Caliban Monster

In the play, The Tempest, by William Shakespeare, Caliban is an important character. Caliban is a character who plays as a victim to be pitied, as well as a villain to watch out for. In this essay, I will show clearly how Caliban is a victim and villain by exploring his relationship with Prospero, Miranda, and the island.

Caliban’s strong emotional attachment to the island in The Tempest motivates him to actively respect nature. During Caliban 's first interaction with Prospero in the play, he states, “This Island’s mine, by Sycorax my mother.” This assertion of dominion by Caliban sparks a desire for him to protect the nature on the island. As a result, he values nature like it is an extension of himself and strives to maintain harmony with it. Caliban follows this up by reminding Prospero, “And then I loved thee and show 'd thee all the

Caliban tells them to not be afraid of the island since it is full of noises but the noises are sweet melodies. He states, “Sounds and sweet airs, that give delight and hurt not,” referring to the island not being harmful and the voices intend to do no harm. He speaks certain of his claims as though he knows the intentions of the island. This reveals the connection that Caliban has to the island. He knows the island better than anyone and it is hurtful to him that he does not have control over his own home. He is native to this island therefore if anyone knows the beauty of this island it is him. Prospero sees the island as power that he must control while Caliban sees the island as a beauty that should just be. Caliban understands the magic

On one level, it seems that Caliban is an evil character but on another level, Shakespeare tries to depict Caliban as a part of Prospero's character. This is shown when Prospero accepts responsibility for Caliban. Prospero understands that Caliban is the baser side of himself, even the baser side of humanity's baser instincts. Caliban shows many

Caliban, immediately introduced as "poisonous slave," "savage," "hag-seed," is a character often likened to the African- American slave. The ease and matter-of-factness with which Prospero and Miranda dismiss him is painfully obvious even before he enters the scene (Act 1, Scene 3). Through no fault of his own, Caliban is dehumanized by the authority of his day and dismissed by the important members of his society. He looks much different from the others on the island, so he is not seen as a true human being; in fact, his only redemption lies in the fact that he is able to learn the language in order to serve the master.

Prospero, the self-appointed king of the island upon which everyone eventually becomes shipwrecked, immediately oppresses Caliban and claims him as his slave, even though Caliban was the original inhabitant of the island. Prospero and his daughter are technically guests in Caliban's home. Caliban is the son of the devil and Sycorax, a witch. Prospero uses Caliban's unsavory origin as an excuse to enslave him. He claims that he is a bad seed, and he deserves a life of servitude. He never actually justifies the situation with a logical explanation, so he must use whatever information he can think of as a poor excuse to exploit Caliban for his own self-propagation. Prospero is even bold enough to suggest that by enslaving Caliban, he is actually extending charity towards him. He feels that

       The Tempest is a classic example of Shakespeare’s dichotomized notions of right and wrong within the context of racial inherencies, a social commentary of the colonialism of the New World. An important theme in the play is the racial differentiation between Caliban and the other antagonists, primarily, Prospero, who comes to the island and enslaves Caliban to enforce his own rule. This relationship, as portrayed through the play, is a reflection of the historical social and racial tensions that existed between the colonizers of New Europe and the Native Americans and is illustrated through the language employed by Shakespeare and the interactions that take place between the characters. The Tempest

Prospero's relationship with Caliban differs from that of Prospero and Ariel's. Prospero does not view Caliban as a being who could be his equal. He is blinded by his prejudice against Caliban's appearance and manners. Caliban is portrayed in a negative light. He can be seen as the depiction of the victims of colonial expansion. Although Prospero seeks this righteousness, he both mistreats and insults Caliban, who ultimately attempts to kill Prospero.  In comparison to Ariel who acts only when commanded by Prospero, Caliban is wild. He refuses to be colonized and tamed. This can be taken as a reference by Shakespeare towards those who were

    One of the indispensable themes displayed in The Tempest is the duality of nature and society.  This is made apparent through the character of Caliban.  Caliban is a dis-figured fish-like creature that inhabits the island where the play The Tempest, takes place.

“They have left me out,” Suniti Namjoshi gives a voice to Caliban in her poem, “Snapshots of Caliban”, that reimagines William Shakespeare's play, The Tempest. She is able to extend Caliban’s perspective through journal entries written in his voice. In the original work, the portrayal of Caliban is based primarily on how he reacts to how Miranda and Prospero treat him. Because The Tempest is written as a play, it has limitations in providing a perspective of Caliban outside of his dialogue with other characters, but in Namjoshi’s “Snapshots of Caliban”, she extends the perspective of Caliban through the medium of poetry to highlight his power struggle, and further extend that he is oppressed not just structurally or materially, but in his interiority. This

Caliban in The Tempest ‘The Tempest’ is the magical story of the ship-wrecked inhabitants of an island. It deals with many serious themes such as; nature/nurture, power, magic and treachery but ‘the seriousness is never allowed to cause disquiet in the audience’. Many of these themes are still relevant today. The Tempest is, in effect, ‘a fairytale complete with magical occurrences, suspension of the laws of nature and a happy ending’. Caliban is an interesting an important character in ‘The Tempest’.

His mother, Sycorax, was banished there by sailors for no known reason; “This blue-eyed hag was hither brought with child / And here was left by th’ sailors” (I.II.322-323). Sycorax is an African with blue eyes which is unusual and so people thought she was magic because of it, hence the name she was referred to in the quote, ‘blue-eyed hag’. Trapping Ariel in the oak tree also emphasized the magic people thought she had. They assumed she used magic to do it; “By help of her more potent ministers / And in her most unmitigable rage, / Into a cloven pine, within which rift / Imprisoned thou didst painfully remain”(I.II.328-331). I chose this quote because it expressed how she trapped Ariel. Sycorax died soon after and her son was left alone on the island until Prospero found him. Since sycorax might have had power, then theoretically Caliban was also suspected to possess the same power. This could have threatened Prospero, so he belittled Caliban and turned him into a slave. Prospero would tell Ariel stories of how Caliban was not human, but a monster; “Then was this island / (Save for the son that she did litter here, / A freckled whelp, hag-born) not honored with / A human shape” (I.II.334-337). In this quote, Prospero is belittling Caliban in order to gain more control over him and Ariel. Caliban is mentally weak so he succumbs to Prospero, but he is physically strong and still poses a

It is evident that Caliban is claiming to have rightful ownership of the island, but Shakespeare gives European audiences a response to this claim and similar ones of the real world. Prospero saved Caliban from the witch Sycorax and should be thankful for all Prosper has brought him and not worry about ownership of the island since the stronger, smarter European is here now. Caliban is also portrayed as a moral less monster who rapes and smells of fish. This characterization was brought upon many other natives during this time in history as well. The magic that came with the island can be seen as a natural resource of the island that benefits Prospero. This is much like the real natural resources discovered by the Europeans at this time in history when Shakespeare wrote the play. Most critics of the play state that Prospero is a portrayal of Shakespeare himself, but it is clearly evident based on the island comparisons to the new wolrd that Shakespeare’s intention was to not only describe the new world, but endorse the colonization of

“According to Theodor Elze (1889) the island in The Tempest is Pantalaria, whose natural sights correspond with the descriptions in the play, and its nearby town of African coast Calibia, served as an inspiration to Shakespeare. Another explanation for the name Caliban is kalebon, an Arabic word for “vile dog”, common reference for North African creature in England at that period. Dutch scholar Albert Kluyver, would eliminate the cannibal, as it did not exist in English language with the same meaning as in Shakespeare`s time, instead he believes it to mean “black” in gypsy language. It is very probable that Shakespeare addressed African slaves, since Prospero himself in the play, observes Caliban as “filth”, something inhuman.” (Vaughan and Vaughan). The relationship between Prospero and Caliban could be Shakespeare`s way of describing the treatment of African slaves by European feudalists. This marvellous literature piece is a testimony of slavery and its roots. Even more, few years after Shakespeare died, the biggest export of African slaves took place and racism was imprinted in people`s subconscious. Shakespeare describes the horrible manner African slaves were treated and the aggressiveness by which they responded to that treatment, since Caliban could be a victim or aggressor, since he tried to rape Miranda. As illiterate and simple creature,

Within The Tempest, characters such as Prospero and Caliban share an intimate connection. Without some kind of malevolent force motivating the action of the play, none of the major characters would come into contact with each other. A violent storm, formed by Prospero's magic, subjects the foreign characters to the might of his mysterious power. Issues of control become a central part of The Tempest. One way in which this is highlighted is through the relationship between Prospero and Caliban, his bestial servant. Their relationship does not utilize the conventional imagery of those who hold power versus those who do not. Rather, Caliban comes to symbolize a physical