In my photograph, I attempted to portray Eve’s vulnerability. In Paradise Lost, Eve is perhaps one of the most relatable characters to a female reader, for the mere fact alone that she is the only woman in the epic poem. Throughout the poem, Eve is subject to manipulation, seduction, and her naivety is attacked. "Fair angelic Eve, Partake thou also! Happy though thou art, Happier thou may'st be, worthier canst not be. Taste this, and be henceforth among the gods Thyself a goddess, not to Earth confined" (5.74-8). Satan attacks her femininity by discussing her “angelic” state, something he could not use if he were to manipulate Adam. He also tricks her into believing she will become a “goddess,” which is appealing as well, for it suggests she would be equal to the “gods” rather than feeling like a lesser to man, due to being born out of Adams rib. Eve falls victim to Satan’s words and eats the fruit, and for this she becomes the subject of blame. However, despite her vulnerability, Eve is strong. She is strong in her fight to redeem herself to Adam, suggesting he too would have fallen victim to Satan’s manipulation and eaten the fruit as well. I photographed a girl in a vulnerable state similar to Eve’s. Shadowed by the trees and forest ahead of her, she seems small and meek. She is off to the side to show that she is not truly a match for what is ahead. However, her stance is strong and her posture upright. I chose to depict one of Eve’s greatest lines which show that she will not give in to Adam’s blame: “Hadst thou been there, Or here th’ attempt, thou couldst not have discerned Fraud in the serpent, speaking as he spake, No ground of enemity between un known, Why he should mean me ill or seek to harm. Was I t’ have never parted from thy side? As good have grown there still a lifeless rib!” (9.1148-1154). In these lines, Eve discusses the importance for her to experience life on her own, and even though she fell victim to her own vulnerability, she grew as a human. She proved she is more than a being made from Adam, and that he too is capable of making mistakes. Regardless, Eve is a strong character whose femininity is not a weakness, but a defining aspect. Her sin is not something she should be blamed for, but something she can use to make her stronger.
Analysis:
In my photograph, I attempted to portray Eve’s vulnerability. In Paradise Lost, Eve is perhaps one of the most relatable characters to a female reader, for the mere fact alone that she is the only woman in the epic poem. Throughout the poem, Eve is subject to manipulation, seduction, and her naivety is attacked. "Fair angelic Eve, Partake thou also! Happy though thou art, Happier thou may'st be, worthier canst not be. Taste this, and be henceforth among the gods Thyself a goddess, not to Earth confined" (5.74-8). Satan attacks her femininity by discussing her “angelic” state, something he could not use if he were to manipulate Adam. He also tricks her into believing she will become a “goddess,” which is appealing as well, for it suggests she would be equal to the “gods” rather than feeling like a lesser to man, due to being born out of Adams rib. Eve falls victim to Satan’s words and eats the fruit, and for this she becomes the subject of blame. However, despite her vulnerability, Eve is strong. She is strong in her fight to redeem herself to Adam, suggesting he too would have fallen victim to Satan’s manipulation and eaten the fruit as well. I photographed a girl in a vulnerable state similar to Eve’s. Shadowed by the trees and forest ahead of her, she seems small and meek. She is off to the side to show that she is not truly a match for what is ahead. However, her stance is strong and her posture upright. I chose to depict one of Eve’s greatest lines which show that she will not give in to Adam’s blame: “Hadst thou been there, Or here th’ attempt, thou couldst not have discerned Fraud in the serpent, speaking as he spake, No ground of enemity between un known, Why he should mean me ill or seek to harm. Was I t’ have never parted from thy side? As good have grown there still a lifeless rib!” (9.1148-1154). In these lines, Eve discusses the importance for her to experience life on her own, and even though she fell victim to her own vulnerability, she grew as a human. She proved she is more than a being made from Adam, and that he too is capable of making mistakes. Regardless, Eve is a strong character whose femininity is not a weakness, but a defining aspect. Her sin is not something she should be blamed for, but something she can use to make her stronger.
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Come unto these yellow sands,
And then take hands: Curtsied when you have, and kiss'd The wild waves whist, Foot it featly here and there; And, sweet sprites, the burthen bear. Hark, hark! Bow-wow. The watch-dogs bark. Bow-wow. Hark, hark! Bow-wow. The watch-dogs bark. Bow-wow. Hark, hark! I hear The strain of strutting chanticleer Cry, Cock-a-diddle-dow. Full fathom five thy father lies; Of his bones are coral made; Those are pearls that were his eyes: Nothing of him that doth fade, But doth suffer a sea-change Into something rich and strange. Hark, hark! Bow-wow. The watch-dogs bark. Bow-wow. Hark, hark! Bow-wow. The watch-dogs bark. Bow-wow. Hark, hark! I hear The strain of strutting chanticleer Cry, Cock-a-diddle-dow. Sea-nymphs hourly ring his knell: Ding-dong. Hark! now I hear them—Ding-dong, bell. Ding-dong, bell. Ding-dong, bell. Ding-dong, bell. In my adaptation of Ariel's Song, I took the liberty of making it more song-like and less free-verse-styled. In doing this, I created a chorus out of "Bow-wow. Hark, hark.....". I believe this allowed the song more time to resonate with the listener, and gave the listener something slightly catchy to remember. The structure I created is as follows; verse, pre-chorus, chorus, verse, pre-chorus, chorus, fade-out. The decision to create a structure to the song was risky, for I put the song's original qualities at stake, but in the end I believe the decision was worth it in order to give the song a more lasting impression. I decided to sing the song slightly in falsetto in order to match what I guess Ariel's airy tone would have been like. Of course since I am a girl and Ariel is not, a detachment of sorts is created there, but, personally, I always imagined Ariel as a woman. The guitar part came to me very quickly and from there I created a melody to go with the words written by Shakespeare. I think the guitar part is very appropriate to the scene, since it is simple and, to me, sounds like flying. Singing and playing this song connected me to the work much more than before, for it is really a beautiful song and after I applied my artistic changes I think it sounded very trance-like and relaxing. Ariel gained a more sweet side through my singing of this song. It isn't menacing or evil, but rather it is a song of duty and has a definite calming nature. It is hard for Ariel's character to lose much because of his mysterious manor and submissive characteristics, and for the most part I think I captured both of those qualities to the best of my ability. This was very fun to apply my love for music to a play I really enjoyed reading. While reading "The Tempest" I wondered what Ariel's songs and music would sound like, and, who knows, my interpretation may not be what Shakespeare imagined, but maybe some of you will like it! Title of Poem: “Tale to Cure Deafness” ~ By: Sinclaire Schaefer
MIRANDA: O, How strange it strikes me that I almost never Recognize how or when I fell into slumber. The home I know runs like an ever ticking Clock: perfectly on schedule all around me. The creamy morning sun rises above The abrupt, non wavering, horizon At precisely the time that the clouds And heavens part, as theater curtains, to Unveil the spectacle of their nature. The creatures stir, rustling the foliage, As audience members scrambling back After a restful intermission. Nothing here runs on a physical tick tock Clock. I could never read one if I tried, Having no knowledge of that ticking in my Life. O but I do possess knowledge of The real’ty around me, which seems to be Unchanging. One does not need a King’s learning To be wise about the ground and sky around them. Ah, but my world seems to tick off right pace. I do not wake with the creatures or the sun, But instead I wake with my father’s call. Sometimes I don’t even hear the sound of His yell. I only hear the inaudible Whisper of his will. My tock comes Before my tick. How, I can never know, But I seem to be distanced from the patterns And real’ty of the nature surrounding me. O, how I wish to be one with the steady sun And the heavens and the crawlers, Instead of lying, caged, in an Unpredictable reality. What Gods oversee a whole ticking world With A tocking woman? The force Which moves me seems demonic, in nature. Rather than a consensual pattern, I am hypnotized against will, Not cognizant of my next move, But still cognizant of my next thoughts. That demon may not control my musings. But if the demon controls my ticking, How may he not control my mind’s talking? I must rebel against my demon’s bidding--- But first, I must awake. I hear my father’s Whisper. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Once I decided to choose the creative writing option for this assignment, the first character that jumped into my mind to explore was Miranda from Shakespeare’s The Tempest. As a Shakespearean actor of nine years, I’ve always wanted to play her character and explore her psyche, so I decided to take this chance to do just that. Some of the roles I love to take on by Shakespeare are his more underdeveloped female roles. Just because they are underdeveloped, many readers and actors perceive and portray them as weak and submissive, however, there is evidence in each of Shakespeare’s texts that proves just the opposite for each of these female characters. My favorite part of tackling these characters is figuring out their inner monologue through some of their quieter, less developed moments by using Shakespeare’s subtle textual clues. Miranda is under full control of Prospero’s dark magic for the majority of her life. Prospero yearns for complete control, even if it means destroying the natural and real world Miranda knows by using his manipulation, making her life seem almost entirely fabricated (as seen in the controversy over whether Prospero’s manipulation of Ferdinand and Miranda’s love makes their romance any less real or authentic). We have also seen controversy over the true power of Prospero’s magic, and I wanted to incorporate this into my creation of Miranda’s inner monologue. I wanted to write from her perspective, exploring the possibility that Prospero’s magic is never strong enough to completely control another human being’s thoughts, only their actions (as seen, also, in Ariel and Caliban’s mental disobedience). Though, in Shakespeare’s text, Miranda seems to be completely entrapped by Prospero’s magic, bending to its every request, I wanted to explore a state in which she could subconsciously recognize Prospero’s manipulation and be subconsciously cognizant of the fact that her reality may not in fact be a reality at all. I also chose to write in iambic pentameter, switching purposefully between perfect iambs, feminine and masculine endings, trochees, etc. to symbolize the hills and valleys of her internal struggle with her reality. Of course, the inspiration for my title came from Miranda’s line “Your tale, sir, would cure deafness” (Temp. 1.2.107). My piece explores whether or not Miranda is actually “deaf” to the manipulation and strings being pulled around her. Some of the lines that subtly prove Miranda’s inner strength include her endearingly witty, “Sweet lord, you play me false…/ Yes, for a score of kingdoms you should wrangle, / And I would call it fair play” (Temp. 5.1.170-4). Though lines such as, “How many goodly creatures are there here! / How beauteous mankind is! O brave new world / That has such people in’t,” give Miranda a child-like naivety and innocence, her burning curiosity prompted me to want to look deeper into how far this curiosity extended (perhaps extending to my piece on whether she subconsciously recognized Prospero’s manipulation). (Temp. 5.1.183-5) The heated exchanges in Scene 1.2 between Miranda and Caliban prove her strength, then immediately after, she succumbs to Prospero’s magic. I hope to connect this deep curiosity and strength to her possible subconscious knowledge on her role as puppet. Creating this piece gives me some incredible insight into the strength and intelligence that Miranda possesses: important, three-dimensional attributes which Shakespeare doesn’t ignore completely but rather keeps very subtle and open for interpretation. Though she is often portrayed as naïve, innocent, and completely under her father’s influence, giving her this power makes me realize that there may be an underlying, subconscious negativity she feels towards her father. I choose to keep her a bit innocent by recognizing her father’s control but not connecting it to the demon she believes controls her reality. That hatred she may bear towards her father may arise from an even deeper subconscious connection between those two pieces for her. Rather than complete worshiping of him because of his knowledge, she may possess some of her own, giving her the right to subconsciously question his dominion over her. In my interpretation, Miranda loses a bit of the innocence and perfect female attributes favored in Shakespeare’s time. However highlighting these subtleties of strength, which Shakespeare included, allows me to paint her as a much more well-rounded, self-aware, modern woman. Though Shakespeare’s Miranda may not have very much worldly knowledge, my interpretation gives and highlights her subconscious moral and emotional sense and knowledge, which should be seen as inherent in every human being, regardless of world experience. In this project, I attempted to represent Satan as the serpent through the use of photo manipulation. Even though Satan is "enclosed / In serpent" as he tempts Eve, he still retains elements of his original character (Milton 9.494-5). For this reason, I chose to transform a human head into a snake head (fun fact: I could not find a photograph of Satan for this project, and the head here is my own) in order to better represent the blended species of Satan within the serpent. Milton makes it clear that "never since of serpent kind / Lovelier" than the one in Eden, and so I had to use my imagination in the details of the serpent's head (Milton 9.504-5). The serpent was, however, described as "verdant gold," which clued me into the color that I should be seeking (Milton 9.501). It does not match any particular species of snake, because I assumed that it would be the ancestor of all snakes, and so share their characteristics. Jets of flame spurt out from between the snake's scales, and fire can be seen within the snake's eyes, in addition to the extremely visible body of fire beneath the head. The is to represent the uncontrollable Hell within Satan, which he mentions in Book 4, line 75. Satan, in order to tempt Eve, must repress this as much as possible, but, when Satan uses his claim on special knowledge from the fruit to challenge God by saying "Not just, not God," is going beyond his simple task of tempting Eve to one action, and beginning to express his own opinions about God's injustices (Milton 9.701). Clearly, Satan cannot perfectly play the role of the serpent, due to his strong opinions, and the flames breaking through his serpent disguise represent this. Finally, below even this body of flame, are Satan's words, which I picked from various parts of Satan's speech to Eve. The words are coiled in a shape roughly similar to the body of a shape, because Satan's words are the firmest foundation upon which his character can rest, even as early as Book 1, when he states that "All is not lost: the' unconquerable will," and further raises his spirits by convincing Beelzebub of this as well (Milton 1.106). These lines that I chose are from Satan's false retelling of how he, the serpent, came to speak: "I was at first as other beasts... / ... of abject thoughts and low," "and speech / Wanted not long though to this shape retained," "Shall that be shut to Man which to the beast / is open?" (Milton 9.571-2, 600-1,691-2). Satan's temptation of Eve rests on these lines, and, since Satan works with words above all else, they are even more important than the details of the snake itself, and so I left off the rest of the body altogether.
In this sort of retelling, however, Eve seems much more at fault in the Fall, since Satan has flames spurting from his face, and looks somewhere between snake and human. This is intended as a focus on Satan's character, so it is not a large issue for the interpretation. More worryingly, this work uses a human shape as the basis for the transformation, and identifies Satan's serpent as somewhere between snake and human, rather than as somewhere between snake and some more otherworldly being. After being covered with layers of scales, however, this does not play into much of the actual work, but as the creator, I am acutely aware of it. Finally, this interpretation has interesting implications for Satan's final punishment in book 10, where he and all his companions are turned into snakes. This time, Satan is deprived of his words, and can only hiss, in addition to having no hope of changing back, and many of the elements of this rendering would be entirely different with respect to this new serpent. Satan is still Satan, though, and the flames would probably remain. Naples, 10 years after the events of The Tempest
Miranda sat next to the open window, with baby Isabella in her lap. She was grateful that her daughter had finally fallen asleep and given her a few moments of peace. Warm sunshine bathed the room in light, and a light breeze fluttered the curtains. In the distance, bells were tolling, marking the passage of another hour on this summer afternoon. She gazed out over the city below, enjoying the tranquility of the moment. A newborn awarded her a respite from the endless monotony of social duties at the Neapolitan court. Miranda was glad of it – frankly, she found the whole business exhausting. Receiving foreign dignitaries, hosting and attending countless dinners and balls… It didn’t seem like it should be that difficult, but it was all so complicated. There were so many rules! Who walked with whom into the room, and in what order, and where they all sat at the table, and how they all addressed one another, and the list went on and on. She sighed. Just the thought of it all made her head swim. When she had left the island ten years ago, she hadn’t known what to expect in Naples. Oh, she’d read about great cities in her father’s books, and heard about his beloved Milan, but she really had no idea what she was in for. Her head was filled with wild dreams about a brave new world, full of wonderful men and women who built grand civilizations, the kind she’d read about. She was ready for all fine palaces and their lords and ladies. What she hadn’t been prepared for were the poor old women and ragged children, begging at the side of the street. She was used to seeing creatures live in misery from Caliban back on the island – she shuddered at the thought of him – but these women and children were different. They hadn’t done anything to deserve that kind of life! Life in the palace wasn’t as wonderful as she’d imagined either. The men and women of the court were a demanding crowd. They expected her to be an accomplished young lady, to know how to navigate through the elaborate upper-class social maze. The second she arrived in Naples, legions of tutors had filled her schedule: dancing, drawing, musical instruments, the things her father couldn’t teach her on the island. Claribel had been her savior when it came to being a hostess. She and her husband had come up from Tunis for Miranda and Ferdinand’s wedding, and she had taught Miranda how to skillfully play the game of the successful dinner party. Even so, Miranda found it difficult to keep up with all that was expected of her. Their public image and their reputation amongst the nobility always had to be perfect. Sometimes the pressure was overwhelming. There was a knock on the door, and Ferdinand entered the room. Miranda smiled at him. “Aren’t you supposed to be hearing petitioners this afternoon?” “I know, I know, but I couldn’t stand an entire afternoon without seeing you two.” He stroked the baby’s head. “Hello, little one.” A voice floated through the open door from the hallway. “Your highness, the next petitioner is waiting for your hearing…” Ferdinand gave a frustrated sigh. “I guess I’d better go. But I’ll be back as soon as I can…” “Alright.” Miranda watched her husband as he reluctantly left the room. Really, she shouldn’t be so frustrated by her life at the court. She had it better than many of her peers – Ferdinand was a faithful husband, he wasn’t twenty years older than her, and they had real love in their marriage. So what if her wedding had been a part of her father’s plan all along? The same was true for most other young women at the court. And most other young women hadn’t had such an extraordinary childhood. Even if she didn’t have that kind of freedom now, at least she’d gotten a taste of it. She’d gotten to spend her early years wandering over the island as she pleased, exploring nature out in the open. She had grown up with the sun on her face and the wind in her hair, the sand between her toes. She’d never had a governess to cluck over her and tell her what not to do, and she’d never been bored by her father’s lessons. Miranda knew she should be grateful that she’d gotten to have that experience at all. But still, there was a part of her that couldn’t help longing to have that kind of life again, to escape from the constraining social hierarchy with all its rituals and trappings. Just for a moment, she closed her eyes and traveled back to her childhood. She could see it all before her – the jagged majestic cliffs, the smooth golden beaches, and the endless, sparkling sapphire sea… Analysis: I’d always wondered about what happened to Miranda once she got to Naples. She had grown up on a remote island, with only her father and a deformed monster for company, and now she was about to be thrust into the complicated social sphere of the Neapolitan nobility. It couldn’t have been an easy transition. My inspiration for this project mostly came from Miranda’s lines in Act 5 Scene 1 of The Tempest: “How beauteous mankind is! O brave new world / That has such people in’t.” I thought about how that impression might change when Miranda was exposed to society more fully. I realized that compared to most young girls of her social status, Miranda had been blessed with remarkable freedom during her childhood. However, she was also left very unprepared for what lay ahead as the wife of a Neapolitan prince. Through this piece, I tried to capture how I think Miranda would have felt about the good and bad aspects of her new life – her marriage with Ferdinand and her memories of her childhood, but also the constraints imposed by upper-class society. In this epilogue, Miranda somewhat romanticizes her past – she doesn’t dwell much on Caliban and the negative aspects of the island. Miranda has gained a great deal of interiority in this monologue, since the reader is able to see her inner thoughts and reflections. However, she may have lost a few of the detailed nuances of her character, since it was impossible to fit every detail of what she might miss about the island into this relatively short piece. I chose to adapt The Tempest as a video game.
The game’s hero is Caliban, who is portrayed as an anthropomorphic beast. The gameplay involves combat with enemies and puzzles. The goal of the game is to kill Prospero and to interfere with his larger plans as they develop in The Tempest. An event scene shows the entirety of act 1, with the events that have the least immediate relevance to Caliban, such as the shipwreck, abridged. Caliban is then seen on another part of the Island collecting wood, at the beginning of act 2, scene 2. Here, Caliban fights a group of Island spirits before meeting Stephano and Trinculo. Gameplay resumes after act 3, scene 2, when Caliban convinces Stephano and Trinculo to help him kill Prospero. The player is now tasked with defeating Prospero and restricting his control over other characters on the island. This is only accomplished by preventing Prospero’s manipulation of nobles, not through any direct interaction, allowing the central organization of the story to remain intact. The player controlling Caliban is required to advance Caliban’s goals while hindering Prospero’s. If both programs are successful, the player wins. Making Caliban hero of the game necessitated changes to the play’s original plot, but Caliban’s goals and attitudes in the game reflect the more prevalent aspects of his character in The Tempest. The passages that I used as a starting point for my adaption are suggestive of this aspect of Caliban. In act 4, Caliban shows that he wants to kill Prospero, above all else, chastising Stephano and Trinculo for “[doting] on such luggage,” imploring them to “do the murder first” (4.1.221-2). Later, in act 5, Caliban rejects this viewpoint, opting to “be wise. . . And seek for grace” (5.1.309-10). Taken together, these lines suggest that Caliban is driven to interfere with Prospero’s plans, and holds little interest in rebellion or his own freedom for his own sake. Caliban’s general attitude, as seen in these passages, inspired the conflict and resolution of the game. Placing Caliban in the universe of a video game, where victory is of primary importance helps to clarify and exaggerate his role in the play without it being overshadowed by the larger context of the original narrative. When adapting Caliban’s character, I chose to focus on his inhuman qualities, and had intended for his visual portrayal to seem mostly bestial (see image). Stripping Caliban of the humanity he has in The Tempest also diminishes his victimization, which is significant when reading the play in terms of race or colonialism. Reincarnating Caliban’s character in a video game also forces him to operate as a human, in some sense, irrespective of his portrayal. Incorporating puzzles in the game takes advantage of this connection between Caliban and the player, as Caliban is forced to interact with the (virtual) world as a human would. Thus, Caliban can become definitively human, at a mental level, as a video game character, since he directly inherits the reason of the controller. This relationship between the Caliban and the player also augments certain traits that Caliban has in the play. For example, Caliban’s insistence that he is similar to Prospero, and that Prospero’s books and magic are the only things separating them. The extent to which this similarity exists in the play is debatable, but the video game universe clearly places both characters on a similar level, and Caliban’s ability to manipulate others in the game is meant to exploit this. As a video game character, Caliban becomes and equal to Prospero, altering his original character. Although this evolved into more of a simulation experiment than a game design, above are two photos that, in substantially more animated/pixellated form, could represent the island well - the left photo during opening cinematics, the right as a rough guideline for a map of the island. I chose to adapt The Tempest into a game. A single player controls Caliban, whom one could consider to be the "hero." At the beginning of the game, the player is shown a series of scenes from Caliban’s memory for background to the story: Caliban inhabiting the island alone, Prospero arriving, their period of cooperation, Caliban attacking Miranda, and the storm causing the shipwreck. Play begins when Caliban is summoned to Prospero to gather wood, at which point the linear progression of The Tempest's storyline is dropped and Caliban is free to move around the island. Caliban may interact through a variety of predetermined phrases and movements, and the island’s other inhabitants will have programmed responses to Caliban's potential actions, such as Prospero sending spirits to torture a disobedient Caliban. Certain triggers exist in the game to further the storyline – should the player choose to have Caliban obey Prospero’s order to take wood into a clearing, for example, he or she will encounter Stephano and Trinculo in their drunken state, and they may begin to plot against Prospero’s life. As he or she is playing as Caliban, the player wins the game by achieving Caliban’s desire of freedom; this occurs with the elimination of Prospero’s magic or of Prospero himself.
The intent of this adaptation is to examine the constraints of Caliban’s position. The Tempest in is an abstract representation of power in its many forms, and arguably the sole factor preventing freedom on the island is fear of a more powerful character. The concept of power in The Tempest is physically manifested in magic and, abstractly, in politics. Caliban is enslaved to Prospero and cannot be free to “regain” sovereignty of the island until Prospero’s ability to torment him with magic is eliminated. Critical interpretations of Caliban primarily paint him as either a brutal savage or a victim of postcolonialism. I wanted to create an interactive game in order to explore Caliban's situation from a psychological viewpoint – to examine whether Caliban’s “savage” actions under Prospero’s control are a direct result of the institution, or whether Caliban could find another way out of his constraints. Key to this idea is Caliban’s line, “No, pray thee. / I must obey; his art is of such power / It would control my dam’s god Setebos / And make a vassal of him” (I.ii.372-5), which clearly identifies Caliban’s decision-making impacted by fear of Prospero, his higher power. The quote presents a Caliban who is perhaps a slave by circumstance, understanding the world to a surprising depth of sophistication as evidenced in his “isle is full of noises” monologue (III.ii.135-143). In this way, the ambiguity in Caliban's level of responsibility for his actions is seemingly dependent on whether he is a brutal monster, as shown when he attacks Miranda, or a victim of Prospero's institution. Both the major strength and major flaw of this game adaptation is that it assumes a certain element of humanity in Caliban’s character. Any person may pick up a controller and be placed inside the head of Caliban, instantly sympathizing with the creature trapped within the body of a “monster” and at the mercy of Prospero’s powers. With this assurance of humanity comes a degree of responsibility for his actions that, for Caliban within The Tempest, fall into a gray area. If a person is at the helm of the “new” Caliban, does morality become a concern – and is it a concern for Shakespeare’s Caliban? Moral values (perhaps even fear of an even higher power, such as Setebos) would place further limits on Caliban’s behavior. Adapting Caliban in this way does assure humanity in a way that cannot be assured in The Tempest, but this is accompanied by the need to reduce all other inhabitants of the island to “cutouts” of their characters, lacking in emotional depth. If Caliban is rational and sympathetic, it would logically follow that Prospero is cruel and one-sided in the simulation – in stark contrast to Prospero's loving treatment of Miranda and Caliban's attack. My intent in creating this game (or psychological simulation) was to consider whether Caliban’s actions and reactions are “justified” given his situation – that is, whether “rational” players would become frustrated by Prospero’s control over their character and resort to desperate measures such as a murder plot with Trinculo and Stephano in order to beat the game. I predict that they would. My only concrete conclusion, then, must be confirmation of the utter lack of black-and-white distinctions within The Tempest. Regardless of his level of humanity, Caliban is both a victim and Miranda’s attacker, just as Prospero is both a protagonist and Caliban’s tyrant. In this way, this game adaptation served to deepen the complexity I see in his character – regardless of his motivations and even who is controlling his mind, Caliban is still wholly open to interpretation. Trapped.
Freedom runs wild, No one can stop hiding, Dark pains flow through my veins But earthy evil cannot destroy spiritual power So by Sycorax, witch with blue eyes Woman of the earth, from Algiers’s tides This tree holds me here Year after year—no more. Another hand of earthly power, The wizard of Milan rose to prosper, Could not serve himself without spiritual assistance He set me free to serve his deeds Freedom, I thought! But my wish came with a condition, Prospero’s deeds must be done, Once completed, debts repaid, no more master. The creation of storms, lulling songs, sweet sounds of manipulation The perpetual desire to drift to dreams Trance-like states abound My presence known to none but one Behold, the exercise of mine power over all Working, spelling, listening, doing Not free from the one till the deed is done. My art satisfactory, Prosper’s desires fulfilled Our agreement remembered, my wishes were granted, Freedom, high-day! High-day, freedom! The one be gone, the wilds return, Ariel the spirit runs free. But the wilds provide little power to the power: No boats in the water and the tides don’t change, No minds full of thoughts and there’s nothing to twist, Freedom from thy master is not freedom from thyself, Freedom runs wild, So let the high-days be gone because the spirits aren’t listening. ---------- Throughout The Tempest, Ariel is the means by which the freedom of others is taken away, and on a quest for freedom himself. The main section in The Tempest that inspired this poem is in Act I (1.2.238-1.2.285), where Prospero and Ariel discuss Ariel’s desire for freedom, and Prospero explains the circumstances that Sycorax put Ariel in plus the fact that Ariel is indebted to Prospero for his freedom from Sycorax’s prison. Additionally, I had Ariel quote Caliban’s false cry of freedom from 2.2.181. Ariel at a practical level is the controller of freedom on the island. He is one that can manipulate nature; he is the destroyed of freedom—and yet he is not free himself. By associating his quest for freedom with Caliban’s as I did in this poem, it humanizes Ariel’s power because it shows that control, as Ariel has (or Prospero has through Ariel), is irrelevant to freedom, because there is no way to control the control itself. Ariel’s ability to affect the world has little to do with whether or not he is free and much to do with so happens to be within his wake. Without Prospero or Sycorax or some system around him to put things in his jurisdiction, whether or not Ariel’s power can have any effect is not up to him. This poem makes Ariel as invisible as the control he represents, because even once he has the freedom to act as he wants, he still does not have the freedom to be as he wants to make other things be as he wants. Just as everyone on the island—and more everyone in the world, one could argue—is incapable of being entirely free whether or not they are aware of the issue, control itself desires to be free but can’t. Ariel, a bit like Caliban, is both supernatural—powerful and magical—and normal, no more free than anyone else. Maybe more, being supernatural isn’t so "unnormal" in the first place. I wouldn’t drink so much Whiskey, If my motley made women feel frisky, Like the Tailor with Kate, Or like Meg with the Mate, But less Wine, far from fine, is too risky. I based my poem off of the drinking song that Stephano sings in The Tempest (2.2.45-53). It’s a limerick written in rough anapestic about Trinculo. I chose to write a limerick because they’re known for their obscenities, so I thought it appropriate to write one for the drunk jester of the play. The poem isn’t distinguishably about Trinculo past the fact that I refer to his motley, which I presume no other character in the play wears. The characters the Tailor, Kate, Meg, and the Mate are all from the drinking song. I got the title from Google-translating an Italian euphemism for being drunk: fuori come un balcone. I picked an Italian one because Trinculo and the rest of the royal court are all from Italy (Naples). I did use Google to translate the phrase, so I hope it’s accurate enough. Also because Trinculo is Italian, I figured he would rather give up whiskey over wine, which is more faithfully Italian compared to whiskey. The main point of this poem was to try and expand on Trinculo’s character, since he really doesn’t have one. And that was one of the things that I primarily discovered about Trinculo while writing this poem. Looking into his character to see what I could expand upon, I found that there really isn’t much too him: he’s just a drunk fool. So there really isn’t anything I left out from his paltry character. I expanded on his character by continuing to illustrate Trinculo as a drunk. I used the drinking song simply because it's a drinking song, so I felt it appropriate to tie it to Trinculo, the other drunk fool. I added to his character in terms of alcohol, but I also added the motivation of sex to his character. Sex is something quite far from what we see about the jester in the play, but I thought that it would be fitting for a character known for drinking and being a fool. I also tried to show that Trinculo would willingly compromise some of his drink for sex, but ultimately he is ruled by wine over women. So now my ridiculous limerick has hopefully painted Trinculo as even more of a drunk fool. The illustrations I’ve created depict and adapt various noteworthy scenes from The Tempest in a cartoon-style format. Although created to be simple and understandable, these cartoon versions of the characters reflect longstanding textual transformations in personality and physical form. I’ve emphasized these transformations through personalized exaggerations of emotional features evident from their dialogue, from subtle jokes to betrayal and defiance. By veering away from accuracy and moving towards a more emotional depiction, I’ve allowed a higher degree of expressiveness in both facial features and the surroundings, a less physically but more emotionally accurate depiction than a realistic drawing might permit. Characters such as Caliban, who goes through an immense transformation through the course of the play, also show immense physical changes, as he becomes more hunched over and deformed, reflecting his state of mind and decreasing innocence. Other characters such as Prospero don’t show the same radical transformation, instead becoming more stable than the surrounding environment, reflecting the power dynamics within the play, between characters and the island itself.
Aside from the creation of the scenes, I chose very specific quotes to illustrate, many of which hold distinct significance in the play. Beginning on the ship with largely trivial characters such as the boatswain and the mariners, a tension is created, and their fate is left undecided. Many other panels are introductory, setting a tone for each character, complimenting and completing their expressive physical forms with textual evidence. While many quotes were chosen to create a lasting sense of the characters, others composed the beginning of a transformation, a springboard for change, especially in characters such as Caliban or Sebastian. By manufacturing a transformation through textual accompaniment to my illustrations, the depictions allow a view into a deeper level of each character, past the exaggerated features, to a static core personality. |
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