In my adaptation, Caliban gains a new way in which he can interact with the world around him. Rather than being limited to the island, he can reach followers anywhere, and has the power to seek support from other users. In The Tempest, Caliban was confined by Prospero, and by the influence of the foreign language imposed upon him. In contrast, through Instagram, Caliban can express his thoughts not only verbally, but also visually. Thus, the forum provides him with the freedom to communicate with supporters in multiple ways. Like in The Tempest, Caliban reclaims the language of his oppressor, and uses it to aid his rebellion. However, the sense of hatred doesn’t exist, as it is replaced by a subtler type of humor. This replicates the way in which modern teens display contempt for their parents or other authority figures. Instead of cursing them with a plague as Caliban did in the The Tempest, they broadcast their disdain through a forum in which they will find support from others with similar issues. This perspective gave me some insight into Caliban’s character, as maybe his violent outbursts weren’t really the result of pure hatred, but instead because he lacked an outlet through which he could find support.
You taught me Instagram; and my profit on't Is, I know how to snag mad followers - JoAnn Tinker1/9/2015 In my visual interpretation of Caliban’s rebellion against Prospero, I put a contemporary spin on the situation. Caliban is rebelling against his father figure by reclaiming his own appearance, much like a modern teenager, and seeks support from his peers through Instagram. This is the equivalent of his exchange with Prospero, in which he argues that “When thou camest first, / Though strokedst me and madest much of me,” but that now “you sty me / In this hard rock.” However, rather than reclaiming his island, he is instead using his body to defy Prospero. Prospero is viewing this from his own account, which replicates the way in which he spies on those on the island. Instead of using Ariel to monitor Caliban’s activities, he uses social media, as it provides him with a similar type of omnipotence. The comments represent a modern interpretation of the interactions between characters in The Tempest. Stephano, seen here as “stephyboy,” references their past drunken revelry, when Caliban declared that Stephano is a “brave god and bears celestial liquor,” and that he would “kneel to him.” Trinculo responds to Stephano, but does not interact in the comment chain with Caliban, who he dislikes, and considers to be “a very shallow monster.” Miranda comments “u trippin,” which is a modern insult used frequently on social media. Caliban responds with a creepy devil emoticon, rather than a verbal or physical threat, as he used in the play. Ferdinand, in the form of “mrs_harry_styles,” comes to Miranda’s defense, arguing that Caliban is just jealous of her power under Prospero’s rule. The username reflects Ferdinand’s tendency to fangirl over Miranda, much like tweens fawn over members of One Direction. Thus, through this image, I have manipulated Caliban’s rebellion to replicate that of a modern teenager, and used the comment chain to represent the interactions and dynamics between different characters.
In my adaptation, Caliban gains a new way in which he can interact with the world around him. Rather than being limited to the island, he can reach followers anywhere, and has the power to seek support from other users. In The Tempest, Caliban was confined by Prospero, and by the influence of the foreign language imposed upon him. In contrast, through Instagram, Caliban can express his thoughts not only verbally, but also visually. Thus, the forum provides him with the freedom to communicate with supporters in multiple ways. Like in The Tempest, Caliban reclaims the language of his oppressor, and uses it to aid his rebellion. However, the sense of hatred doesn’t exist, as it is replaced by a subtler type of humor. This replicates the way in which modern teens display contempt for their parents or other authority figures. Instead of cursing them with a plague as Caliban did in the The Tempest, they broadcast their disdain through a forum in which they will find support from others with similar issues. This perspective gave me some insight into Caliban’s character, as maybe his violent outbursts weren’t really the result of pure hatred, but instead because he lacked an outlet through which he could find support.
1 Comment
Claire Dawkins
1/10/2015 02:02:05 pm
I really like the ways that your take on The Tempest intersects with some of the discussion of Caliban's language that we got in Brathwaite's poem, "Letter SycoraX." It's cool that you started using alternate forms of English in your textspeak just like he uses nation-language as an alternate form of English. Do you think there's an affinity between new networks of communication and evolution in language? Is textspeak as revolutionary as nation-language?
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