The Tempest Caliban Character Analysis

A detailed Summary of The Tempest Caliban Character Analysis


One of the essential themes of the Tempest is the duality between nature and society. This is made evident through the character of Caliban: the disfigured fish-like creature that inhabits the island upon which the play takes place. Caliban lacks civility because he was born on the island deprived of any social or spiritual morality other than nature and instinct. He is literally man untamed. Caliban is not monstrous simply for the sake of being frightening, his ghastly visage is intended to literally depict the essential differences between civilization and natural instinct.

Caliban represents man, instinct, and nature in their rawest forms. Part fish, part man, but not really either because he is more mentally sophisticated than a fish, but devoid of any characteristics generally associated with civilized beings. He displays promise in becoming civilized, but eventually it becomes evident that it is impossible to fully tame a wild animal, which is what Caliban essentially is. Caliban is more of an animal rather than a monster. While he is labeled a monster t


hroughout the play due to his appearance, he is in fact an animal. He is not inherently evil or malicious, but relies on his own instincts and skills that he has learned to adapt to his surrounding and survive. What is vital to survival in society is not necessarily important in nature; and vice versa.

Caliban is Shakespeare's representation of natural instinct and how it collides with society. Of course Caliban could have simply been a man raised in nature, but his image enhances his character by fulfilling, in his own flesh, the opposition and seemingly impossible compromise between nature and society. Caliban is in a sense a living breathing paradox. He cannot be tamed, but he shows characteristics of a tamed being; as does he show promise to be tamed. But he seems to revert back to his instincts and natural intelligence. Shakespeare's message is that no matter how hard we try we cannot unlearn things that have become our nature, what we are cannot be changed, it can be tamed to an extent, but the beast within will eventually shine through (physical image of

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Approximate Word count = 726
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: Novels

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