The Tempest

                                        There be some sports are painful, and their labour
                                        Delight in them sets off. Some kinds of baseness
                                        Are nobly undergone, and most poor matters
                                        Point to rich ends. This my mean task
                                        Would be as heavy to me as odious, but
                                        The mistress which I serve quickens what’s dead
                                        And makes my labours pleasures. (III.i.1-7)

     This passage is spoken by Ferdinand to MIranda. He is expressing to her how he is willing to perform the tasks that Prospero has set for him to do, for her sake. Within this passage, there is a balance of desire for balance expressed by Prospero's speech to Miranda. There are a series of antithesis's within the passage, for example: “sports . . . painful” is followed by “labour . . . delights”; “baseness” can be undergone “nobly”; “poor matters” lead to “rich ends." 

      Throughout The Tempest, the themes compromise and balance are important. It is exemplified within many relationships throughout the book. Alonso must seem to lose his son in order to be forgiven for his treachery; Ferdinand must suffer Prospero’s feigned wrath in order to truly receive and enjoy his love for Miranda; Ariel must serve Prospero in order to be set free.