Caroline Burlingham
Mr. H. Salsich
English
January 27, 2009
A Life of Imprisonment:
An Essay on the Confinement of Prospero’s Slaves in the Shakespearian Play The Tempest

1) When ones life consists of nothing but loss and betrayal, it is almost hard not to defend what you have left. 2) For the characters Ariel and Caliban in Shakespeare’s The Tempest, life is confined to nothing but the wishes of their master, Prospero. 3) While the two slaves struggle to protect and hold on to their hopes and dreams of freedom, Prospero tries to hold on to their services, for they are the only things left under his power. 4) However, this just makes the lives of the servants more difficult.

TS The confinement and servitude (FAST) felt by Ariel is both mental and physical. SD Ariel is imprisoned by her gratitude to Prospero. CM When he saved her from her former master, both a witch and the mother of Caliban, she became his obedient servant in return. CM Although she does all he asks, she feels as if the debt she owes him is infinite. SD Despite the conditions, Ariel holds on to the dream she was once promised, freedom. CM The spirit considers herself a good and obedient slave, but simply reminding Prospero of his former words is a difficult and hash task (THREE ACTION VERB). CM Although a lightened workload is all she asks for, Prospero threatens to, “Rend an oak and peg thee in his knotty entrails till thou hast howl’d away twelve winters.” CS Ariel is loyal to Prospero, and though he doesn’t always treat her fairly, she holds on to what she has and doesn’t let her imprisoning life pull her down.

TS Caliban was once king of this enchanted island on which Prospero and Ariel live, but once the humans arrived, he became their slave. SD Wishing for the death of Prospero and ownership of his island, Caliban lives a life judged on his appearance and not his personality (SENTENCE OPENER). CM Shakespeare described Caliban as a “Freckled whelp hag-born—not honour’d with a human shape,” and that is how Prospero treats him. CM Caliban, in a way, is held captive by his looks. SD At the start of Prospero and his daughter, Miranda’s lives on the island, Prospero and Caliban were friends. CM Prospero feels betrayed by Caliban when he attempts to rape his daughter, but Caliban feels as if Prospero stole his island. CM Now, he is confined in terrible thoughts of Prospero, wanting nothing but what is rightfully his (SENTENCE CLOSER). CS It is safe to say that Caliban is simply trapped in the past, and until he begins to realize that what happened can’t change, he will never be set free.

1) Prospero was betrayed in his old life as a duke, and now, he can’t help but betray others. 2) Ariel and Caliban are both held down by Prospero in some way, whether it be by hatred or by gratitude, they are stuck. 3) Both Ariel and Caliban, being who they are, must obey Prospero and hold on to their beliefs, for they are all they have (S-V SPLIT). You can take an individual out of power, but you can’t take the power out of an individual (Chiasmus)