Caliban, Racism and Justification of Colonization in Shakespeare’s The Tempest
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Wolran Kim
March 2013
Caliban, in Shakespeare’s The Tempest, is consistently depicted as a bad man from beginning to end. His figure is represented as a source of evil being dragged out of his appearance, origin, ignorance, and personalities. Thus, he becomes an outsider who is between human and animal. His inferiority is used as a tool to justify the ruler, Prospero’s violence and sovereignty.
His portrait of being harmful is a common belief held by all the characters of this play, based on a racial perspective. For this reason, Caliban’s positive human conscience and the exploited class’s plea for freedom are viewed as disobedience. Caliban’s “wicked” figure is mainly described by Prospero; Miranda, Trinculo, and Stephano’s viewpoints are not different from Prospero’s. Shakespeare used Caliban's ugliness, humble origin, ignorance, and violent personalities to criticize racism.
Caliban appears for the first time during the conversation of Ariel and Prospero, and Prospero does not put him in the human category due to his appearance. Caliban’s origin emerged from Prospero’s words saying that he wants to remind himself that he is a benefactor to Ariel. Prospero says, “The foul witch Sycorax (27),” and “This damned witch Sycorax/ For mischiefs manifold, and sorceries terrible/ To enter human hearing, from Argier/ Thou know’st was banish’d (27).”
Caliban’s mother, witch Sycorax, was born in Algiers, North Africa, and she was banished from human society to the island due to her evil deed. Prospero also says, “This blue-eyed hag was hither brought with child (27),” and “hag” means demon or witch. The black-heart and tragic past of Sycorax’s application to Caliban remains intact. Caliban inherits his mother’s misfortune and characteristics, and this hereditariness is the beginning of the perspective of racism. Caliban’s life never overcomes his mother’s tragic category just like his name, which came from the cannibal meaning of man-eater or savage.
Caliban is represented in the form of an animal rather than a human shape from the beginning. “Then was this island/ (Save for the son, that she did litter here, / A freckled whelp, hag-born) not honored with/ A human shape (28).” Here, “litter” is “used for animals and, with people, contemptuously (28)” and “freckled whelp” is also means “spotted young animal/ puppy (28).” Therefore the following expression of Prospero is justified; “Dull thing. I say so. He, that Caliban/ Whom now I keep in service (28).” Here, Prospero who reigns over Caliban obviously shows the reason for Caliban’s slavery started from his outward appearance. Racism begins with the heterogeneity of appearance. In other words, unequal views, unscientific thinking, and repression depending on the characteristics of the biological visual, are rationalized. The relationship between the ruler, Prospero, and the ruled, Caliban, begins with a racial prejudice of appearance, and Prospero is obsessed by the apparent preconception of disgust and contempt.
The prejudice and stereotype started from Caliban’s appearance leading to judgment on his personality and behavior. Prospero says to Miranda, “We’ll visit Caliban, my slave, who never/ Yields us kind answer (30),” and Miranda replies, “I do not love to look on (30).” In this conversation between Prospero and Miranda, there are only insolent words exchanged about Caliban’s behavior, but nothing about how they treat him. Caliban’s disobedience and complaining against them are expressed just a wicked act without any reason.
Prospero also called Caliban “earth” (dirt, dust) or “tortoise.” Caliban’s value and reason for existence has been determined by how Prospero names him; “(to Caliban) Thou poisonous slave, got by the Devil himself/ Upon thy wicked dam (31).” Thus, Caliban’s labor force which is used by Prospero—“We cannot miss him. He does make our fire, / Fetch in our wood, and serves in offices/ That profit us (30).”—becomes a foundation of Caliban’s ability to make him belong to the category of human society, and is also his blessing from Prospero.
Caliban’s protest against Prospero’s abuse seems to be his own self-defense; however, Prospero ignores him as a “most lying slave (32).” Caliban says, “This island’s mine by Sycorax my mother, / Which thou tak’st from me.” and “And then I loved thee, / And showed thee all the qualities o’th’isle (32).” Caliban lived in freedom and peace on his inherited island before, and he taught knowledge about the island to Prospero in a friendly way when he first came. However, Prospero is transformed into an exploitative character using Caliban’s kindness. Caliban says to Prospero, “Which first was mine own king. And here you sty me/ In this hard rock, whiles you do keep from me/ The rest o’th’island (32).”
Prospero justifies their subordinate relationship by using Caliban’s ingratitude with violence toward his daughter; “Filth as thou art, with humane care, and lodged thee/ In mine own cell, till thou didst seek to violate/ The honor of my child (33).” Prospero also insists that Caliban’s obscure nature and ignorance are other reasons that he cannot belong to ordinary men; “But thy vile race, / Though thou didst learn, had that in’t which good natures/ Could not abide to be with (33).”
In fact, Caliban’s violence and revenge do not differ from Prospero’s. While Caliban’s brutality and cruelty are expressed as his evil nature, on the contrary, Prospero’s violence is represented as magical art which brings victory under any circumstance and his revenge is depicted as the only way to bring peace and harmony. Caliban says, “I must obey. His art is of such power, / It would control my dam’s god Setebos, / And make a vassal of him (34).” Prospero’s violent power which is portrayed metaphorically as magic made Caliban a slave, and Prospero’s snatching and exploitation of the island is justified and idealized through the magical power. “His art is of such power” is the transcendent power which cannot be conquered by the ruled beyond confrontation of the weak and strong in a natural circumstance.
Prospero’s prejudice toward Caliban that he is a subhuman figure is sometimes inconsistent. He says to Miranda about Ferdinand, “Having seen but him and Caliban. Foolish wench, / To the most of men this is a Caliban (41).” Prospero excluded Caliban from the category of humans, but he uses Caliban’s low quality to degrade Ferdinand, and this also reveals Prospero’s contradiction that he classifies Caliban as a human. Miranda also says when she meets Ferdinand for the first time, “This/ Is the third man that e’er I saw (39),” and she counts Caliban as a human, though she later changes her mind like this, “Nor have I seen/ More that I may call men, than you good friend, / And my dear father (77).” Here, she expels Caliban from the rank of humans.
Caliban’s status changes between human and animal depending on the mood of Prospero and Miranda. Other characters, Trinculo and Stephano, also do not see Caliban as a human based on his outward appearance of racism; “A strange fish (65)”, “some monster of the isle with four legs”, “Where the devil should he learn our language? (68)” and “A most ridiculous monster.” Stephano also changes his mind about Caliban later when Caliban swears allegiance to him during the conspiracy to kill Prospero that he would accept Caliban as his servant. To conclude, the status of Caliban changes and whether he may acquire the qualification of human depends on the needs and desires of the rulers.
Caliban remains one of the most intriguing and ambiguous minor characters, a sensitive monster who allows his self to be transformed into a fool in this play. His speech and behavior are sometimes cruel and violent as in his drunken scenes and in his conspiracy with Trinculo and Stephano to murder Prospero. However, Caliban’s brutality and uncivilized behavior have a good reason to be understood, if the fact is given that Prospero invaded this peaceful island, enslaved Caliban, and taught him the language to manage his life.
Caliban’s personality is only described through Prospero and his words and deeds are gruff and cursed. On the other hand, Caliban is sometimes eloquent and sensitive as a native on the island as in his description of the beauty of the island; “Sounds, and sweet airs, that give delight and hurt not. Sometimes a thousand twangling instrument”, “The clouds methought would open, and show riches”, and “I cried to dream again (87).” Here, his confessable words show that he loves the nature of his island and can feel the beauty of nature. He knows his miserable life as Prospero’s slave is in his own island. Caliban is portrayed as a monster figure by his oppressors, but his human aspect has been closed. In other words, the dichotomous distinction between civilized tenderness and savage is only a strategy to justify domination.
A character should be considered in a relationship to her or his social status, and to the multi-faceted Zeitgeist of the time. Caliban is depicted as a beast that is never included in Prospero’s final forgiveness and reconciliation, but Caliban is not evil because his revenge and brutality are not different from Prospero’s as a victim of colonization and as an inhabitant of the island. The fact that they both seek revenge suggests that it is not indicative of evil.
Then, can Caliban be called a villain? The characterization of Caliban started from the prejudice and racism of the other characters, and these negative views on this imposed identity are linked to justify colonialism. For that reason, this text sets the reading as a metaphor to the relationship between rulers and the ruled. Caliban’s swarthy appearance, his forced servitude, and his native status on the island have led to an interpretation of him as a symbol of the native cultures occupied and suppressed by European colonial societies, which are represented by the power of Prospero. The Tempest is often written from the colonizer’s viewpoint, and shows the recognition in those days toward other races.
======================================================================
Wolran Kim
March 2013
Caliban, in Shakespeare’s The Tempest, is consistently depicted as a bad man from beginning to end. His figure is represented as a source of evil being dragged out of his appearance, origin, ignorance, and personalities. Thus, he becomes an outsider who is between human and animal. His inferiority is used as a tool to justify the ruler, Prospero’s violence and sovereignty.
His portrait of being harmful is a common belief held by all the characters of this play, based on a racial perspective. For this reason, Caliban’s positive human conscience and the exploited class’s plea for freedom are viewed as disobedience. Caliban’s “wicked” figure is mainly described by Prospero; Miranda, Trinculo, and Stephano’s viewpoints are not different from Prospero’s. Shakespeare used Caliban's ugliness, humble origin, ignorance, and violent personalities to criticize racism.
Caliban appears for the first time during the conversation of Ariel and Prospero, and Prospero does not put him in the human category due to his appearance. Caliban’s origin emerged from Prospero’s words saying that he wants to remind himself that he is a benefactor to Ariel. Prospero says, “The foul witch Sycorax (27),” and “This damned witch Sycorax/ For mischiefs manifold, and sorceries terrible/ To enter human hearing, from Argier/ Thou know’st was banish’d (27).”
Caliban’s mother, witch Sycorax, was born in Algiers, North Africa, and she was banished from human society to the island due to her evil deed. Prospero also says, “This blue-eyed hag was hither brought with child (27),” and “hag” means demon or witch. The black-heart and tragic past of Sycorax’s application to Caliban remains intact. Caliban inherits his mother’s misfortune and characteristics, and this hereditariness is the beginning of the perspective of racism. Caliban’s life never overcomes his mother’s tragic category just like his name, which came from the cannibal meaning of man-eater or savage.
Caliban is represented in the form of an animal rather than a human shape from the beginning. “Then was this island/ (Save for the son, that she did litter here, / A freckled whelp, hag-born) not honored with/ A human shape (28).” Here, “litter” is “used for animals and, with people, contemptuously (28)” and “freckled whelp” is also means “spotted young animal/ puppy (28).” Therefore the following expression of Prospero is justified; “Dull thing. I say so. He, that Caliban/ Whom now I keep in service (28).” Here, Prospero who reigns over Caliban obviously shows the reason for Caliban’s slavery started from his outward appearance. Racism begins with the heterogeneity of appearance. In other words, unequal views, unscientific thinking, and repression depending on the characteristics of the biological visual, are rationalized. The relationship between the ruler, Prospero, and the ruled, Caliban, begins with a racial prejudice of appearance, and Prospero is obsessed by the apparent preconception of disgust and contempt.
The prejudice and stereotype started from Caliban’s appearance leading to judgment on his personality and behavior. Prospero says to Miranda, “We’ll visit Caliban, my slave, who never/ Yields us kind answer (30),” and Miranda replies, “I do not love to look on (30).” In this conversation between Prospero and Miranda, there are only insolent words exchanged about Caliban’s behavior, but nothing about how they treat him. Caliban’s disobedience and complaining against them are expressed just a wicked act without any reason.
Prospero also called Caliban “earth” (dirt, dust) or “tortoise.” Caliban’s value and reason for existence has been determined by how Prospero names him; “(to Caliban) Thou poisonous slave, got by the Devil himself/ Upon thy wicked dam (31).” Thus, Caliban’s labor force which is used by Prospero—“We cannot miss him. He does make our fire, / Fetch in our wood, and serves in offices/ That profit us (30).”—becomes a foundation of Caliban’s ability to make him belong to the category of human society, and is also his blessing from Prospero.
Caliban’s protest against Prospero’s abuse seems to be his own self-defense; however, Prospero ignores him as a “most lying slave (32).” Caliban says, “This island’s mine by Sycorax my mother, / Which thou tak’st from me.” and “And then I loved thee, / And showed thee all the qualities o’th’isle (32).” Caliban lived in freedom and peace on his inherited island before, and he taught knowledge about the island to Prospero in a friendly way when he first came. However, Prospero is transformed into an exploitative character using Caliban’s kindness. Caliban says to Prospero, “Which first was mine own king. And here you sty me/ In this hard rock, whiles you do keep from me/ The rest o’th’island (32).”
Prospero justifies their subordinate relationship by using Caliban’s ingratitude with violence toward his daughter; “Filth as thou art, with humane care, and lodged thee/ In mine own cell, till thou didst seek to violate/ The honor of my child (33).” Prospero also insists that Caliban’s obscure nature and ignorance are other reasons that he cannot belong to ordinary men; “But thy vile race, / Though thou didst learn, had that in’t which good natures/ Could not abide to be with (33).”
In fact, Caliban’s violence and revenge do not differ from Prospero’s. While Caliban’s brutality and cruelty are expressed as his evil nature, on the contrary, Prospero’s violence is represented as magical art which brings victory under any circumstance and his revenge is depicted as the only way to bring peace and harmony. Caliban says, “I must obey. His art is of such power, / It would control my dam’s god Setebos, / And make a vassal of him (34).” Prospero’s violent power which is portrayed metaphorically as magic made Caliban a slave, and Prospero’s snatching and exploitation of the island is justified and idealized through the magical power. “His art is of such power” is the transcendent power which cannot be conquered by the ruled beyond confrontation of the weak and strong in a natural circumstance.
Prospero’s prejudice toward Caliban that he is a subhuman figure is sometimes inconsistent. He says to Miranda about Ferdinand, “Having seen but him and Caliban. Foolish wench, / To the most of men this is a Caliban (41).” Prospero excluded Caliban from the category of humans, but he uses Caliban’s low quality to degrade Ferdinand, and this also reveals Prospero’s contradiction that he classifies Caliban as a human. Miranda also says when she meets Ferdinand for the first time, “This/ Is the third man that e’er I saw (39),” and she counts Caliban as a human, though she later changes her mind like this, “Nor have I seen/ More that I may call men, than you good friend, / And my dear father (77).” Here, she expels Caliban from the rank of humans.
Caliban’s status changes between human and animal depending on the mood of Prospero and Miranda. Other characters, Trinculo and Stephano, also do not see Caliban as a human based on his outward appearance of racism; “A strange fish (65)”, “some monster of the isle with four legs”, “Where the devil should he learn our language? (68)” and “A most ridiculous monster.” Stephano also changes his mind about Caliban later when Caliban swears allegiance to him during the conspiracy to kill Prospero that he would accept Caliban as his servant. To conclude, the status of Caliban changes and whether he may acquire the qualification of human depends on the needs and desires of the rulers.
Caliban remains one of the most intriguing and ambiguous minor characters, a sensitive monster who allows his self to be transformed into a fool in this play. His speech and behavior are sometimes cruel and violent as in his drunken scenes and in his conspiracy with Trinculo and Stephano to murder Prospero. However, Caliban’s brutality and uncivilized behavior have a good reason to be understood, if the fact is given that Prospero invaded this peaceful island, enslaved Caliban, and taught him the language to manage his life.
Caliban’s personality is only described through Prospero and his words and deeds are gruff and cursed. On the other hand, Caliban is sometimes eloquent and sensitive as a native on the island as in his description of the beauty of the island; “Sounds, and sweet airs, that give delight and hurt not. Sometimes a thousand twangling instrument”, “The clouds methought would open, and show riches”, and “I cried to dream again (87).” Here, his confessable words show that he loves the nature of his island and can feel the beauty of nature. He knows his miserable life as Prospero’s slave is in his own island. Caliban is portrayed as a monster figure by his oppressors, but his human aspect has been closed. In other words, the dichotomous distinction between civilized tenderness and savage is only a strategy to justify domination.
A character should be considered in a relationship to her or his social status, and to the multi-faceted Zeitgeist of the time. Caliban is depicted as a beast that is never included in Prospero’s final forgiveness and reconciliation, but Caliban is not evil because his revenge and brutality are not different from Prospero’s as a victim of colonization and as an inhabitant of the island. The fact that they both seek revenge suggests that it is not indicative of evil.
Then, can Caliban be called a villain? The characterization of Caliban started from the prejudice and racism of the other characters, and these negative views on this imposed identity are linked to justify colonialism. For that reason, this text sets the reading as a metaphor to the relationship between rulers and the ruled. Caliban’s swarthy appearance, his forced servitude, and his native status on the island have led to an interpretation of him as a symbol of the native cultures occupied and suppressed by European colonial societies, which are represented by the power of Prospero. The Tempest is often written from the colonizer’s viewpoint, and shows the recognition in those days toward other races.