Ambiguity In The Tempest

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In The Tempest, Shakespeare presents to the reader the very complex and ambiguous character of Caliban. Caliban is the brutish native of the island on which the play takes place, and is intimately intertwined with major themes of the play such as civilization versus barbarism, and the subjugation of man. One major question that arises while reading The Tempest is the nature of Caliban. Is he ultimately bound by the savagery he was born into? Or is there a chance of civility inside of him? Prospero and Miranda, the captors of Caliban, believe that he has “a nature on which nurture cannot stick.” Caliban’s encounters with major characters such as these and others help elucidate some of these questions by revealing to us Caliban’s true nature. Even though Prospero and Miranda seemed to have failed to civilize Caliban, he has the capacity to be civilized because he exhibits moments of civility throughout the play. In order to understand the nature of something, it is necessary to go back to its roots. In the case of Caliban, his roots stem from evil and witchcraft. He was born as a product of the witch Sycorax and the devil, and eventually the island was left to him. This island is remote, so Caliban alone rules …show more content…
On a superficial level, Caliban appears bad, it seems at those maybe nurturing cannot stick upon him. However, it clear that this is an unfair belief. Caliban lived for years without human contact and therefore without anything society considers civilized. Prospero and Miranda attempt to civilize him, and they make progress. Caliban, for example, learns how to speak English. Unfortunately, he makes a mistake and tries to rape Miranda. Even though this is a grave sin, Prospero goes overboard with his punishment, turning him to a resentful slave who has lost his ability to live autonomously. Therefore, Caliban does have the ability to become civilized, he just needs someone to teach

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