European countries presented the notion that "all races other than white were inferior or subhuman" (Ashcroft, Griffiths, and Tiftin, 236). Like Caliban, their subjugated nations were taken advantage of both economically and culturally, as the more powerful countries reaped the benefits of raw materials and the institution of European religious beliefs. He is an example of a native who is taken advantage of by a seemingly godlike European. Shakespeare created Caliban as a representation of native peoples. His position in the play is meant to provide an argument against colonization. Even though he guided Prospero around the island and showed him the "freshwater springs, the saltwater pits, the barren places and the fertile ones," Caliban is treated only as Prospero and Miranda's "horrid slave" (Shakespeare, 43-45). He was perfectly happy to remain alone on the island without European language or culture, but Prospero and Miranda thought otherwise. They could have let him live with his own interpretations of things, but they only saw him "babbling like an animal" and decided instead to enslave him (45). Caliban did not need to learn the language; he was content by himself on the island.
This parallels the Native Americans in early North America and the video. Native Americans were originally portrayed as savages with a minimal understanding of their surroundings, as portrayed in "How Hollywood Stereotyped the Native Americans". They are characterized as murderous and unintelligent. However, they were really peaceful people who lived off the land and practiced their own unique ancestral beliefs. Like the Native Americans, Caliban is easily controlled by Stephano's alcohol and kind(ish) words, but he is still referred to as an "ignorant monster" and a "drunken fish" by Trinculo (123). Shakespeare created Caliban to depict the unfortunate struggle of the colonized.
No comments:
Post a Comment