Master slave relationships in Shakespeares The Tempest - Essay Example

?Master slave relationships in Shakespeare’s The Tempest Many of the characters in Shakespeare’s The Tempest display master/slave relationships and the play also addresses such power relations that exist within the confines of imperialism and colonialism to a great extend. While Prospero assumes the stature of the supreme master in the island the savage and uncivilized Caliban struggles for freedom as he is enslaved by Prospero in his own island. Similarly, Prospero proves himself to be the master of Ariel who displays obedient subservience to his master. It seems that Shakespeare unearths the legacy of imperialism as well as the ways and manners of the imperialists when he depicts the master slave relationship of both Prospero and Caliban. Prospero’s use of derogative names and his insulting exchanges with Caliban very often emphasise the superiority and dominance of the master over his servant. This paper seeks to explore the master slave relations between Prospero and Caliban and in doing so the paper also tries to address the issues related to imperialism or colonialism. There are many who argue that Shakespeare tries to expose the inequalities of European colonialism on the true inhabitants of lands colonised by them. The oppression and enslavement of the inhabitants at the hands of the colonialists is best revealed through the contrast between Caliban’s savagery and Prospero’s civilized heritage. Hulme rightly observes that “Shakespeare anticipated the inequalities of European colonialism in terms of the master-slave relationship between Prospero and Caliban” (Hulme 124). A close reading of the text best reveals that Caliban is exploited or rather ill treated by his civilized masters comprising of Prospero, Miranda, Stephano and Trinculo for their own ulterior motives. While Prospero and Miranda enslaves Caliban to carry woods and do other household activities Stephano and Trinculo plot to murder Prospero and seize Miranda with Caliban’s help so that they can plunder the island. Caliban’s human existence itself is challenged and he is very often addressed as a slave, devil or beast by the intruders in to the island. For instance, in scene 2 of Act 1 one can find Prospero addressing Caliban as a ‘poisonous slave’ who has been begotten by the devil himself: “Thou poisonous slave, got by the devil himself/Upon thy wicked dam, come forth! (I, ii, 519-520). The word ‘slave’ is repeatedly used in the text to refer to Caliban which throws light on the European attitudes towards the people they conquered through imperialism. Similarly, Prospero calls Caliban “beast” (IV, i, 140), “devil” (IV, i, 188) and other derogatory terms to refer to his savagery and uncivilised ways. Even though Prospero claims to have imposed penalties on Caliban for violating the honour of his daughter (I, ii, 347-48) one really tends to doubt whether Caliban really deserves all those punishments inflicted on him. Tiffany, in this respect, purports that Caliban’s attempted rape on Miranda “stemmed from untaught natural impulse than from considered evil.” However, Caliban is destined to suffer from the wrath of his master. However, Caliban is not always submissive or servile. He reacts and yearns for his freedom and rights like a true colonist. His poems display both imaginative and intellectual capabilities. He is bold enough to state that the island was presented to him by his mother: “This island’s mine by Sycorax my mother” (I, ii, 331) and thus he expresses his rightful claim to own the island. In the same way, Caliban’s intense longing to take revenge on his master is also evident in the play when he joins with Stephano and Trinculo to plot against Prospero. His revengeful attitude also made clear when he regrets of not being able to molest Miranda. He believes that if he had succeeded in his rape attempt he could have “peopled..../This isle with Calibans” (I, ii, 350-51) and taken the power back from Prospero’s hands. Thus, Caliban’s character displays feelings of anger, frustration and despair and he always dreams of a time when he is freed of his enslavement. It is also worthwhile to analyse the master slave relationships in The tempest from the point of deconstructive critics. As pointed out by Purchase deconstructive criticism takes into account the fundamental binary oppositions in western culture such as man versus woman, native versus foreign, mater versus slave, or good versus evil (Purchase 211). Very often, in many western texts one of these binary oppositions is granted a greater prestige whereas the other is regarded as inferior, subordinate or oppressed. That is why one can find Prospero’s magical powers being highlighted in The Tempest whereas his oppressive nature is depicted as subtle. However, deconstructive critics hold that “each term in the opposition depends on the other for meaning” (Purchase 210) and as such it is clear that Prospero masterly position in the play is directly related to Caliban’s servile or beastly existence. A deconstructive understanding of the text shows The Tempest is not merely a story of an island inhabitant and his master; on the other hand, the text aims at breaking the legacy of colonialism or imperialism that underpinned Britain’s history of slavery and empire. It can thus be seen that The Tempest deals with the themes of power and control within a master slave relationship between Prospero and Caliban. Caliban remains a servant to many masters varying from his mother Sycorax, the original colonizer to Stephano whom he takes as his own master to challenge Prospero. One can clearly notice that a number of characters in the play compete for the colonial control of the island and each one has specific colonial ambitions for the island. Even though Prospero succeeds in retaining the control of the island against all conspiracies his rule and the way he treats Caliban who is the rightful owner of the island raises questions of fairness, morality and rights. Thus, it is evident that the play depicts all the necessary tensions, uncertainties and master-slave relations that characterise colonialism and both Prospero and Caliban are signifiers for the greater imperial world order. Works Cited Hulme, Peter. The Tempest and Its Travels. Ed. Peter Hulme & William Howard Sherman. Illustrated ed: Reaktion Books, 2000. Print. Purchase, Sean. Key Concepts in Victorian Literature. New York: Palgrave MacMillan, 2006. 208-56. Print. Shakespeare, William. The Tempest: Evans Shakespeare ed. Ed. Grace Tiffany. Cengage Learning, 2011. Print. Read More