Evidently, no other literary work has been revised and deconstructed as The Tempest. Shakespeare’s Caliban represents the most identifiable example of Western colonialism. From the beginning, it is evident that the events are staged at some place in the Mediterranean, which happens to the most popular water body in Europe. Moreover, the Mediterranean has served as the boundary that defined Western culture many years before even The Tempest was written. Although actions take place mainly on the island, Alonso’s daughter wedding in Carthage causes the movement. In particular, Prospero’s banishment makes the plot more interesting while the scope of action is limited by the distance between Carthage and Milan. In The Tempest, Shakespeare relies …show more content…
The tempest is about colonialism because Prospero is the one who took over Caliban’s land by force which is Sycorax and tries to enslave its people and he also tries to apply his own culture on Sycorax’s people land. Prospero does not only take over Caliban’s land but he also tries to enslave him. He considers Caliban as half man. He treats Caliban as a slave; he calls him a thing of darkness. Prospero describes Caliban as violet, savage, and have an evil smile, and drunkard. As Prospero states in the Tempest, “This thing of darkness, I call my own.” which shows how Prospero looks down on Caliban. The whites looked down on the black people in the colony of Virginia. Prospero refers to himself as light, wisdom, and also knowledge which refers to how the Europeans see themselves. While he refers to Caliban as darkness, and ignorance. He is the subhuman, son of the witch. When Prospero comes to the land, he forces Caliban to be his slave. An example of implying slavery in the tempest is Prospero’s treatment toward. Caliban. Prospero stated in the tempest, “What, ho! Slave! Caliban! Thou earth, thou! Speak.” (369) he refers to Caliban as earth which is a thing so he gives Caliban the lowest value. Not only has that he also referred to Caliban as “tortoise” so he is telling us that Caliban has a very slow motion. Prospero is not the only one who commits a …show more content…
The purpose of Shakespeare’s writing about Caliban in the tempest is to relate it to slavery which occurred in the 1607 between the Indians and Europeans. By clearly reading some of the articles discussing the historical relevance of the tempest, one gets the idea that the European colonialist presented themselves just as Prospero did with Caliban. Just like Caliban, the people who were colonized by the European were “disinherited, exploited, and subjugated. Caliban had to learn not only the language of his colonizer, but also embrace their culture. Eventually, Caliban rebels against Prospero and demands his freedom just like those colonized by the European imperialist did after undergoing long periods. All the above is evidence that The Tempest is essentially is a mirror reflection of whatever was taking place in the society at the time when the play was being
Prospero tries to justify enslaving Caliban, but all he really does is place Caliban into a category of bestial and uncivilized and as a result enslaves him. Even Miranda, Prospero’s daughter, speaks in a way that categorizes Caliban as an uneducated and uncivilized savage. “I pitied thee, Took pains to make thee speak, taught thee each hour [.] When thou didst not, savage, know thine own meaning [. ]” (1.2.356-359) Miranda doesn’t stop there; she continues labeling Caliban, “But thy vile race, though thou didst learn, had that in’t which good natures could not abide to be with; therefore wast though deservedly confined into this rock [. ]”
During Shakespeare's time social classification was much more rigid than today and some members of society were considered superior to other members. Shakespeare provides an example of this rigid social structure through his play, The Tempest. Shakespeare illustrates how superior men differentiated themselves from lesser beings on the basis of race, financial status, and gender. Through the character of Prospero, Shakespeare provides and example of one, who had reason to feel superior, yet treated others equally and with the respect due to them.
Through The Tempest play, William Shakespeare weaves together a tale that is characterized by anti-colonialist sentiments. Prospero - the deposed Milan Duke - adopts a colonialist mentality by treating his colleagues as slaves who have no rights. Characters who suffer mistreatment under Prospero include: Ariel - the spirit creature; Ferdinand - the Naples Prince; and Caliban - Sycorax’s son. Prospero possesses much magical power which he uses to oppress his compatriots. Consequently, Prospero is portrayed as a colonial tyrant who abuses his immense power. Anti-colonialism feelings are especially evident through the actions, utterances and disposition and of Caliban, Miranda, Ferdinand and Ariel. To illustrate, Caliban berates Prospero for the former’s forced labor. Likewise, Ariel protests Prospero’s reluctance to release the former as earlier agreed. Miranda also expresses her dissatisfaction with Prospero’s unfair imprisonment of Ferdinand. Similarly, Ferdinand appears to challenge Prospero’s authority by briefly stopping dragging timber so as to flirt and chat with Miranda. The foregoing four characters exhibit conduct that highlights their displeasure with Prospero’s colonial-style authority over them. From the preceding expose, it can thus be concluded that Shakespeare’s The Tempest play is about anti-colonialism based on its depiction of Caliban, Miranda, Ferdinand and Ariel’s opposition to Prospero’s oppressive authority.
In this whimsical play, Prospero, the former Duke of Milan, after being supplanted of his dukedom by his brother, arrives on an island. He frees a spirit named Ariel from a spell and in turn makes the spirit his slave. He also enslaves a native monster named Caliban. These two slaves, Caliban and Ariel, symbolize the theme of nature versus nurture. Caliban is regarded as the representation of the wild; the side that is usually looked down upon. Although from his repulsive behavior, Caliban can be viewed as a detestable beast of nature, it can be reasonably inferred that Shakespeare’s intent was to make Caliban a sympathetic character.
Caliban is treated in a highly demeaning manner since Prospero is a man of magic and has infinite power to control Caliban in every aspect. It is seen early on in the play the amount of control that has been placed over Caliban, to the extent that memories make him cringe and satisfy all of Prospero’s needs. Prospero is obviously the Duke of that island similar to how he was Duke of Milan before being usurped and banished to the island, which is Caliban’s home. In general, the relationship of Prospero and Caliban is a model of early colonization into the New World considering Caliban is it’s only inhabitant. In reality, colonization is the chief reason slavery was implemented which was to maintain laborers in order to prosper in the New World.
Like Russ Mc Donald I also believe that Shakespeare devoted his last comedy largely to the exploration of the shapes and effects that possession and the search for power can have on persons. The Tempest's central character, Prospero, is also crucial to this interpretation. His unique magical gifts give him undefeatable power to wreak vengeance on his enemies. It is a position fraught with dangers both for him and for others. But he is not the only veichel. Entwined with this wizard's inventive qualities are questions over what can only be called, by a modern reader as the theme of colonialism in the play which pervades the minds of all the 'civilised' Italians; Caliban and Miranda are the two primary victims of this patriarchal society. One must also make a note of the motif of usurpation in the play and recognise its interesting implications.
Prospero appears to be a ruthless tyrant that strikes fear into Caliban to make him work but further on in the text we learn that this is not the case. Caliban's foul-mouthed insults,
The Tempest, provided insight into the hierarchy of command and servitude by order of nature. This play uses the relationship between its characters to demonstrate the control of the conqueror over the conquered. It also shows how society usually places the undesirable members at the bottom of the chain of command; although they may be entitled to a higher social status. One of the crucial themes displayed in The Tempest is the duality of nature and civilization. This is made obvious through the character of Caliban. Caliban is described as disfigured fish-like creature that inhabits the island where the play takes place. Caliban is the son of a powerful witch-hag Sycorax, and the only native of the island. In Caliban 's first speech, he suggests that Prospero stole the island from him asserting the island belongs to him, as it was of his mother, and hates
The ostracism and exploitation of Caliban because he is perceived as a brutish animal compared to "civilized" folks is in keeping with the theme and intent of the play-to show that reality is more a manifestation of mentality and conscious perception than concrete black and white, definable phenomena. As one scholar of Elizabethan imagery suggests, "The poet who imitates not the visible world but the intelligible as manifested in the visible will not consider that the use of artifice to emphasize form makes imagery less 'true to nature'" (Scanlan 1). In The Tempest we see a great deal of artifice to understand what is manifested in the visible, however, with Caliban we see that all the artifice in the world does not help him be accepted by those who inhabit the island once his own. Prospero has enslaved the son that Sycorax "did litter" on the island, and his lovely daughter Miranda says of his slave, "'Tis a villain, sir,/I do not love to look on" (Shakespeare 5).
Shakespeare's Presentation of the Relationship between Prospero and Caliban in The Tempest Shakespeare’s ‘The Tempest’ is set on a small island between Tunis and Naples. The play is initially based around Prospero; once Duke of Milan, a loving father to Miranda and inhabitant of the island for the past twelve years, after being usurped by his scheming brother Antonio. When exploring the relationship between Prospero and Caliban, a ‘whelp hag-born’ living on the island when Prospero and Miranda first arrive, we must consider a number of aspects of Prospero and Caliban’s relationship. It is important to look at the following points; Prospero’s treatment of Caliban when first arriving on the island and his treatment during the play, Caliban’s constant struggle for acknowledgement from both Prospero and Miranda, Caliban’s plan to overthrow Prospero with Trinculo and Stephano and finally, Ariel; another creature living on the island who is also enslaved to Prospero-but in an entirely different way to Caliban. When Caliban first enters during Act 1 Scene 2, Prospero instantly uses much abusive language towards Caliban and describes him as a ‘poisonous slave, got by the devil himself’.
In The Tempest both Caliban and Prospero talk about how the two were friends in the beginning. Prospero taught Caliban his language and customs. In return Caliban showed Prospero all the good resources of the island. After gaining Caliban’s love and trust Prospero tricks Caliban by enslaving him. In Act I Scene II Caliban reminds Prospero what Caliban did for him saying “show’d thee all the qualities o’ the isle, the fresh springs, brine-pits, barren place and fertile: cursed
Critical approaches to The Tempest from the second half of the twentieth century, including those that emphasize a conflict between nature and art. Footnotes: The 'St Contemplative attitude, pastoral tradition, multidimensional text, benevolent magus, possibly evocative, fawning, surmounting threats. References: The Big Tempest in Act 1, Scene 1: The Storms in King Lear, Craig, Hardin.
Ariel and Caliban, are two of the main characters in the famous play The Tempest, written by William Shakespeare. They both serve the function of being enslaved to the same master known as Prospero. While they are servants to Prospero they are different in the way they obey him. For example Ariel is much obedient and sensitive. He believes that the ultimate goal is to serve and that true freedom comes in the service of others, therefore he complies with everything that Prospero wants of him.
In Shakespeare’s play The Tempest, there are two characters who appear to be polar opposites. The characters of Caliban and Ariel both play very important roles in the play. The term caliban is defined as “a brutish or brutalized man,” and the term ariel is defined as “a spirit of the air” (Dictionary). The definitions of these two characters names even show the huge difference in the two characters before readers or viewers even get to know the characters. There are also differences in how the two characters feel about the self-proclaimed king of the island, Prospero. However, regardless of their many differences the one thing that they do have in common is the fact that they are both oppressed by Prospero who has deemed himself king of the island and seek freedom.
Prospero becomes equivalent to a marionette master, controlling and manipulating everyone on the island. Caliban yearnings to fight back against colonizer blasphemes him and is disobedient, this is emphasized by his very first worlds, “As wicked dew as