Explore the presentation of authority and inferiority in The Tempest Essays

Explore the presentation of authority and inferiority in The Tempest Essays Explore the presentation of authority and inferiority in The Tempest Essay Explore the presentation of authority and inferiority in The Tempest Essay Essay Topic: The Tempest Throughout The Tempest, Shakespeare manages to present authority and inferiority through different characters and in a variety of different ways. One of the main characters, Prospero, is acknowledged as being the most authoritative character in the play because the audience realise that, not only was he once the Duke of Milan, but his power and overall superiority in the island is due to his knowledge in the magical arts. Prospero is proficient in the magical arts mainly due to the fact that he brushed aside his responsibilities when he was a Duke to make time for his magic. It is ironic to consider that, being gifted with magic, Prospero is shown as being virtually omnipotent on the island, yet it was the pursuit of this magic which was his initial downfall in society.In contrast to Prosperos excess in authority, Caliban is presented as the most inferior character in the play. He is banished out of Prosperos circle due to his nature; his mother was often refe rred to as a hag, and because he knows nothing of civilisation, but rather acts on an instinctive belief. It is also due to Calibans ignorance of the rules of outside society, that the island, where he born, and which could be said be rightfully his, was taken from him by Prospero. One such instance of Calibans ignorance of the rules of society is when he didst seek to violate the honour of my (Prosperos) child. In society, this would be considered as rape and one would be imprisoned for it, however Caliban doesnt understand the error of his actions as he says he wanted to populate this isle with Calibans. To him, He was acting on instinct and doing what animals do, but as Miranda and Prospero were not born on the island, to them it was considered as a violation of basic human rights. It if for this reason that we see Prospero hold control and superiority over Caliban as Prospero is aware of the outside rules, whereas Caliban is forced to act on his primitive instincts.Shakespeare s hows how authority is determined, not only by ones knowledge of life at its most basic state, but also by the ability to use it. In Prosperos case he uses Ariel as his instrument in exercising his authority. Ariel is shown as being Prosperos eyes as he uses her to oversee all that is happening on the island. Ariel does Prosperos bidding in the hope that she will have freedom once it has all been done. When Prospero asks Ariel if she has done what he ordered here to do: Hast thou, spirit, performed to point the tempest that I bade thee? Ariel replies with: To every article. Ariel shows that she has done all Prospero has asked her to do and even goes on to list what she has done as an emphasis of her deeds: I boarded the kings ship. Now on the beak, now in the waist, the deck, in every cabin I flamed amazement.The use of commas in between the line shows a break in the flow and also implies that a lot has been done. This gives the audience a sense of how it is directed on stage as Arie l can only narrate her action and portray herself as being an eager servant flitting around Prospero. Prosperos hold over Ariel is the promise of freedom and this is what gives him authority. His authority over Ariel also gives him overall authority over the island as, assisted with Ariels magic, he can control all that happens on it. Shakespeare shows us that superiority can only exist when acknowledged by those who are inferior. Another example of this is the way Gonzalo accepts Alonso as King and, later on, when Caliban promotes Stephano and Trinculo (two base characters) to a superior level.Through the interaction between Alonso and Gonzalo, the audience realise that authority and superiority can only be acknowledged by those without it. In Alonso and Gonzalos case, the way in which Gonzalo addresses Alonso as sir shows the respect he holds for Alonso and also indicates Gonzalo has less authority than Alonso. This would have been considered as rightfully placed respect in that p eriod in time because Alonso was the King. However, the way in which Sebastian and Antonio address Alonso is nothing short of disrespectful; when Alonso grieves for his sons apparent death, Sebastian states The faults your own (Alonsos). In situations like this, the common reaction of people would be to comfort the person who is grieving, but Sebastian and Antonio show a totally disrespect for authority and, instead, make snide and sarcastic comments whenever Gonzalo speaks: He (Alonso) receives comfort like cold porridge. This was said when Gonzalo tried telling Alonso to be grateful for having survived the tempest, Beseech you, sir, be merry. The way in which Antonio and Sebastian plan to kill Alonso and Gonzalo, in order for Sebastian to become the new King of Naples, shows how they are both willing to do blasphemous deeds in order to be their own leaders. Their lack of respect for those with more authority to themselves helps the audience to understand that there is no authority or superiority without those who are inferior to acknowledge it.The case of Caliban and Stephano and Trinculo shows the audience that some people were born to serve, but that they wanted to the freedom to choose their leader. Caliban never wanted to be free, he just wanted to have the freedom to choose who his controller was to be. We see this when he tells Stephano and Trinculo he will serve thee if they bite him (Prospero) to death. Calibans hatred for Prospero is justified as the treatment he receives from Prospero is nothing short of degrading; Prospero constantly refers to him as a slave, Thou poisonous slave. The speed in which Caliban was willing to accept Stephano and Trinculo as his new leaders shows his naivety as they are much more inferior than Prospero could ever be. Caliban begs them to take him as a slave as he says hell Kiss thy foot and asks them to be his god. When Caliban confronts Prospero at the beginning of the play, he shows emotion in the form of sadness as he says he showed thee [] the fresh springs and all he got in return was banishment from the island. However, when he speaks to Trinculo and Stephano, he says hell show thee the best springs as he believes they would never betray him like Prospero did.Authority and inferiority are also portrayed throughout the play through the characters use of language. The interaction between the characters and the language they use helps the audience to differentiate between who has authority and who doesnt. The way in which Caliban and Prospero interact with each other is a great indication to the audience of their status. As has been previously established, Prospero is shown as being a powerful and magical being who demands authority from both the audience and the characters in the play. The audience can tell, before Caliban even comes on stage, that he has little to no authority on the island. This is because of the language Prospero uses when describing him: Caliban, my slave, and Tis a villa in. By addressing Caliban as his slave slave, the audience realise that Prospero controls Caliban and therefore is far more superior to him. The abrupt and callous manner in which Prospero talks to Caliban suggests to the audience that Caliban is unworthy of Prosperos attention and time. Snappy lines, such as: What, ho! Slave! Caliban and Thou earth, thou, speak, show how impatient Prospero gets when having to spend time conversing with Caliban. It is for this reason that Caliban is unwilling to serve Prospero but is eager to serve Stephano and Trinculo. Caliban chooses to serve them both as he believes them to be fine things and to be Brave gods. It is his belief that they will kill Prospero and treat him well in enough. Although they both address Caliban as monster, the way they say it makes it seem as if its a term of endearment. This is proven correct when they leave the stage with: O brave monster! Lead the way. Caliban has never been spoken to in such a way and the use of brav e and Lead the way implies that Caliban is needed by them.One key scene to outline Shakespeares overall thoughts on authority and inferiority is the first scene of The Tempest. This scene outlines the fact that authority and inferiority is transient and unstable as it changes according to the situation and who is involved in the situation. Where Antonio, Sebastian, Alonso and Gonzalo would have the most authority in any social situation, their authority dissipates in the face of a raging storm. In this opening scene, the royal party is harshly addressed by the boatswain: Do you not hear him? [] Keep your cabins! You do assist the storm. The use of a rhetorical question shows how in a life or death situation, niceties will not do. The boatswain is more interested in getting out alive rather than adhering to the rules of hierarchy.He orders the four to get to their cabins as they mar his labour. This scene shows that even in the face of danger, Antonio and Sebastian are more concerned with the correct respect shown to them due to their statuses in society. The Boatswains only interest is saving himself and the ship, so his language is abrupt and short: Work you, then. He is speaking directly to Sebastian after Sebastian gets affronted with the disrespect he is shown. Sebastian shouts insults at the Boatswain A pox oyour throat. It is his pride which was injured due to the lack of respect he was shown. Sebastian and Antonio were never used to this treatment as they were usually held in high regard in society. What the audience realise is that authority means nothing when in the face of danger as the ultimate authority is help by Mother Nature.In conclusion, one can assume that authority and inferiority is determined by a number of things, but mostly the situation and circumstance a person is in. Caliban is a victim of circumstance and thus has no authority, but if Prospero hadnt come to the island, Caliban may have been his own king. It is Prosperos magic and the fear he instils in Caliban which gives him the superiority he has on the island. Authority and Inferiority can also only be determined by those with less authority, as without inferiority there cannot be superiority. Explore the presentation of authority and inferiority in The Tempest Essays Explore the presentation of authority and inferiority in The Tempest Essay Explore the presentation of authority and inferiority in The Tempest Essay Essay Topic: The Tempest The presentation of authority and inferiority is displayed in many different ways throughout, The Tempest. Authority is presented as being based on a variety of features. For example, social status, knowledge and magic all figure prominently. The balance of powers shifts quickly as authority is displayed in a complex manner. It refers to being powerful and conveys the traits of the characters. The authority is unbalanced and doesnt have as much of an affect, as it should do. The beginning shows authority and inferiority as it starts off with a storm and there is thunder and lightning hence the use of pathetic fallacy indicates towards danger onboard. The Master says Boatswain and therefore there is already symbolisation of authority within the premature play. This already indicates control over the Boatswain, while throughout the scene he tries to prevent the boat from wrecking by following orders. The authority is readily transferred to Boatswain while he commands other to help him and mentions What cares these roarers for the name of the King?, showing he is unmoved by whoever is the on ship and therefore gives priority to his master. The readers can already see how the man has been swirled within the control of his master and therefore obeys him strictly. Within this process even the nobles are treated with least respect thereby implying the effects of loyalty or obedience to master, and is shown when, he says, Do you not hear him? You mar our labour. Keep your cabins! The use of the exclamation mark indicates that he is shouting abruptly at a person of higher social rank. However at the same time Antonio and Sebastian rush after the King therefore provoking the indirect authority of the on them. The following Scene 2, comprises Miranda, Prospero having a conversation about the storm, while Miranda expresses sorrow over the storm and people in the ship, Prospero decides to extend the event to her past and explain it to her. He explains the story, but then makes her sleep, mainly to save her innocence, while Prospero talks about what to do with the survivors of the ship wreck with Ariel. Putting her to sleep, shows power, as magic is known as a super-power and is usually impossible to withstand it. Prospero is the ideal character with knowledge and shows this throughout The Tempest. He is the antagonist with immense amount of power various amount of power from persuasion, magic and knowledge from books. An example of this is: If thou more murmurst, I will rend an oak, And peg thee in his knotty entrails, till, Thou has howled away twelve winters. Prospero shows that he has the power to do anything. He threatens Ariel to do as he says or Ariel will pay the consequences by being put inside an oak tree. The vocabulary is strong, I will rend an oak a strong suggestion of eagerness to fulfil his words with actions also there is seriousness in his tone which might seem as though he is exaggerating Thou has howled away twelve winters, if there is a murmur from Ariel. Furthermore there is a break in speech with the use of a comma, which reinforces and links the idea of being exiled into an oak tree for twelve winters the authority over Ariel is just a part of Prosperos knowledge: Knowing I loved my books, he furnished me, From mine own library with volumes that, I prize above my dukedom. From this we learn how educated Prospero is and we can blatantly see that he has a vast knowledge over many volumes where he gained his knowledge and power. There is an emphasis that he had his own library, with various volumes that he could prize upon. When Ariel is introduced to the play, he appears to be a servant again signaling to authority and control, and when Ariel questions authority, he is harshly reminded by Prospero of how he rescued her and therefore classifies Ariel as being ungrateful and needing to be once in a month recalled of Prosperos good deeds. The punctuation has use of commas that try to persuade him by saying, Let me remember thee.. this conveys us that he is trying to remind Prospero his promise and emphasizes his aspirations of being free, by reminding him what thou promised. When Ariel and Prospero speak about the storm it links back to scene 1 where the storm shows how Prospero has authority over the ship and circumstances through magic. Ariel is treated almost like a pet by being degraded and appreciated at times, showing the magnitude of authority of Prospero. During that Ariel is degraded to being questioned about his past as well. And therefore takes the role of a pupil while Prospero humiliates him through his intellectual and physical threatening power. Caliban is seen as a slave as well with low morals, he is shown to be colonised by Prospero while he is taught the language to communicate with him as well. This shows the authority of the coloniser and ironically outlines the control the colonised Caliban has after being taught the language allowing him to curse Prospero. His authority and inferiority is shown as acceptable. Caliban is an example of this, when he comes across Trinculo and Stephano he immediately asks them to be his masters, by saying that he has given away his authority and has immediately asked to be inferior: Ill show thee every fertile inch otheisland, and I will kiss thy foot. I prithee, be my god. The desperation of Caliban is immediately seen in the quote when he emphasizes that hell show the entire land and he will kiss their feet. The vocabulary illustrates the desperation and extreme anxiety of a needed master. In addition it also has a hyperbole, be my god he over exaggerates by saying he wants Trinculo a nd Stephano to be his Gods. This shows that Caliban has no desire to be an authorative figure; he has accepted his position in the social hierarchy. When Ferdinand is stranded on the island, he encounters Ariel where they both fall in love, and therefore Ferdinand and Miranda could be seen as a possibility for peace and forgiveness for usurping Prospero. However Prospero dislikes the sudden fall in love between the two, and therefore threatens Ferdinand, where Ferdinand draws his sword, and after drawing it, Prospero freezes him through magic showing control; however Miranda does retaliate towards any harshness towards Ferdinand. Another example of authorisation is how Antonio uses various cunning methods to persuade and manipulate Sebastian into killing the King. This is shown when he says, Thou lets thy fortune sleep die, rather, winkst whiles thou art walking. The imagery used in the language personifies that the human status will raise level of impatience, fortune sleep also the grammar shows the relationship between die and sleep. The dash indicates a pause, engages the readers attention. It also shows Antonio changing his mind, to emphasize on the fact that the chance will be lost to kill the king. Furthermore the vocabulary shows a manipulative tone by suggesting that it is fortunes wish that they take this opportunity fortune to kill the king; in addition the association of eye movement sees the opportunity. The semi-colon links the two ideas together, which accentuates that, hes missing out on a golden opportunity. All this shows how he is almost talking down to Sebastian, and shows authority and i nferiority. In conclusion the presentation of authority shows that in order to have authority and stabilise it you need to have knowledge and power to do so. Prospero is a perfect example as he shows he has immense amounts of authority by having magic and knowledge from books. However, authority is also illustrated as being unequal the King, being on top of the social hierarchy doesnt show any authority and if he tries it is dismissed. On the other hand inferiority is subjective as some people have accepted that they are inferior for example Caliban. However Ariel accepts this as he is going to get something out of it, freedom. I dont think you need to be on top of a social hierarchy to have authority, you can gain it.