Caliban Should Have Been The Protagonist In The Tempest

📌Category: Books, The Tempest
📌Words: 812
📌Pages: 3
📌Published: 19 June 2021

When you think about The Tempest, who do you think should've been the protagonist? We all  know that Prosopero is the protagonist, but can you think of someone who could've been better. Perhaps you think Prospero makes a good protagonist and Shakespere couldn't have gotten a better character to be the protagonist. What if I were to tell you that you´re wrong. This is due to the fact that there are so many characters that have better traits of being a protagonist, and one of them is Caliban. 

Alright, let's start with Calibans upbringing. Caliban is half human and half monster. Caliban was raised on the island by his mother, who happens to be an evil witch. Her name is Sycorax and she was a very powerful and dangerous witch. She imprisoned the spirits on the island, and trapped Ariel in a tree. Caliban's mother died when he was very young before the play even took place. Therefore he was alone on the island up until Prospero and Miranda had come to the island.

Since Caliban is a part monster that was  raised by an evil witch, how do we know that he knows right from wrong?  Considering he did grow up on an empty island with no human interaction up until Prospero and Miranda. We don't know whether or not he was taught manners. We also don't  know if he knows right from wrong. I mean he is part animal. Ask yourself this, do animals think the way humans do? Although this  doesn't excuse him from everything. As the reader, we should consider these details. Maybe he didn't know that what he was doing to Miranda was bad. He shouldn't be treated like a villain, here is a quote from Sparknotes editors that helps support my opinion, ¨As a character, Caliban deserves our sympathy. And yet, although he is not a villain, he is not a wholly sympathetic character either. He readily confesses to trying to rape Miranda, Prospero’s daughter (in II.2), although given the fact that he expresses no contrition over this, ‘confesses’ is not quite the word¨ (Sparknotes Editors, 2005).

Caliban didn't have a great shot at being the ideal protagonist in life. His mother was an evil witch and she died when he was young. Also, since he didn't have parental figures in his life he is very gullible and naive. When Prospero and Miranda first came to the island he showed them around the island, and in return Prospero made him his slave. Prospero used Caliban and made him his slave.He also believed the two drunk men Stephano and Trinculo were gods because of the wine. He foolishly believed that Stephano could defeat Prospero and take over the island.

This wraps up all my opinions in regards to why I believe Caliban should have been the protagonist. Although he is not the ideal protagonist , he is one of the most interesting and overlooked characters in this play. He connects and symbolizes a few characters in the play. As an example, I will use a quote from Lee Jamieson, ¨Caliban's character serves as both a mirror and contrast to other characters in the play. In his sheer brutality, he reflects the darker side of Prospero, and his desire to rule the island mirrors Antonio's ambition (which led to his overthrow of Prospero). Caliban's plot to murder Prospero also mirrors Antonio and Sebastian's plot to kill Alonso¨ ( Jamieson, 2019).

Although this essay was to have the reader agree that Caliban should have been the protagonist, I believe Prospero made a great protagonist because everything connects to him. Starting from the shipwreck causing everyone to be stranded on the island up until using Ariel to spy on everyone using his invisibility powers. Everything revolves around Prospero, he uses his magic to control everything that happens on the island. Not only that but Prospero changes throughout the play. The whole play focused on him wanting to get revenge on those who betrayed him but by the end of the day he forgives everyone and even gives up his powers to undo his wrongdoings. In order to support this I will use a quote from the website NoSweatShakespeare, ¨Prospero is the central character in The Tempest and all the action revolves around him. Using magic, he is able to control the movements and all the actions of the other characters, which allows him not only to be the central character but also the actual author of the plot of the play¨ (NoSweatShakespeare, 2021).

I have now taken everything into conclusion and wrote a strong essay as to why Caliban would have made a better protagonist.I just believe that Caliban has a lot to him that we have to unravel and not overlook it. Although Prospero is the protagonist and makes a good one, just take my thoughts into consideration and look into it further. Who do you think would make a good protagonist other than Prospero?
 

Works Cited 

Ed, . "Prospero, The Tempest". No Sweat Shakespeare, https://www.nosweatshakespeare.com/characters/prospero-tempest/. Accessed 5 May 2021. Shakespere, William. The Tempest. California My Perspectives English Language Arts,

Teachers Edition, Grade 10, Pearson Education Inc., 2017, pp. 513-596                           

SparkNotes Editors. “Caliban Character ANalysis in The Tempest.” SparkNotes.com, SparkNotes LLC, 2005 \,https://www.sparknotes.com/shakespeare/tempest/character/caliban/.                  

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