How might I answer a question about control and manipulation in 'The Tempest'?

The student would do well to identify specific examples of control and manipulation in the text, making it clear which characters are involved in these power dynamics and in what capacity. Picking up on patterns of behaviour, for example Prospero's ongoing manipulation of and assertion of dominance over Caliban, arguably from the moment he set foot on the island twelve years ago, will enable the student to weigh the significance of these relationships against one another and against other forms of human interaction in the play. Does Shakespeare view control and manipulation as an inevitable part of interpersonal relationships, or is it specific to certain characters or situations, something to be done away with by the reconciliations and restorations of the comic conclusion? Some of these relationships are far more ambiguous than others: for example, a student might question who, in the case of Caliban, Stephano and Trinculo, is manipulating the other? And if the answer is Caliban, who has previously been manipulated by Prospero, what does this say about learned behaviours and the potential for the cycle of power and revenge to perpetuate itself?The student might also want to consider the kinds of manipulative behaviour seen in the play. For example, critic Stephen Orgel has claimed that Prospero's power is chiefly exemplified as a power over people, pointing out his use of language and rhetoric to influence Caliban and Miranda. An example to back up this point might be Prospero's constant emphasis of his brother's wickedness rather than his own political negligence during the extended exposition of Act 1 Scene 2, and the fact that he only asks Miranda if she is listening in this sequence when he has been alluding to Antonio. Thus, Prospero's wish that his daughter accept his version of events is evident. However, Prospero also uses other means to assert control over the people around him, such as when he uses his magic to put Miranda to sleep in the aforementioned scene, and when he makes use of it to torment Caliban.