William Shakespeare’s famous play The Tempest follows a magician-type man, Prospero, who has been cast out into the ocean with his daughter, Miranda. The deed was done by his own brother, Sebastian. Like in many of Shakespeare’s plays, power and authority were what motivated people to betray their own kin. The events in The Tempest mirror Britain’s thirst for imperialism, and how they came across all sorts of different people and terrain throughout their journeys. One of the most interesting encounters is that of Caliban and Prospero. It is a symbolic merging of the civilized and the so called barbarian cultures. Both characters believe that their way of living is superior. This idea is called ethnocentrism. By definition ethnocentrism is the belief in the inherent superiority of one's own ethnic group or culture. The ideal became one of the central causes behind the difficulty of the two cultures merging when the English invaded the Native American’s land in the 1400’s. This tale is somewhat cautionary, as it shows the positive and negative of combing cultures; which what was happening in America in the 1600’s when Shakespeare wrote this. The Requiemento, a Spanish document written at the time of Shakespeare. It was used to read on the shores of the new places the Spaniards discover. Generally, the Spaniards use the Requiremento to justify taking over the land forcefully in the name of the lord. This document could have influenced Caliban and Prospero’s relationship, as well as sharing certain mentalities that caused the trail of tears.
On this island, Prospero and Miranda encounter the natives: Ariel, described as “an airy spirit.” Prospero, using his alchemy, freed Ariel from a curse which bounded him in a tree for eternity. Th...
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...ropeans did not see them as people.
Overall, Shakespeare’s The Tempest mirrors certain themes that were carried out into the real world. From the early settlements during the time of The Requerimiento to The Tempest to the Trail of Tears, Ethnocentrism has led to violence and dehumanization. The ways that the natives were treated because of their different lifestyles makes it harder and harder to come together and live as one. The old saying goes, “people are set in their ways” and that holds true. Both parties, in their belief that they are better, refuse to compromise and communicate. In The Tempest, this theme led to rape and slavery. In the New World, the theme led to death and hundreds of years of discrimination. Shakespeare is known for being a wise man and pulling from universal and eternal themes for his plays and sonnets, and ethnocentrism is one of them.
Texts and their appropriations reflect the context and values of their times. Within Shakespeare’s Othello and Geoffrey Sax’s appropriation of Othello, the evolution of the attitudes held by Elizabethan audiences and those held by contemporary audiences can be seen through the context of the female coupled with the context of racism. The role of the female has developed from being submissive and “obedient” in the Elizabethan era to being independent and liberated within the contemporary setting. The racism of the first text is overtly xenophobic and natural, whilst the “moor” is unnatural whereas the updated context portrays Othello’s race as natural and racism as unnatural. Therefore these examples show how Shakespeare’s Othello, and it’s appropriation, Geoffrey sax’s Othello, reflect the context and values of their times.
Shakespeare's play, The Tempest tells the story of a father, Prospero, who must let go of his daughter; who brings his enemies under his power only to release them; and who in turn finally relinquishes his sway over his world - including his power over nature itself. The Tempest contains elements ripe for tragedy: Prospero is a controlling figure bent on taking revenge for the wrongs done to him, and in his fury he has the potential to destroy not only his enemies, but his own humanity and his daughter's future.
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.
In literature as in life, characters are multi-dimensional beings. They possess a wide variety of character traits that make them who they are. In the Tempest written by William Shakespeare, Prospero traits resemble those of the Europeans that came during the exploration of the Americas. Thus, Prospero’s treatment of Caliban is similar to the way Europeans treated the Native Americans.
No discoveries are limited to just one aspect of life, but rather can have a range of impacts on a variety of different planes. The wide variety of characters Shakespeare explores throughout The Tempest each undergo different forms of discovery. Prospero’s deliberate conjuring of the tempest acts as a catalyst for all these different discoveries. Miranda, having lived on the secluded island her whole life, is astounded by the newcomers, “O brave new world, that has such people in’t!” This line personifies her ‘new world’ to accentuate Miranda’s astonishment at her discovery of humanity and the diversity of it. Her discovery of feeling such as love and lust as a result of her interactions with Ferdinand demonstrate how other individuals can provoke discovery within one’ self. Shakespeare’s setting; the deserted island, allows each character to explore their individual discovery without the grasps of society constricting them. Ferdinand’s and Miranda’s joint discovery of love is a clear example of this as it never would’ve taken place within society and demonstrates the concept that discoveries can occur as a result of new settings. In contrast to Miranda’s discovery of humanity and all it entails, Pi discovers humanity’s irrelevance in face of the world around us. While traversing across a glowing sea at night, high angle and overhead shots of the
Leininger, Lorie Jerrell. "The Miranda Trap: Sexism and Racism in Shakespeare's Tempest." The Tempest: Critical Essays.Ed. Patrick M. Murphy. New York: Routledge, 2001. 223-229.
The Tempest and The Second Discourse are inundated with the themes of inequality versus equality, nature versus nurture, and savage man versus civil man. Jean-Jacques Rousseau, a prominent philosopher of his time and author of The Second Discourse, attempts to pinpoint the origin of inequality. In doing so, he interestingly analyzes the differences between civilized man and natural man. William Shakespeare, a prolific writer during the Elizabethan Era and author of The Tempest, draws attention to issues facing mankind. While at first glance these two literary pieces appear to be unrelated, after analysis, they offer many similarities. What is most central is that both pieces offer insight into authority, power, and equality.
William Shakespeare’s The Tempest provides dialogue that portrays the social expectations and stereotypes imposed upon women in Elizabethan times. Even though the play has only one primary female character, Miranda, the play also includes another women; Sycorax, although she does not play as large a roll. During many scenes, the play illustrates the characteristics that represent the ideal woman within Elizabethan society. These characteristics support the fact that men considered women as a mere object that they had the luxury of owning and were nowhere near equal to them. Feminists can interpret the play as a depiction of the sexist treatment of women and would disagree with many of the characteristics and expectations that make Miranda the ideal woman. From this perspective, The Tempest can be used to objectify the common expectations and treatment of women within the 16th and 17th Centuries and compare and contrast to those of today.
In the 1600s, married women were expected to do anything for their husbands. Husbands were urged to be good heads of their families and to treat their wives with kindness and consideration. The woman were considered to be the 'weaker vessel ' and thought to be spiritually weaker than men and in need of masculine guidance. During this time, women were treated as inferior being who were meant to look after the house and were to children . Women were treated with little dignity. In “The Tempest,” William Shakespeare was able to show the oppression of women throughout the play. Scenes with Prospero and Miranda have shown significant hidden evidence to prove that the colonial era was a time of female oppression. Shakespeare uses Prospero as an
Leininger, Lorie Jerrel. “The Miranda Trap: Sexism and Racism in Shakespeare’s Tempest.” The Woman’s Part: Feminist Criticism of Shakespeare. Eds Carolyn Ruth Swift Lenz et al. Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1983. 285-294
In this essay I intend to explore the ways that William Shakespeare has presented the relationships between the main characters within his play “The Tempest”. I shall investigate Ferdinand and Miranda’s relationship, the father/daughter bond between Miranda and Prospero and Caliban’s lust after Miranda.
colonising discourse and expanding territory. The Tempest thus incorporates concerns of the Jacobean 17th century context, used to naturalise the resolution.
The Tempest, by Shakespeare, offers the reader a variety of themes. The one theme that stands out the most is that of colonialism. During the time of Shakespeare, many European countries such as Spain, France, and England, were expanding their borders by taking over less developed countries, referred to as colonies. During this time of exploitation, there was skepticism concerning the possible success of the colonies. While some scholars believe that the play is about the Americas, I argue that the play reflects on colonialism in general and how it is destined for failure which is shown through the character’s relationships throughout the play.
In William Shakespeare’s play “The Tempest,” the major theme in this play is good versus evil. There are good characters, who do good, help others and try their best to stay out of trouble, and there are other characters who are the exact opposite. All the characters do is try to get even with those who hurt them, hoping that ravage would solve the problem. Good and Evil, just like the theme of the book, also applies to the world that we live in today because there are good people and there are bad people. Good will do good while bad will be bad.
The Tempest has many themes including reconciliation and forgiveness However, while it is clear that the theme of forgiveness is the main theme of the play, what is up for debate is to what extent the author realizes this forgiveness. After reading the attitudes and actions of the major characters in the play, specifically Prospero, little, if any, true forgiveness and reconciliation is shown in The Tempest.