Quote 4
FERDINAND
O heaven, O earth, bear witness to this sound,
And crown what I profess with kind event
If I speak true; if hollowly, invert
What best is boded me to mischief. I,
Beyond all limit of what else i' th' world,
Do love, prize, honor you.
MIRANDA
I am a fool
To weep at what I am glad of.
PROSPERO [aside]
Fair encounter
Of two most rare affections. Heavens rain grace
On that which breeds between 'em! (3.1.81-91)
Though Prospero has practically thrown the two lovers into each other's laps, he still calls out for the heavens to bless them. It seems his homage to a power greater and beyond his own.
Quote 5
FERDINAND
Let me live here ever.
So rare a wondered father and a wise
Makes this place paradise. (4.1.137-139)
Man, Wife, and Father in Paradise, eh? Miranda and Ferdinand seem to stand in for the first pair of true lovers, and they do bring a new hope to all those on the island we thought were lost. Maybe this is an Adam-and-Eve thing?
Quote 6
FERDINAND
Sir, she is mortal,
But by immortal Providence she's mine.
I chose her when I could not ask my father
For his advice, nor thought I had one. She
Is daughter to this famous Duke of Milan,
Of whom so often I have heard renown,
But never saw before, of whom I have
Received a second life; and second father
This lady makes him to me. (5.1.224-232)
Ferdinand seems to say the two were fated to be together, but of course they wouldn't have found each other at all had it not been for Prospero's magic. Here's a chicken and egg question—does Prospero bring the pair together to satisfy Providence, or is Ferdinand mistaking Prospero's magic for a divine plan?