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GCSE English Literature · key term
To reject or formally give up something. Prospero uses the verb when renouncing his magic.
Used by AQA and Edexcel
Paper 1
To renounce or formally give up something.
Revise: ProsperoIn Act 5 Scene 1, Prospero moves from describing “my so potent art” to declaring “this rough magic / I here abjure”. “Potent” means powerful; “abjure” means formally renounce. Giving up what made him dominant suggests a willingness to accept limits, although he still uses magic to complete his work before surrendering it.
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Paper 1
To reject or renounce something solemnly. Prospero uses this verb when promising to give up his magic.
Revise: Magic and illusionThe speech draws on the sorceress Medea's invocation in Ovid's Metamorphoses. That connection further complicates Prospero's separation of his learned art from dangerous witchcraft. His description of “this rough magic / I here abjure” also recognises its disturbing force.
