I heart Shakespeare. (The Tempest, Act I)

The Tempest,By William Shakespeare.
In Act I of the Tempest, we meet Prospero and his daughter Miranda. Prospero immediately shows manipulation in the opening act of the play, most evidently through the conjuring of the storm, but also in mental manipulation through his words. Specifically and initially, when Miranda asks her father to stop the storm, he merely replies,

"No harm.
I have done nothing but in care of thee,
Of thee, my dear one—thee my daughter, who
Art ignorant of what thou art, naught knowing
Of whence I am, nor that I am more better
Than Prospero, master of a full poor cell
And thy no greater father."

In doing this, Prospero uses cautious words to portray himself as innocent, while completely avoiding the questions and concerns of his daughter, Miranda. Additionally, we learn that Prospero has never really discussed with Miranda the true story of his past and who she really is. She says,
“You have often
Begun to tell me what I am, but stopped
And left me to a bootless inquisition,
Concluding, 'Stay. Not yet.'"
to which he merely shakes off and ignores, and finally begins to discuss his past with her; however, it is a slightly different story than that he later tells to Ariel. With Miranda, he is sure to discuss the story of his past in a light mood in the nicest way possible, being sure to speak of her mother in the nicest way. When speaking to Ariel, his helper, Prospero is crude and ruthless, describing with sords such as “sunken-eyed hag,” and “groans [that] made wolves howl.” It can be said that Prospero has a way with words. He knows who he is speaking to and knows exactly what words will affect that person emotionally. In doing this, he has a power of rhetoric that can manipulate people into believing what he wishes and portrays to them.