Isolation of the Individual in Society in The Tempest
In William Shakespeare's play, The Tempest, characters such as
Caliban, Prospero, Miranda and Ferdinand, experience varying degrees
of consequences, due to their change in behaviour, while isolated from
society. Although isolation from society affects the characters in
different ways, some see it as being advantageous while others see it
as being a curse. This essay will show how characters in The Tempest
suffer consequences due to their isolation from society.
Caliban is possibly the only character in The Tempest who is not
originally affected by his isolation from society. Caliban is the only
character that is native to the island and he was utterly alone on the
island until Prospero and Miranda were banished to the very same
island. It was when the latter arrived that Caliban was exposed to
people for the first time in his life. Prospero and Miranda taught
Caliban to read, speak, and how to behave in the same way as them
(sparknotes.com).
Miranda: Being capable of ill! I pitied thee,
Took pains to make thee speak, taught thee each hour
One thing or other. When thou didst not, savage,
Know thine own meaning, but wouldst gabble like
A thing most brutish, I endowed thy purposes
With words that made them known. But thy vile race,
Though thou didst learn, had that in't which good natures
Could not abide to be with. Therefore wast thou
Deservedly confined into this rock, who hadst
Deserved more than a prison. (Shakespeare 77)
However, it is because of the 'educating' of Caliban that he realises
how different he is compared to Prospero and Miranda....
... middle of paper ...
...heir
situation. None of them chose to be isolated from society, yet that
became the situation they found themselves in. All the characters
suffered one consequence or other due to their isolation from society
and their own secret desires which only became evident when in an
isolated situation. In isolation, a person's character changes, and
this is due to how each of the characters handle the position they
find themselves in.
Bibliography:
1. Shober, Dianne. "The Tempest" English Literature Manuel. Department
of English.
UFH East London Campus, Semester 2, 2004.
2. Shakespeare, William. The Tempest. England: Penguin Group, 1968
3. Sparknotes. "Plot Overview" and "Analysis of Major Characters"
available at
http://www.sparknotes.com/shakespeare/tempest/summary.html [accessed
on 15 August 2004]
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William Shakespeare’s The Tempest provides dialogue that portrays the social expectations and stereotypes imposed upon women in Elizabethan times. Even though the play has only one primary female character, Miranda, the play also includes another women; Sycorax, although she does not play as large a roll. During many scenes, the play illustrates the characteristics that represent the ideal woman within Elizabethan society. These characteristics support the fact that men considered women as a mere object that they had the luxury of owning and were nowhere near equal to them. Feminists can interpret the play as a depiction of the sexist treatment of women and would disagree with many of the characteristics and expectations that make Miranda the ideal woman. From this perspective, The Tempest can be used to objectify the common expectations and treatment of women within the 16th and 17th Centuries and compare and contrast to those of today.
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Echoes of both The Tempest and Marivaux's complicated comedy Triumph of Love sound in Shakespeare's Twelfth Night. The action of this play begins shortly after a damaging tempest shipwrecks the heroine, casting her upon foreign shores. Upon arrival in this strange seaport, Viola--like the Princess Leonide--dons male disguise which facilitates both employment and time enough to orient herself in this unfamiliar territory.