In the play The Tempest by William Shakespeare, Prospero demonstrates the theme of divides of power by exhibiting dominance over Caliban. He does this by using his position, which he gained by using magic, and by framing Caliban as both a slave and a primitive uneducable savage. By analysing this divide of power, colonization becomes a common allegory throughout the text. Post-colonialism in literature relates directly to experience between the colonized and the colonizer. Shakespeare was never one of those colonizers but in his writing displays that he based many of his ideas for this play on stories from these travelers to foreign lands. In this paper, I will show how Shakespeare’s primitive portrayal of Caliban prevents this character from being in any powerful position.
In the beginning of the play, the audience learns a bit about both Caliban and Prospero’s journey to get to where they are today. Prospero was “the Duke of Milan and a prince of power” (I.
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His attempts to educate Caliban are evidence of assimilation by Prospero as the colonizer trying to take power. He eventually succeeds in learning the important information about the island, and comes to the realization that Caliban is not worth educating. He did take care of him, but because of how egotistical and power hungry he is, the son of Sycorax becomes his slave. Prospero is talking to his daughter Miranda about how they must visit Caliban and says: “He does make our fire, fetch in our wood, and serves in offices That profit us. What, ho! Slave! Caliban! Thou, earth, thou! Speak!” (I. ii. 311-14) In this quote, he calls Caliban “earth” which in present day English translates into calling him dirt, nothing better than the ground we walk on. There is nothing Caliban can do to stop this treatment as Prospero continuously berates him with negative comments about his lowly