Figurative Language In The Tempest

Humanity’s desire for power and control was the driving force behind the European colonial period beginning in the 16th century. The Tempest, written by William Shakespeare in 1610, portrays the social issues and insecurities that were caused due to the new-found colonialism. In the second scene of Act 2, the relationship between the colonizers and the colonized festers, consequently leading to discord. Shakespeare uses variations of literary devices, figurative language, diction, and combating tones to portray this societal conflict through the inequality that encompasses the partisan power struggles between the Europeans and natives on the island. Repetition and meter were singular literary devices used to create a discrepancy between Caliban …show more content…
In Scene 2, Caliban only spoke with a frustrated tone when he talked to or about Prospero. Otherwise, he spoke as if he were powerless and futile. He labeled Prospero as “the tyrant that I serve (139)!” In the meantime, Stephano and Trinculo treated Caliban as if he was an animal that could be ordered around and subdued. Stephano told Trinculo, “[h]e(Caliban) shall taste of my bottle… it will go near to remove his fit… he shall pay for him that hath him (66-68),” and, “all the wine in my bottle will recover him (80-81).” This scene shows the foreign, civilized culture as decadent and manipulative since Stephano purposefully got Caliban drunk in order to calm him down. Stephano then planed to “inherit” the island using Caliban to show him all its virtues. In response, Caliban acted as if Stephano was a god that was worthy of his service and praise. He asked Stephano, “[h]as thou dropped from heaven (115)?,” to which Stephano responded, “[o]ut o’th’moon I do assure thee. I was the man i’th’moon, when time was (116-117).” Stephano was making a joke out of the episode and continued on for his own merriment. Under those circumstances, Caliban appeared to be crazed and vulnerable while Stephano acted as though he was Caliban’s superior. Without delay, Stephano ordered Caliban to kiss his feet and said, “I prithee, now lead the way without any more talking (150)” as they left to have Caliban show them the resources on the island. Stephano’s tone is overbearing while Caliban’s is impotent. Correspondingly, the extreme tones throughout Caliban’s dialogue result from him being driven crazy by all of the power figures that abused him. This combative relationship characterizes the stark contrast in demeanor that individuals affected by colonialism