Question

How would you describe Gonzalo's optimism and his dream of the ideal Commonwealth?
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Answer 1

Answer:

As Act II opens, Gonzalo offers these words of consolation to Alonso and his company. He attempts to convince the king that despite his son’s apparent death, it is worth celebrating the survival of the others. Although these lines provide only cold comfort and ultimately ring hollow for Alonso, they demonstrate Gonzalo’s persistent optimism. Indeed, his is one of the few truly positive voices in the entire play.

Prospero thinks of it as the place he is king and reigns over and has complete dominion over. Gonzalo thinks of it as a commonwealth where he crowns himself king also but later he sums up the reasoning of a stateless state in the phrase, “No sovereignty,” which means no one will have dominion over anyone else.