Jeanne C I wanted to illustrate the toll of the experiences Miranda has gone through because of conflicts that are outside of her control that she is still a fundamental part of. This two part drawing is a conceptual draft of what this might look like. I began with the idea that she often serves as a mediator figure from the beginning of the play, calming her father's more violent acts of magic and trying to maintain the peace in the opening of Act 1 Scene 2, telling him "If by your art, my dearest father, you have/ Put the wild waters in this roar, allay them". Prospero pushes her into a relationship with Ferdinand without her knowledge and meddles in her life for his own ulterior motives and goals, with the dashed 'strings' on Miranda in the drawing on the left symbolizing her confinement to the island with Prospero and the control he exerts over her. She gets something close to a 'happy ending', with her father choosing to forgive, something Miranda has been trying to work towards throughout the play. As a result, she gets a life with Ferdinand and more people. She is still following the path her father willed for her, and the play's happy resolution comes at the cost of her naiveté. The second frame shows Miranda in muted colors that blend more into the background, with this new 'peace' in similar bright yellows that highlighted her in the first. Now, the yellow tones are still slightly shown on her skin, but come from this new 'peace', rather than herself. However, given that she's no longer confined to the island or under the same pressures to calm her father, she is able to help hold and maintain the play's resolution by marrying Ferdinand and continuing to support Prospero.
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L.H. I chose option 3 and sang one of Ariel's musical pieces from The Tempest with a super basic piano melody. This excerpt is Ariel singing to Ferdinand, leading Ferdinand away and convincing him that his father has been lost to the storm. A slow, melancholy melody felt appropriate for the context, so I used broken minor chords at the start and I took advantage of the line about "sea-change" in the middle to play with a key change. Ariel isn't supposed to be jarring, but simultaneously enticing and distant. His voice is described almost like the wind is speaking to Ferdinand, so given more time (I'm not a particularly skilled singer or musician), I might have come up with a more complex piano accompaniment in order to mask or soften the vocal. This adaptation of Ariel is more feminine and defined than the ethereal spirit with whom we are familiar. I think giving him/her a physical, audible voice makes him real, and tangible, where he may otherwise be a rather vague force of nature and source of magic. His ability to bend reality is easily correlated with music's ability of influence. It's not surprising then that Ariel sings; his music and his magic are wrapped up in one another. Furthermore, exploring Ariel's music triggered my curiosity about Caliban's musical inclinations. Caliban's music would obviously differ greatly from Ariel, especially given that Ariel uses music as a magical tool and an expression whereas Caliban seems to use it as an emotional outlet or private coping mechanism, and perhaps even as a release for any joy he keeps so well squashed. FADE IN: INT. THERAPIST’S OFFICE - DAY A homely sort of office: floral wallpaper, cushioned seats, dimmed lights. On the left, FERDINAND, 22, sporting an expensive business suit and a long-suffering look. On the right, his wife MIRANDA, 20, looking as though she had just attended an edgy rock n’ roll concert. Across from the couple, a vaguely disheveled THERAPIST, scribbling notes on a clipboard. THERAPIST Let’s go over this again. Ferdinand, Miranda, why are we here? Both Ferdinand and Miranda move to speak. THERAPIST Ah, how about ladies first? Ferdinand spares a stiff nod toward his wife, who responds in turn with a withering glare. MIRANDA We are here, against my better judgment, to see if we can salvage what remains of this poor, pathetic relationship. In fact, if it weren’t for him dragging me out here, I wouldn’t have bothered. THERAPIST Now, there’s no need to get accusing. I daresay we’ll have plenty of time for that later. Ferdinand, why don’t you explain your reasoning for, ah, ‘dragging’ Miranda out here? FERDINAND I’m not going to apologize for trying to make her see that I’m the best man she’s ever met-- MIRANDA The only man I’ve ever met, other than my father, you mean? FERDINAND (to THERAPIST) There she goes again, blaming everything on her oh-so-sheltered childhood. MIRANDA If I had a normal childhood, I wouldn’t have jumped into the arms of the first brawny, witless guy who told me he loved me. THERAPIST Miranda, there’s no need to get insulting. I’m sure you and Ferdinand both are here to work out your differences in a civil manner. FERDINAND (under his breath) I wouldn’t be so sure. THERAPIST What’s that, Ferdinand? FERDINAND (louder) I said I wouldn’t be so sure. Her dad is a manipulative psychopath, you know. MIRANDA He is not! FERDINAND You know it’s true. (to THERAPIST) D’you know how we met in the first place? The therapist shakes his head. FERDINAND (con’t.) In a ruddy car crash. We were coming back from my sister’s wedding, driving through some abandoned countryside who-knows-where, when Bosen--that’s our chauffeur--lost control of the car. And you wouldn’t believe what happened when I woke up. Most traumatic few days of my life, I swear. MIRANDA (scoffing) Oh no, the pampered prince of Italy got a few scratches and scrapes. Whatever shall we do? FERDINAND First of all, I’m not a prince. My family’s just...well-off, that’s all. MIRANDA (to THERAPIST) By ‘well-off,’ he means ‘the owners of a multi-billion pound company.’ FERDINAND Secondly, the crash wasn’t traumatic. It was your damn lunatic father. I wake up in some rotten barn--on a hard, uncomfortable haystack, might I add--and some nutter’s telling me my pop’s died. Then, when I open my eyes, there’s this lady in a blasted seventeenth-century gown. MIRANDA (to THERAPIST) My fashion sense has changed slightly since then. FERDINAND If that’s not enough, five minutes into our conversation her psychotic father comes barging in, accusing me of being a spy! Raving about plots to take over his land, as if I would ever have use of some musty farmland belonging to a family of nutcases! THERAPIST We want to stay respectful, remember... FERDINAND And that’s not all! He threatens to kill me, forces me to do all the hard labor around the farm, carrying logs, feeding the chickens-- MIRANDA (sotto) First time he’s ever done some good, honest work in his life. FERDINAND And I must have lost my mind because I proposed to the lunatic’s daughter right there. Must’ve been Stockholm syndrome or whatever they call it. MIRANDA Excuse me, you fell in love with me at first sight! Blathering about all your ex-girlfriends and being my slave. Freaked me out. FERDINAND Freaked you out? I thought my father and friends had just died and I was being held hostage by a wild hermit, his guileless daughter, and his two slaves! MIRANDA (hastily to THERAPIST) He means servants. Paid servants. FERDINAND No, I don’t! Cal-something and the Disney princess. They were definitely not there by their own free will, I can tell you that much. I’m not surprised, either. Your father’s an evil, conniving bastard. He was manipulating us the whole time so we’d get married and he’d be free to mooch off the family fortune as he pleases. In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if he caused the crash in the first place. You’re lucky the first thing I did when we got out of there wasn’t reporting him to the authorities. MIRANDA Maybe I should’ve let my father have his way with you. FERDINAND I could take on Prospero any time of the day. In my sleep. MIRANDA In your dreams, more like. THERAPIST May I ask what happened after you left the farm? Why did you not report this...what sounds like illegal behavior? FERDINAND I guess Prospero was...somewhat decent, around the end. Blessed our marriage, prepared our wedding--which I still can’t quite remember for the life of me--and went a bit barmy, talking about spirits and plots and illusions. Turns out my father and his friends were alive and had phoned for help. THERAPIST And why did you not report Miranda’s father? FERDINAND Well, I didn’t have any evidence, did I? And I didn’t want another scandal in the news. And Miranda has always been annoyingly protective of the old coot. Anyway, it’s been five years; I’m over it. Mostly. THERAPIST Let’s go back to why we’re here today. Would you say that the root of the problems in your relationship is Miranda’s father, Ferdinand? FERDINAND I guess. I know Miranda’s been locked away from human civilization for a decade or whatever, but it’s been five years since we got married. And she should know by now that normal fathers don’t usually live with their daughters and sons-in-law. Or stalk them. Or listen in on their private conversations. Or-- MIRANDA I don’t like it, either! FERDINAND Well, you have a funny way of showing it. When have you ever told Prospero to bugger off? When have you ever backed me up when I try to kick him out of the house? MIRANDA He’s just protective, that’s all. He wants to make sure I’m safe. I think we can afford to give up a bit of privacy if it gives him peace of mind. FERDINAND Oh, and I suppose my peace of mind doesn’t matter? For five years, my insomnia has gotten worse, I’m paranoid, I can barely take a shower without seeing him there. MIRANDA Don’t blame your not being able to sleep on him! In case you haven’t noticed, I’ve lived with him for twenty years and I turned out perfectly fine. FERDINAND I guess we have different definitions of ‘perfectly fine.’ Mind, I’m not the one looking like I just raided the back shelves of a Hot Topic. MIRANDA First you’re complaining that I’m too innocent, now you want me to go back to Elizabethan dresses? FERDINAND You know that’s not what I meant. You’re expressing your individuality from that horrible excuse of a father, and I’m happy for you. A poignant pause. THERAPIST It seems like we’re at an impasse. Ferdinand, you are understandably upset at your privacy being violated. Miranda, you are naturally loyal to and care for your father. But the fact that both of you were willing to sit down and have a discussion is a very good sign. MIRANDA Sign of what? THERAPIST Sign that both of you care enough about this relationship to try to fix it. We’ve seen both of your points of view, and hopefully, you can put yourselves in each other’s shoes. Would you agree? MIRANDA I suppose...I guess my father can be...difficult to deal with sometimes. He had a difficult time before we moved to the farm. He had to deal with his own family and friends betraying him, and I think that’s part of why he’s so controlling...and invasive. He cares a lot. I wish you’d understand that. THERAPIST And you, Ferdinand? FERDINAND I guess I’ll never understand the relationship between you and Prospero. But I know how much he means to you and that’s why I never said anything before. If we do end up...separating, it’d only be because I don’t want you to have to choose between your father and me. MIRANDA I don’t want to have to choose, either. FERDINAND (earnest) You don’t. We just need a little bit of space from Prospero. We can still visit him; he’s still going to be part of your life. But we’ll get to live our lives, too. MIRANDA (doubtful) I don’t know if he’d want that… FERDINAND It doesn’t matter what he wants, though! It matters what you want. Isn’t that right, Doc? THERAPIST Quite. If your father truly cares for you, Miranda, which I’m sure he does, he will understand that you need space. MIRANDA I suppose... FERDINAND I know you want to be independent of him. That’s why we’re here in the first place. Prospero said he hates therapists, but we went anyway. MIRANDA He hates everyone. FERDINAND Right, he’s a miserable lonely old sod, but we don’t have to be. You can tell him to shove his lies, deceit, and manipulation right up his-- THERAPIST I’m sure Miranda gets the picture. MIRANDA You’re right. You’re right. FERDINAND (hopeful) You’ll talk to him? MIRANDA Yes. I value our relationship far more than I value my father’s petty comfort. I’ll have to break the news lightly, but I’ll do it. THERAPIST That’s wonderful, Miranda! Our time is nearly up, but I’m glad we got to the bottom of this. Miranda, Ferdinand, any last concerns? FERDINAND No, but thank you so much. It’s been an agonizing few years. MIRANDA Same here. I can’t thank you enough. A rather overwhelmed Ferdinand and Miranda walk slowly to the door, hand-in-hand. After the sounds of their footsteps fade, the room goes dark. A slight pause, then WHOOSH! A bright light illuminates the room. The therapist’s face is contorting and spasming...the light grows until he doubles over with a cry. Slowly, the therapist rises to his feet, considerably taller than before. We catch a glimpse of his face--it’s PROSPERO! PROSPERO And that is couples therapy done right. FADE OUT: Link to my story
Analysis: Overview: In my project, I attempted to explore Miranda and Ferdinand’s relationship beyond the scenes we get of the pair in The Tempest. In particular, I was curious to analyze the extent of Prospero’s manipulation of their feelings — do Miranda and Ferdinand truly love each other, or was their union formed solely due to Prospero pulling the strings? In my adaptation, I imagined an alternate universe to The Tempest set in modern times, five years after the events in the play. Here, Miranda and Ferdinand, fed up with each other, consult a couples therapist for some much-needed guidance. Inspiration: I’ve always been a bit skeptical of how Shakespearean characters seem to fall perfectly in love with each other at first sight. I thought I would write a scene where Miranda and Ferdinand confront the problems in their relationship. Since we analyzed the implications of Brathwaite’s modern-day interpretations of Caliban’s character, I decided to write about a modern-day scenario where relationships are examined thoroughly: couples therapy. I reviewed a few transcripts of real-life couples therapy to write my adaptation, which inspired me to do it in the screenplay format. My story was inspired by Miranda and Ferdinand’s relationship in general, but a few lines I focused on were “All thy vexations / Were but my trials of thy love and thou / Hast strangely stood the test” (4.1.5-7). Here, Prospero says that he punished Ferdinand only to test him as worthy of Miranda’s love. Since Prospero clearly has no qualms about meddling in their relationship under the guise of fatherly concern, I thought it’d be natural to assume that he doesn’t stop meddling after the events of The Tempest. I then thought about the implications of this, along with the modern-day setting, on the story and each of the characters:
Analysis:
When creating this drawing, I was inspired by the chess game played by Miranda and Ferdinand in Act 5 Scene 1 of The Tempest. Miranda tells Ferdinand, "Sweet lord, you play me false," confronting him for cheating (5.1.172). He denies this accusation, and Miranda responds, "[F]or a score of kingdoms you should wrangle, / And I would call it fair play" (5.1.174-175). Although Miranda is unafraid to be assertive with her future husband, she relents because of her love for him. I did not see her ultimate passiveness as weakness, but as her way of living with a situation in which she is mainly a playing piece to those around her. From there, I began to think that the queen chess piece is most reflective of her character. The queen in chess is the most powerful and mobile piece, as it can be moved in any direction spanning any number of squares on the board. Aside from the fact that Miranda will literally become a queen, she is capable of such power herself; she voluntarily disobeys Prospero's (apparent) wishes in order to speak to Ferdinand, and proposes to him first, stating, "I am your wife, if you will marry me; / If not, I'll die your maid" (3.1.83-84). However, Miranda's real power in the play lies in others' conceptions of her as an object of value. Caliban attempts to rape her, intending to gain control of the island with his own offspring (1.2); Ferdinand says that he admires her because she does not have "some defect," unlike other women he has taken interest in (3.1.44); and Prospero, who controls Miranda's relationship with Ferdinand in order to return to power, says outright to Ferdinand, "[A]s my gift and thine own acquisition / Worthily purchased, take my daughter" (4.1.13-14). Miranda is the central component in each of their plans for power, marriage, and offspring. She is a powerful playing piece, but a playing piece nonetheless, and Prospero is the player controlling her every move. A chess player holds their queen piece in high regard because of its power, but may choose to sacrifice it in order to protect their own king piece or checkmate the opponent's king. If Prospero's king piece is his own power, and his chess opponents are his political rivals (Antonio and Alonso), then Prospero indeed sacrifices his queen (Miranda) in order to protect his own power and trap Antonio and Alonso into allowing his return to status. To encapsulate this analysis in my drawing, Queen Miranda, I first positioned Miranda in the center of the piece to reflect her centrality in the other characters' plots. She rests her hand on a large queen chess piece, representing her future position as queen and emphasizing the qualities she shares with the queen chess piece. Prospero grasps her shoulder, just as she holds the chess piece; although she is the queen, he is the player using the queen, and ultimately has control over her actions. Miranda wears a nightgown-like dress, conveying her vulnerability, but also looks directly at the viewer, displaying her aware and assertive side. Like a gnarled hand hanging over Miranda, the leafless tree branch represents Prospero's deeply-rooted control over his daughter and the events of The Tempest. As for details lost and gained through this visual art adaptation, none of the other characters are present in the drawing, so Miranda and Prospero's interactions with them are lost. In addition, the drawing has no particular setting, removing the imagery of the island in favor of emphasizing the conceptual nature of the drawing. At the same time, the lack of realistic background and other characters allows the viewer to focus on the relationship between Miranda and Prospero alone, as well as reflect on the meaning of the queen chess piece and tree branch. Drawing the concept of Miranda as chess-queen led me to examine Miranda's character more closely than I had before, and gave me a clearer sense of the hierarchy in The Tempest. My voice thou hast not eve’ heard, but hast hated,
Laced with anger, how hast I become So feared to thee? that thou art trembling, that Thou art beastly muttering? hast thou done that which Prosper gave thee charge thou mustn't do To whom thus Caliban sore beset repli'd. O Setebos! in evil strait this day I stand Before my cruel Judge, to accuse That Prosper in total Crime, or to accuse His vile daughter, that little wench who hath With her father, taken from my this land, I cannot conceal, and must expose to blame This villainous Prosper; whose magical prowess Thou favours him with, Subdues me Having exiled me from both my land and home, Forcing his tongue, upon me Despoil’d; and in a warranted fury, I deem’d Appropriate to force my tongue. For if I am to be transformed by Prosper, I find it for little Calibans, running ‘round, To carry on the tradition of Sycorax, And from my accursed hand she suspected no ill, And if not for that Prosper, whatever in itself, This island would not be scarcely populated; And he whom thou favours would fail. To whom the sovran Presence thus repli'd. Thy villainous beast, thou that has no sense, Baring thy despicable thoughts, Thou is weaker, not but equal, to that Prosper Thou did'st resigne thy virtue, and thy freedom Wherein I set them above thee, And for thee, whose imperfection farr excell'd Their’s in all real dignitie: Adornd She was indeed lovely to attract but thy disobey’d that Prosper And with the beastly nature, Unseemly to beare freedom, which was thy gift hadst thou now relinquished in thy self aright. Analysis: For this creative project, I chose option 5 combining the events in “Paradise Lost” with the characters from The Tempest. Specifically, I analyzed Lines 119-156 from Book 10, the scene where The Son confronts Adam for the first time after he ate the forbidden fruit. In this passage in “Paradise Lost”, The Son finds Adam, embarrassed from his own nudity, and asks him if he ate from the Forbidden tree. To which Adam responds by taking some blame, but deflecting most of the responsibility onto Eve. He attempts to justify his action by indicating that if such a beautiful, divine woman like Eve consumed the fruit, it would only be appropriate for him to do so. The Son responds by scorning Adam’s independence, reminding him that she is not his God and that his God in fact “set thee above her”. I attempted to perform a similar rendition of this passage, instead taking a look at Caliban and the God he believes in, “Setebos.” This conversation between the two characters takes place following Caliban’s attempt to rape Miranda, after which he is enslaved by Prospero. Caliban’s resentment towards Prospero’s attempted subjugation had been bubbling for some time as Prospero attempted to impart his language and culture onto Caliban, and Caliban in response attempted to rape Miranda, hoping to populate the islands with “little Calibans”. Ultimately, he failed in his task, but not before displaying some of the primitive behaviors he possessed. Caliban and Adam are both portrayed as very different characters although they have their faults. One is the first man, the other is depicted as having bestial qualities. One has a companion and a home of his own (in Paradise), the other is alone until subjugated by Propsero and Miranda. And yet both perform a sin, whether it be disobeying God’s orders or attempting rape, that leaves them homeless and almost powerless. The comparison between God and Setebos is rather different however. Our perception of Setebos is based on Caliban’s representation of him as a cruel God, one whose intentions are simply to bring upon suffering to Caliban while showing blatant favoritism towards Prospero. We never hear from him however, and thus it is impossible to truly tell his nature. On the other hand we have God, as he is displayed in "Paradise Lost." He is not particularly cruel or vengeful, but is relatively just and gives to his creations free will, thus absolving all responsibility from the actions that they perform. In this dialogue, which is based upon the exact same framework that the discussion between the Son and Adam occurred, Caliban explains his frustrations with Setebos and his preference for Prospero while trying to once again remove himself of any blame. Setebos responds with a short and derisive attack on Caliban - which fits Caliban’s (probably skewed) representation of him. Y
I The Wedding Day A Poem by Gage Miles Ferdinand and Miranda, joined in communion, Their effusive love, this happy union. The fountain gushed its jaunty springs, While the singing birds unfurled their wings. Lip to lip, our couple met, As the avian choir sang in sweet quartet. Ceres’ hand struck the sacred bough, “Nuptial vines,” she said, “Grow and grow!” Husband and wife, together in hand, Inspired the growth of the jewel of the land, The overwhelming splendor as it sprung from the earth, Drew the eye and suspended the mirth. Miranda’s pure gown, slipped down to her feet, Her naked bosom, sweet love did secrete. Her fair consort also, kingly robe descended, As the branches of the tree slowly extended. Crisp, enticing apples, with blushes of red, Did form along the branches, right over their head. One may have fallen, in the hand of our maiden, But it was dropped at the sight, for it was heavy and laden. Blissfully eager the original couple departed, Out into the garden, a new life had started. The fallen apple at the altar did lay, Blackened flesh, as it withered away. Analysis: The primary inspiration for this poem comes from Act 4 Scene 1, lines 110 though 117 in The Tempest, Ceres’ marriage blessing over Ferdinand and Miranda. However, I chose to extrapolate this into a symbolic wedding that I envisioned for the couple. I was particularly struck by the Edenic imagery the goddess of agriculture employs in her blessing, and several connections to Milton’s Paradise Lost at once began to fall into place. I chose to expand upon an angle of analysis I briefly pursued in my Tempest Paper, which related Ferdinand and Miranda’s marriage to that of the original couple, “a surrogate,” even, situated in an alternate universe where Eve would have never expressed a desire to eat the forbidden fruit. Thus, my poem attempts to make an implicit argument for how Ferdinand and Miranda’s marriage is similar, yet diverges at key points, from the relationship of the original couple. To establish the connection and parallels between the two scenes/settings, Ceres’ blessing and Milton’s Eden, I alluded to key details from both sources. “Ceres’ hand struck the sacred bough, / ‘Nuptial vines,’ she said, ‘Grow and grow!’” is a direct reference to the lines “Vines with clustering bunches growing / Plants with goodly burden bowing;” from her speech in The Tempest (4.1.112-13). Likewise, the lines “The fountain gushed its jaunty springs,” are a reference to the sacred, life-giving fountain in Milton’s Eden: “Rose a fresh fountain and with many a rill / Watered the garden” (4.229-30). These allusions establish several points of intersection between the world of The Tempest and a Miltonian Eden, effectively importing the symbolic imagery of the latter into a description of the former. The two worlds fuse as Ferdinand and Miranda themselves transform into an image of the original couple (even referred to as such) by the end of the poem: naked, blissful, and unafraid. Before I continue, I must acknowledge that for the sake of establishing a clearer, more decisive parallel, I did sacrifice some of the other meritable facets of Miranda’s character: most notably, her acknowledgement of her deprivation of knowledge and a desire to receive it (the story of her journey to the island with Prospero). This does, in part, mirror Eve’s own thirst for knowledge, but in the end, Miranda does not pursue it. While Miranda may be a curious, inquisitive girl, this is not the path she ultimately chooses; her love for Ferdinand suppresses these inclinations. This is the crux of the argument: whether each woman ultimately decides to breach or maintain their contracts of marriage. The “jewel of the land” introduced in the fifth stanza and described throughout the remainder of the poem represents the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, and its appearance in the poem alludes to how the unity, constantly enforced, of Adam and Eve to shield Eve from temptation is ultimately what offends her and leads to her temptation. As the tree looms over the heads of Ferdinand and Miranda, so does the question: will Miranda be subject to the same fate as Eve? It would seem not. Her dropping of the forbidden apple, “laden” with evil, demonstrates the complete marital deference of her bosom to her “fair consort,” Ferdinand. Unlike Eve, who is unwilling to subject herself and accept permanent servility to Adam, Miranda freely places herself in this position, and relishes in it, out of her love for Ferdinand: “I am your wife, if you will marry me / If not, I’ll die your maid. To be your fellow / You may deny me, but I’ll be your servant / Whether you will or no” (3.1.83-86). The apple cannot entice her, for she wholeheartedly embraces the servitude of marriage, above all else. Miranda expresses no discomfort in her sexuality or the natural gender hierarchies she is subjected to, and thus the apple's power over her is rendered fruitless (pun intended), causing it to "wither... away." Eve, on the contrary, does not embrace the ontological hierarchy: her feelings of inferiority ultimately cause her to sever her connection from Adam and fall into Satan’s snare. To drive home this distinction, the poem’s ending scene attempts to mirror that of Milton in Paradise Lost, with one crucial departure. Instead of leaving Eden at the conclusion of Paradise Lost, the couple, hand-in-hand, is entering into the garden for the first time, for Miranda, our Eve, rejected the temptation of the fruit and demonstrated that her love would forever be absolute. A truly pure, enduring love that supersedes all other convictions merits a transcendence into the divine, to Eden. At the same point where Adam and Eve fall, Miranda and Ferdinand rise. As a whole, the poem attempts to capture the Shakespearean imagination of an original couple without Eve giving into temptation. For our Renaissance playwright, Miranda is an Eve that chooses love over knowledge, earning her way into a paradisal eternity. (Of course, however, there are treacheries that lie in any human relation… The serpent can slither through even the smallest crack in the rock of solidarity...) Caliban stands motionless before the ocean, begging the tide to overwhelm him. Waves lunge for his feet before recoiling from the shore, meaning to cry but laughing instead, finding dark humor in even nature’s apparent repulsion for his flesh. The sea beckons, and he fantasizes of drowning in that vast expanse, seeking solace in the thought of his final breath, his body a deadweight falling
Down. Down. Down. Down. Thud. At the bottom of the ocean floor paradise awaits; a cessation of suffering. Despite his resolve, he cannot will himself into those murky depths. He imagines Setebos’ mocking glare, shaming his cowardice. Imbued with rage at his reluctance, Caliban charges forth, pumping his arms and legs against the water, struggling against the ocean’s resistance. The water is up to his chin now, just moments away from death’s embrace, fleeing a world that never seemed to welcome his stay. Caliban’s lungs were on fire, yet to his surprise, so was his heart. Suspended between life and death, he could no longer repress memories of love and hope hidden in parts of his psyche he devoted his life to forgetting. Suddenly helpless to prevent their onslaught, his head shook wildly above the waves, screaming No. No. No. As if his words could stop their tortuously bittersweet taste. As if he could stop his heart from remembering what it felt like to love and be loved. The waves forbade him from falling, as if held in Sycorax’s bosom, their gentle rhythm her nurturing voice whispering in his ears. Moments Caliban swore to forget flickered through his mind's eye, recalling Prospero’s hand outstretched in friendship, and the way he celebrated Caliban’s completion of his first novel as if a father reveling in his son’s earliest achievements. Nearing death had a way of belittling his fear of experiencing the intensity of feelings he hid away – loneliness, longing, and love – so he surrendered to them instead, burning the ironclad wall of hate in his heart. The ocean which he once hoped would consume him now elicited tears of fear, for in that moment Caliban realized he desperately wished to believe in a God of goodness and love. Confronting emotions Caliban long forgot he was capable of had somehow threatened his faith in a God of ruthless indifference. His limbs, weary from treading, began to buckle. Sinking further into the water, the shore unreachable now, he for once allowed himself to pray to a God of love. Under any other circumstance, he would have deemed such vulnerability repulsive, yet in that moment Caliban longed for nothing more than compassion – something Setebos wouldn’t provide. He silently begged for a sign, those dark tired eyes searching the heavens for a glimpse of some merciful God he always scorned, but to no avail. The waves dragged him under, a reminder of God’s indifference, and Caliban chastised himself for being such a fool as to entertain such dreams. His muscles grew slack, finally relenting. He told himself he was prepared to meet the darkness, that he had no qualms about his decisions, but old lies lost their strength. Caliban couldn’t escape visions of who he might have been; content and equanimous, at peace with nature and man. Slowly sinking further below the ocean’s surface, he knew there was no hope for a second chance. If God was a champion of love, he had all the more reason to despise the flesh of his own wretched creation. Caliban willed his head above the ocean’s surface, drinking in his final glimpse of life. On the horizon where sun and ocean met, a bulky object began surging towards him at an impossible pace and direction, defying the current. He dismissed it as a mirage, a drowning induced hallucination. A few feet away, its blurred features came into focus; not predator nor ship, but a wide log floating amid an otherwise empty expanse. His grasping fingers clutched it tightly, eyes offering tears of gratitude, still expecting it to dissolve beneath his touch. Pressing his cheek against its cool surface, he lay there in stunned silence. To his surprise, a dreary face mocked him in the water; not a monster, but a man. Perhaps I am a human being worth saving. Analysis: My rendition of Caliban was inspired by my favorite moment from The Tempest, lines 3.2.135-143. In expressing his love for the island, Caliban exhibits an eloquence wholly inconsistent with the play’s depiction of his character as a ruthless savage. As readers we glimpse a sensitive, thoughtful side of Caliban I aimed to develop through my story. These lines also suggest he prefers sleep to reality (“that when I waked / I cried to dream again”), a tragic confession that inspired my focus on Caliban’s depression. In the beginning of my story, Caliban reaches a point of such utter hopelessness, he perceives that nature – the only thing that seems to welcome him – has abandoned him. In The Tempest, Caliban’s kinship with the isle provides an escape from Prospero’s cruelty; having lost this connection, he arrives at a breaking point. I also draw upon Caliban’s relationship to Setebos developed throughout Browning’s poem. Browning portrays Setebos as indifferent towards his creations, amplifying Caliban’s sense of worthlessness and insignificance, thus encouraging his suicidal inclinations. Furthermore, the repetition of the word ‘down’ is a stylistic nod to Kamau Brathwaite’s poem “Caliban.” Just as in Brathwaite’s poem, the protagonist repeatedly falls farther under the limbo stick but in the end rises ‘up, up, up.’ Likewise, in my story Caliban gradually drowns below the ocean but ultimately triumphs over his mental struggles and rediscovers a will to live. My story explores a battle in Caliban’s psyche between pessimistic/depraved elements of his character, hardened by many years enduring Prospero’s rule, and the sensitive/soft-hearted side Shakespeare hints at. Facing death compels Caliban to be shamelessly honest and emotionally vulnerable. He questions if the ruthless, inferior savage persona he internalized from Prospero is truly him. Caliban realizes he only worships Setebos and owns his ‘savageness’ as a defense mechanism, built in response to the death of Sycorax and Prospero’s betrayal. In lines 1.2.333-338 of The Tempest, Caliban reflects on a time when Prospero nurtured and loved him. Recalling these memories and Sycorax’s love reawakens his sense of compassion, and for once Caliban extends empathy to himself. Feeling such intense, previously repressed emotions is a uniquely human experience and reconnects Caliban with his humanity. The idea of a loveless God is, deep down, inconsistent with Caliban’s true nature. He realizes he believed in Setebos out of fear, thinking that no loving God would accept him. The floating log, appearing out of seemingly nowhere to save Caliban, is an emblem of hope that literally saves his life and also symbolizes a healing relationship with God and himself. Staring at his reflection, Caliban recognizes himself as “not a monster, but a man,” signifying his freedom from Prospero’s psychological abuse. In the story’s final line, he thinks of himself as a human being worth saving, also symbolizing a shift in his self perception. Tag to Falling (a poem about Satan) ENTER CALIBAN
Caliban: All the infections that the sun sucks up From bogs, fens, flats, on Prosper fall and make him By inch-meal a disease! His spirits hear me And yet I needs must curse. But they'll nor pinch, Fright me with urchin--shows, pitch me i' the mire, Nor lead me, like a firebrand, in the dark Out of my way, unless he bid 'em; but For every trifle are they set upon me; Sometime like apes that mow and chatter at me And after bite me, then like hedgehogs which Lie tumbling in my barefoot way and mount Their pricks at my footfall; sometime am I All wound with adders who with cloven tongues Do hiss me into madness. ENTER SATAN AS SERPENT Lo, now, lo! Here comes a spirit of his, and to torment me For bringing wood in slowly. I'll fall flat; Perchance he will not mind me. Satan: Wonder not, sovereign Caliban, if perhaps Thou canst, who art sole Wonder, much less arm Thy looks, the Heav'n of mildness, with disdain, Displeas'd that I approach thee thus, and gaze Insatiate, I thus single, nor have feard Thy awful brow, more awful thus retir'd. Thee all things living gaze on, all things thine By gift, and thy Celestial Power adore With ravishment beheld, there best beheld Where universally admir'd; but here In this enclosure wild, these Beasts among, Beholders rude, and shallow to discerne Half what in thee is fair. Who sees thee? who shouldst be ador'd and serv'd By Angels numberless, thy daily Train. Caliban: Do not torment me: Oh! Satan: Perchance you wonder, how I came so to speak and reason? Easie to me it is to tell thee I was at first as other Beasts that graze The trodden Herb, of abject thoughts and low, As was my food, nor aught but food discern'd Or Sex, and apprehended nothing high: Till on a day roaving the field, I chanc'd A goodly Tree farr distant to behold Loaden with fruit of fairest colours mixt, Ruddie and Gold: I nearer drew to gaze; When from the boughes a savorie odour blow'n, Grateful to appetite, more pleas'd my sense, Then smell of sweetest Fenel or the Teats Of Ewe or Goat dropping with Milk at Eevn, Unsuckt of Lamb or Kid, that tend thir play. To satisfie the sharp desire I had Of tasting those fair Apples, I resolv'd Not to deferr; hunger and thirst at once, Powerful perswaders, quick'nd at the scent Of that alluring fruit, urg'd me so keene. About the mossie Trunk I wound me soon, For high from ground the branches would require Thy utmost reach: Round the Tree All other Beasts that saw, with like desire Longing and envying stood, but could not reach. Amid the Tree now got, where plenty hung Tempting so nigh, to pluck and eat my fill I spar'd not, for such pleasure till that hour At Feed or Fountain never had I found. Sated at length, ere long I might perceave Strange alteration in me, to degree Of Reason in my inward Powers, and Speech Wanted not long, though to this shape retain'd. Thenceforth to Speculations high or deep I turnd my thoughts, and with capacious mind Considerd all things visible in Heav'n, Or Earth, or Middle, all things fair and good; But all that fair and good in thy Divine Semblance, and in thy Powers heav'nly Ray United I beheld; no Fair to thine Equivalent or second, which compel'd Mee thus, though importune perhaps, to come And gaze, and worship thee of right declar'd Sovereign of Creatures. O Sacred, Wise, and Wisdom-giving Plant, Mother of Science, Now I feel thy Power Within me cleere, not onely to discerne Things in thir Causes, but to trace the wayes Of highest Agents, deemd however wise. King of this Universe, the Fruit gives you Life Look on mee, Mee who have touch'd and tasted, And life more perfet have attaind then Fate Meant mee, by ventring higher then my Lot. Shall that be shut to thee, which to the Beast Is open? Prevent not from achieving what might leade To happier life. In the day Ye Eate thereof, your Eyes that seem so cleere, Yet are but dim, shall perfetly be then Op'nd and cleerd, and ye shall be as Gods. That ye should be as Gods, since I as Man, Internal Man is but proportion meet, I of brute human, yee of Sycorax God. So ye shall die perhaps, by putting off Human, to put on God, death to be wisht, which no worse then this can bring. And what are Gods that Man may not become As they, participating God-like food? The Gods are first, and that advantage use On our belief, that all from them proceeds; I question it, for this fair Earth I see, Warm'd by the Sun, producing every kind, Them nothing: If they all things, who enclos'd Power and Knowledge of Good and Evil in this Tree, That whoso eats thereof, forthwith attains Wisdom without their leave? These, these and many more Causes import your need of this fair Fruit. God humane, go to this tree and freely taste. ENTER STEPHANO Stephano: What's the matter? Have we devils here? Caliban: The spirit torments me; Oh! Stephano: Come on your ways; open your mouth; here is that which will give language to you, cat! Caliban: Here is a fine thing, an if he be not a sprit. That's a brave god and bears celestial liquor. I will kneel to him. Satan: Oh for badness’ sake. Analysis: This scene is almost completely composed of the dialogue of the characters involved, so to answer the question “what lines inspired me to write it?” I’d say “all of them!” I thought it was interesting, though, to consider the two religious temptations that occur in both of these texts and to compare how they operate. In Paradise Lost, Eve is at least conscious of the parameters of her temptation, and as such operates on the intellectual level of the fall itself. She understands God’s command not to eat the fruit, and she is trying to weigh whether or not to disobey God. Satan uses all of his arguments to try to persuade her to abandon her pact with God and to succumb to him. Indeed, for all the differences between Satan and Eve, they both share an intellect prone to high-minded philosophy and abstract thinking. Shakespeare’s Caliban, by contrast, doesn’t seem to possess the same awareness of what spirits exist in his world, and therefore operates on a more material level. He is not convinced by promises and claims, but by being presented with alcohol, a thing so lovely he cannot imagine it was created by anything other than a divine spirit. Trinculo and Stephano share this “salt of the Earth” persona, caring more about the material world around them than the Italian nobles do. By putting the two conversions in dialogue with each other, I have tried to highlight in a humorous manner how Satan and Eve operate on one level, while Caliban, Stephano, and Trinculo operate on another. Of course, if Satan truly bent all of his willpower towards trying to find a way to deceive Caliban, I’m sure he would change his strategy and simply hand him a drink. However, this comparison still highlights the differences between Eve and Caliban and how that impacts the process through which they alter their religious beliefs. The only true abandonment of character in this piece occurs at the very end. I decided to highlight the deceptive nature of Satan and the contrast between what he says and what he thinks by having what I imagine would be passing through his head “show through” in his moment of greatest frustration. In my adaptation, I attempted to synthesize aspects of various conceptions of Caliban using the medium of videography as well as spoken and sung poetry. I embody Shakespeare’s combative, creative Caliban by lightly adapting and performing the poetry section in which he confronts Prospero, as well as writing a song in the style of the one Caliban sings in 2.2.176-82 (Ban’ ban’ Ca-caliban). Although my video features no dialogue, Caliban’s monologue shows what kind of relationship he has with Prospero. Using Brathwaite’s theme of a self-actualized Caliban, I place the camera in Caliban’s hands, allowing the viewer to literally see the world through his eyes.
By filming my adaptation on a little neck of land on the Maine coast, I was better able to visualize what it would be like to be Caliban—eking out a living on the island Prospero has stolen from him and eating seaweed. Image link: http://enl4341places.pbworks.com/w/page/10419741/FrontPage General video game details:
Storyboard: Opening:
With impetuous recoil and jarring sound
Th’ infernal doors, and on their hinges grate Harsh thunder, that the lowest bottom shook Of Erebus. She opened, but to shut Excelled her power; the gates wide open stood (2.880-84) This starting point highlights when Satan is leaving Hell and promising a place on Earth for Death and Sin. This is important to the game because it indicates a further purpose than just revenge against God: once humankind is corrupted, Death and Sin will allow Evil to become the dominant force on Earth. The main insight that one would gain about Satan based on this game is in his position – he was banned from his homeland to somewhere far worse, and thus through social pressure and emotional desire, wishes to exact revenge. Taking the first-person perspective in the game allows for the objective good which God represents to be dethroned, and subjective desires to become ultimately important. Thus, the game allows for the character of Satan to gain understandability. On the other hand, in line with God losing his intrinsic good position in the game, Satan loses his quality of being eternally unchanging; rather, he becomes a mere opponent of God and not a representative of Evil. I decided on the RPG quest genre because, for the above reason, it centers the game on the premise of Satan being given an unchanging goal by his fellow fallen angels. |
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