruction" to the "Celestial City."
Pilgrim's quest is to reach the Celestial City and be saved.

Also, in each of the three cases above, the allegory presents some elements as obstacles, and others as assistants in the quest. Identify the obstacles and the assistants in The Tempest.

The three famous allegories mentioned above are all highly moralistic. They define good and evil, praising good and condemning evil. What are the definitions of good and evil in this play? Compare the values you find in this play with the values in other plays by Shakespeare.