ipl-logo

The Tempest Forgiveness Essay

881 Words4 Pages

The Tempest can be seen as a play about reconciliation, forgiveness, and mercy. However, while it is clear that the theme of forgiveness is at the heart of the drama, it is unclear to what extent mercy is given. An examination of Caliban and Ariel and their representations of Prospero’s struggle illustrates that there is little, if any, true forgiveness and reconciliation in The Tempest. Prospero’s actions from the beginning of the play seem to contradict his ultimate aim to forgive those of have wronged him. Prospero seizes the opportunity for revenge with the help of his magic and good fortune. As Davidson points out, “Desire for vengeance has lain dormant in Prospero through the years of banishment, and now, the great wrong of twelve …show more content…

When Prospero came to the island he taught Caliban his language and mannerisms. At the beginning Caliban welcomed Prospero, delighting in the attention he would receive: "Thou strok’st me, and made much of me". In return, Caliban showed Prospero "all the qualities o’ th’ isle". But Caliban, in an expression of his natural instincts, tried to rape Miranda. It is an atrocious deed, but, to Caliban, it is a basic biological urge. Kermode states, "Caliban is the bestial man [with] no sense of right and wrong, and therefore sees no difference between good and evil. His state is less guilty”. While he should have taken measures to prevent such an occurrence from ever happening again, Prospero goes further to ensure that Caliban pay dearly for his actions. He threatens continually to "rack [him] with old cramps", and confines him "in this hard rock" away from what is rightfully his island. For Caliban, Prospero has no mercy or forgiveness. Prospero brands him "a born devil, on whose name/Nurture can never stick.” As Mannoni says, “Caliban does not complain of being exploited; he complains rather of being betrayed”. Even though Prospero understands that Caliban’s bad behaviour is like that of a child, he does not offer mercy and forgiveness as freely and earnestly as one should. Thus, it is through Prospero’s treatment of Caliban that Prospero’s desire for revenge is …show more content…

It is likely that Caliban was derived from Montaigne’s vision of the “noble savage,” which is a character who embodies the concept of an idealised outsider who has not been “corrupted” by civilisation, and therefore symbolises humanity’s innate goodness. All in all, despite the traditional happy ending befitting a Shakespeare comedy, ultimately, we are left with the feeling that true forgiveness and reconciliation have not been

Show More
Related
708 Words | 3 Pages

Eventually, the Red Death, which Prospero had tried so desperately to evade, approached and killed him, so “now was acknowledged the presence of the Red Death. He had come like a thief in the night. And one by one dropped the revelers in the blood-bedewed halls of their revel, and died each is the despairing posture of his fall” (88). Because the castellated abbeys can be considered a part of Prospero’s mind, then this clearly shows that denying the existence of a problem will not magically resolve it, and could instead cause bigger and even more pressing issues. Poe is proving that even if a problem does not directly affect someone, it should still be acknowledged, confronted, and dealt with in one way or another.

Read More
723 Words | 3 Pages

Prospero constantly claims that Caliban is incapable of doing anything right and is only capable of committing malicious acts. In the text, Shakespeare states, “Which any print of goodness wilt not take, being capable of all ill.” This statement further emphasizes Prospero’s revulsion towards Caliban. They have both endured neglection and verbal abuse throughout their lifetimes, which has led them to commit wrongful acts of violence upon

Read More
625 Words | 3 Pages

Caliban is not only a slave to Prospero but to envy and concupiscence, which has turned his once human lifestyle into a quest to seek revenge. His monstrous nature broke out when he “didst seek to violate the honor of Miranda” (1.2-16 Shakespeare). After Caliban’s endeavor to ravish Miranda his true dark heart was revealed even further when he expresses “would it had been done! Thou didst prevent me; I had peopled else, this isle with Caliban’s” (1.2-320) this shows that he has no contriteness for his unconsented sexual endeavors with Miranda. Caliban’s savage composed nature cannot be transmuted, but only tamed by his master.

Read More
1620 Words | 7 Pages

The values and attitudes that the protagonists carry with them into new worlds can influence their perception of their discoveries and its significance, giving the protagonist a growing depth of understanding and discernment. Discoveries, driven by wonder or necessity, can be challenging and confronting, compelling individuals to leave their comfort zone. Consequently, they are prepared to sacrifice the old to embrace the new, transforming and gaining new insights of themselves and the world around them. “The Tempest, a pastoral romance by William Shakespeare, portrays individuals who were faced with confronting experiences that assess their values, and who rediscover the necessity for compassion instead of abuse of power, leading them to re-evaluate their relations with other characters. In comparison, Ang Lee’s film, “The Life of Pi” is primarily focused on the process of self-discovery through isolation.

Read More
987 Words | 4 Pages

In addition to Caliban, Prospero's yearning for vengeance also creates internal issues for himself. After Ferdinand and Miranda announce their marriage, Prospero claims his "rejoicing / At nothing can be more," because he must "perform / Much business appertaining," (Shakespeare, 95-99). Usually, a father focuses more on his daughter getting married, however Prospero can only focus on his plans for vengeance. Some believe that the characters internal struggles were caused by the wrongdoers, and not a lack of forgiveness; however, at the end of the play, after Prospero becomes a more virtuous character, his conflicts with his brother and Caliban are resolved, clearly showing that their focus on vengeance is what caused the internal struggles.

Read More
1444 Words | 6 Pages

Prospero’s Magic, the Age of Death and the 1610 Anthropocene When Prospero -- the hero in William Shakespeare’s last play The Tempest -- buries his magical books near a cliff of an uninhabited island, he sings out the first song of the “Anthropocene” at the edge of the great globe. As the Duke of Milan, he and his daughter are exiled to the isolated island for 12 years, during which process he uses his magic to enslave the natives on the island, including “ a savage and deformed slave” -- Caliban (Shakespeare 3). One may argue that the master-slave relationship shows Shakespeare’s postcolonial reflection while others may think that this viewpoint takes too far from Shakespeare’s original intention. Steve Mentz, in his essay “Enter Anthropocene, c.1610,” interprets The Tempest through lenses of the 1610

Read More
1455 Words | 6 Pages

Revenge lies within us all, Revenge is an instinctive human characteristic. These emotions and actions associated are neither preventable nor controllable. Everybody has felt and taken action on the emotion of revenge, whether it 's your sibling, friend, or enemy. Revenge can bring justice but as well bring pain to someone else. Vengeance is an extremely popular emotion in today 's life whether it is terrorism or a dispute between family and friends.

Read More
756 Words | 4 Pages

Prospero played a key role in his own downfall. He, for example, failed to manage his authority. He admits enabling his brother 's treason happened because he gave him a lot of powers and neglected his own duties as the head of state as he concentrates on

Read More
1180 Words | 5 Pages

(1.2.191-193) reinforces Cesaire’s post-colonial perspective and his endorsement of negritude. Caliban finds himself continuously ill-treated; he has it the worst of all of Prospero’s slaves. The conditions of hard-labour that were subjected to black people by white supercilious people during colonization are mentioned by Cesaire were Prospero “forgives” Ferdinand and excuses him from his afore imposed state of slavery on the basis that they are of the same race and rank and the manual labour that was intended for Ferdinand is passed on to Caliban. Caliban is naïve and gullible, he trusts Stephano and Trinculo upon meeting them for the first time in spite of the ordeal he undergoes with Prospero. Caliban’s woes are echoed throughout the play and draws sympathy from the reader, whereas in “The Tempest” Shakespeare makes it difficult for the audience to consider Caliban as anything further then the perpetrator

Read More
638 Words | 3 Pages

The Masque of the Red Death: Essay The Masque of the Red Death is a short gothic horror story. Overall is about a prince who thinks he is invincible, while having a party one night a mysterious guest appears and all the party-goers are very frightened of him. In the end this red death man kills the prince along with many other people at the party. This story became more horrific because the setting was in a castle, there was supernatural elements, and there was revenge.

Read More
1220 Words | 5 Pages

Both characters are considered as rebellious savages that are controlled, Caliban by Prospero and John by the World State. The Tempest can be interpreted as a play about colonialism because when Prospero arrived at the island, he imposed his own rules and put Caliban under slavery, just as Europeans when they took possession of the lands of Americans and enslaved them. From this point of view, Prospero and the World State are very similar because they both use their power to control over people and to preserve their own stability (Prospero using his magic and the World State using soma).

Read More
2448 Words | 10 Pages

When we first meet Prospero we are also introduced to his 15 year old daughter Miranda. In Act 1 Scene II we are presented with aspects of violence as Prospero retells his past to Miranda and in doing so he explains how they got to this current situation and how “that situation involves treason and murder” (Nostbakken, 3) In doing so he retells Miranda how “his Brother Antonio persuaded Alonso the king of Naples, to assist him in overthrowing Prospero and taking his dukedom of Milan” (3). It is clear that Prospero, although throughout the play is the one causing the psychological violence, in this case he is the victim. In this scene it is evident that Prospero suffered from both psychological and physical violence bestowed upon him by his brother Antonio.

Read More
1470 Words | 6 Pages

As the play begins, it seems as if the massive tempest is simply a random occurrence, catching the mariners and nobility by chance. However, as the act continues, Shakespeare reveals that the tempest was actually the work of Prospero and his ghostly servant Ariel, who stirred up the seas and set fire to the masts (1.2, 193-194). This establishes Prospero as the executor of a mess of ‘coincidences’ ranging from Ferdinand stumbling upon his daughter Miranda to King Alonso and his party walking directly into the former duke’s cell. Though Prospero may have the same control over the English language as the other characters, Caliban points to his specific source of power. He says, “… for without [his books] /

Read More
1555 Words | 7 Pages

The Tempest can often be seen as a play about colonialism primarily because Prospero came to the island that belonged to Sycorax, Caliban's mother. Prospero subdued her, ruled the land and placed himself as its new ruler. He had full control over everything on the island. Caliban actually loved Prospero at first and was fine with an autonomy but not slavery as he lamented: This island’s mine by Sycorax my mother, Which thou tak’st from me.

Read More
1123 Words | 5 Pages

In comparison, the inconsistency between diction depicts the power dynamics observed in the play. Shakespeare often uses Prospero’s servant, Ariel and slave, Caliban to portray the differences in the hierarchy of the play. As observed by the audience Prospero often uses threats and insults to communicate and assign task to Caliban, hence “...tonight thou shalt have cramps, side stitches that shall pen thy breath up. ”(I.ii.325-326) Prospero threatens Caliban with pain after his refusal to do work, because he feels as if the isle belongs to him due to the fact that it was inhabited by his mother first.

Read More

More about The Tempest Forgiveness Essay

Related Topics

Open Document