Shakespeare’s image of Caliban as a beastly, savage was done intentionally. People of the West inaccurately imagined the Caribbean people as monsters and deformed beasts. The author emphasizes that Caliban envisions the way Western civilization pictured people of the Caribbean at the time. Their pricks at my foot-fall sometime am IĪll wound with adders, who with cloven tongues ![]() Lie tumbling in my bare-foot way, and mount Sometime like apes that mow and chatter at me,Īnd after bite me then like hedge-hogs which The severity of his pains entitles Caliban to curse and fret throughout the play. Magically given pains by Prospero, Caliban has trouble moving about. In order to keep both Ariel and Caliban from not escaping, Prospero punishes both characters, but in separate ways. If the conquerors came to the island with interests in the Caribs’ culture, possibly Caliban wouldn’t have depicted the way he was.ĭespite their differences, Ariel and Caliban exist as slaves on the island to serve Prospero’s attempt at a society. In the eyes of the Westerner, the attraction of the Caribbean is not the people who inhabit the island but the beautiful landscape and the tranquil atmosphere. On the opposite spectrum, Caliban represents what the conquerors actually found. The aesthetics of Ariel express the important resources that the Western conquerors came to find, such as gold and natural resources for their Empire. Caliban’s appearance seems coarse and barbaric while Ariel appears shiny, glittery, and gaudy. The distinction between Caliban and Ariel involves the overall appearance and duties that they serve. Prospero’s other servant Ariel, a beautiful spirit of the island, has the ability to sing, enchant and play with air, hence the name Ariel. This temptation that Prospero creates between the three characters shows the lack of respect Prospero gives to his daughter and Caliban. To tempt Caliban, Prospero brings around Miranda and keeps her at a distance so Caliban cannot touch her. One unusual side of Caliban Shakespeare uses to highlight the primal side of Caliban is the sexual tension between Miranda and Caliban. Not only does Prospero abuse his power against the native Caliban but also against his own daughter, Miranda, and the indigenous spirit Ariel. Though thou didst learn, had that in’t which good naturesĬould not abide to be with therefore wast thouĭeservedly confin’d into this rock, who hadst With words that made them known: but thy vile race, Know thine own meaning, but wouldst gabble likeĪ thing most brutish, I endow’d thy purposes One thing or other: when thou didst not, savage, “Took pains to make thee speak, taught thee each hour Prospero’s attitude toward Caliban seems condescending and rude: “Dull thing, I say so he, that Caliban, whom now I keep in service” (2.1). In the beginning of the play, before Caliban even enters, Prospero talks about Caliban in a very patronizing tone: The rest o’ th’ island” (Shakespeare 1.2). In this hard rock, whiles you do keep from me Which first was mine own king and here you sty me Of Sycorax, toads, beetles, bats, light on you! ![]() ![]() Often in the play, Caliban makes remarks against Prospero’s exploitation of the island. Caliban represents the indigenous islander who cannot escape the brutality of his master. The concept of one man is more powerful than another stands as a contributing factor for the immoral relationship between Prospero and Caliban. The overpowering attitude that Prospero exhibits, symbolizes the white man’s conquest over other cultures. The symbolism in this play lies in Prospero’s control of the island. With the ability to manipulate the weather, induce sleep and instantly create pain, Prospero has an almost godlike ego that the colonizers at the time felt as well. Originally, Caliban was owned by another authoritative figure, Sycorax, but Prospero freed him from Sycorax’s control and enslaved Caliban for his own uses. The Ironic relationship between Prospero and Caliban is that Prospero, who has supreme control of the island, knows less about the island itself than Caliban. Caliban’s relation to Prospero embodies symbolism and irony.
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