Primal, magical imagery
Prospero is depicted as a hermit alchemist, an island refugee and exile, rejected by his community and truly ostracized. This reality does something to Prospero: it connects him to his primal instincts, his animal nature, and it even unlocks his psychic abilities to do witchcraft by aligning himself with the magical forces of nature that already exist so plainly on this island in its many pixies and fairies and such.
Island imagery and loneliness
This story of community and family is placed against the backdrop of island imagery that suggests Prospero's own loneliness. Their being on the island is itself a visual signal that Prospero is going to re-enter his emotional turmoil about community and rejection. He has "let them back in," so to speak. They realize that in relationship to Prospero on the island, they are at a disadvantage, because he is clearly less attached to civilization than they are.
The Masquerade imagery
The Masquerade is an unusual juxtaposition for an island, because it places Italian cultural in the true roots of society, the wild. Here, the masks are obviously not so different than primitive island cultures which also use masks, but as a kind of divine invocation. In this story, the imagery is genius. It points to a part of culture that Prospero detests, the secrecy of intention (hidden by politeness), and it underscores the delusion he resents about Italian culture—they don't see that in a way, they are being primitive still. The island is a suitable backdrop for their court rituals.
Imagery of marriage and communion
Another court ritual that is surprisingly compatible with their being stranded on an island is marriage and religion. It does not diminish the wedding's value that they aren't surrounded by beautiful lavish buildings and elegant castles (they are Italian royalty after all). In other words, the marriage is natural, which it is, because marriage is an animal instinct, preserved with religious tradition about commitment. The wedding serves as a final visual reminder of the story's core purpose, which is intimacy and union between people who are different.
