The Tempest · Character

Stephano

A drunken butler who washes ashore with a bottle of wine, crowns himself king of the island, and recruits Caliban for a bungled coup.

supporting

Also known as Stephano Trinculo, Enter Stephano, Stephano Ay, Stephano Prithee, Stephano Moon, Stephano Moon - calf, Stephano Monster, O king Stephano, Stephano Mum

First appearance: the tempest

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Stephano stumbles out of the wreckage clutching sack and quickly becomes the center of the play's low comedy, trading songs with Trinculo and accepting Caliban's worship as his due. He dreams aloud of a kingdom where he'll have his music for nothing, and his bloody thoughts grow bolder with every drink even as his plans stay absurdly small. His alliance with Caliban and Trinculo turns rebellion into farce, letting Shakespeare show how tyrants are made from vanity and liquor as much as from ambition.

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Character Web

15 connections

A slice of how Stephano sits in the book — open the reader for the full interactive map.

Relationship types

Friendship
Rivalry
Social
Other

Character groups

Shipwrecked nobles and islanders
Protagonist
Minor and background figures

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Narrative arc

Story tension across the book.

Setup
Escalation
Breaking point

In this epilogue, the emotional and psychological peak occurs when Prospero, having regained his dukedom and f…

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Relationships

Caliban
friendship · ambivalent
Ariel
rivalry · negative
Sebastian
social · ambivalent
Sebastian
social · ambivalent
Caliban
friendship · ambivalent
Caliban
friendship · ambivalent
Ariel
rivalry · negative

Caliban
Caliban idolizes Stephano as a god and ally in his plot against Prospero, while Stephano exploits him for power.
Ariel
Ariel torments Stephano and Trinculo with magical tricks to disrupt their drunken conspiracy.
Sebastian
Sebastian and Stephano are both part of the shipwrecked party but have no meaningful interaction.
Sebastian
Sebastian and Stephano are both part of the shipwrecked party but have no meaningful interaction.
Caliban
Caliban idolizes Stephano as a god and ally in his plot against Prospero, while Stephano exploits him for power.
Caliban
Caliban idolizes Stephano as a god and ally in his plot against Prospero, while Stephano exploits him for power.
Ariel
Ariel torments Stephano and Trinculo with magical tricks to disrupt their drunken conspiracy.

Relationship notes

How these ties play out is in the reading companion — open the free preview.

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In the story

Stephano appears across 3 companion beats. Open any chapter in the free preview to see the notes beside the text.

Chapter companion notes

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See Stephano in the tempest