William Shakespeare’s play The Tempest is a tragicomedy that makes conscious points about postcolonialism in the New World. The play tells a story about Prospero, who is trying to regain his dukedom from his brother Antonio after he is exiled to live on an island with his daughter, Miranda. Prospero arrives at Sycorax’s island and creates his own culture on the people that already live there. He conquers the land and forces Caliban to be one of his many slaves. These actions are a representation of how the colonizers exploited and enslaved the Native Americans as they took control of their land. They were friendly upon arrival, much like Prospero, but that quickly took a turn. Caliban creates an image for the audience of how poorly the natives were treated by the colonizers through Prospero’s unjust enslavement against him, the animalistic way that Shakespeare portrayed him, and the urge that the characters felt to protest due to their land being seized from them.
Caliban symbolizes the native role in the play and is a literal native of the island because his mother, Sycorax, gave birth to him on the island. Therefore, when Prospero arrives, he is not willing to allow Prospero to conquer the land. Caliban’s declaration of ownership is shown when Caliban says to Prospero:
This island’s mine, by Sycorax my mother
Which thou tak’st from me…
For I am all the subjects that you have
Which first was mine own king (Shakespeare 1.2.331-18)
Moreover, when Prospero got to the island and saw Caliban, he made him his slave due to his appearance as half human, half monster. He saw Caliban as a lesser being than himself. This is a symbolization of Caliban representing the Native Americans and Prospero as the Europeans. Duke Pesta’s article, “Acknowledging Things of Darkness: Postcolonial Criticism of The Tempest” incorporates information that supports the link between The Tempest and the events in the New World due to the portrayal of characters and the imbalance of power. He states that “two of Shakespeare’s primary sources—Montaigne’s “Of Cannibals” supports and accounts of the voyage of the Sea Venture—relate events that take place in the New World” (1). This reinforces that Shakespeare had the roles of Native Americans and Europeans in mind when he wrote the play.
Furthermore, Caliban exhibits animal-like qualities in The Tempest. Shakespeare gives Caliban his name which is an anagram for “cannibal.” His monstrous actions are put forth during the discussion of his posssible rape of Miranda. Moreover, Shakespeare’s decision to create Caliban to be depicted in an unusual way asserts that he is seen as an outsider to his own native land. This is similar to how the Native Americans in the colonial era were viewed from the European’s perspective. Due to his outward appearance and actions, he is made a slave to serve Prospero. George Lamming makes the comparison of Caliban’s life to that of a slave’s life in his article “A Monster, a Child, a Slave”. He makes this link as he explains slaves in the Middle Passage often were rebellious and worked meanwhile dealing with imprisonment. He parallels this way of life to Caliban because he fits the description of these slaves. Although Caliban was prone to acting out, Prospero acquires a need for his slave for physical survival:
“Bus, as ‘tis,
We cannot miss him: he does make our fire,
Fetch in our wood, and serves in offices
That profit us. What, ho! Slave!
Caliban!” (1.2.310-17)
Similar to Caliban being characterized with qualities that go along with that of a native, Prospero’s actions reflect the attitude of the colonizers. When he first arrives on the island, he immediately wants to civilize the natives. He is the colonial ruler who betrays the colonized individuals. In addition, it is demonstrated that Prospero thinks he is valuable to Caliban and that he should obey him because he educates him and teaches him language. His belief that Caliban should willingly be his slave comes from the notion of a colonizer’s belief that a native is inferior and uncivilized. Due to Prospero’s control, the protest of authority is introduced immediately as the play begins. There is a protest in power as Caliban plots against Prospero. Caliban tells Stephano and Trinculo to take Prospero’s magic books. After they have done this, they plan to kill Prospero. The ultimate goal is to capture his daughter, in order for Stephano to become king of the island and Miranda will be his queen. Pesta makes a significant point in his article as he asserts that a reversal of stereotypes occurs in this scene. From his perspective, Caliban is not a victim of colonialism. He is the island’s original and only colonist. Therefore, it would be routine for him to become the colonizer. Stephano and Trinculo are not interested in the plan until Caliban admires Miranda. He tricks Stephano into going along with his plan with lust which enabled a reversal of stereotypes.
Clearly, William Shalespeare’s play The Tempest portrays the discrimination among race through the cruel treatment of the natives. From a postcolonial perspective,the island signifies the colonies, which were being colonized around the time the play was written, in 1610. This play reveals how the colonizers captured the land of the natives and felt the authority to gain control and civilize those around them.Throughout the text, Prospero and Caliban give a glimpse of the european perspective and the perspective of the colonized.
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