However, although Caliban is currently being classed higher than the other two drunken men, they still refer to him as ‘monster’ frequently within this extract. Stephano refers to Caliban as ‘monster,’ on line 3, which may be a clear suggestion to his monstrous mannerisms, and also, perhaps, to his ugly appearance. This can be again proving to be useful to develop our view of Caliban’s mannerisms and appearance. Also, the fact that they are drunk may be the reason why, primarily, Caliban does not respond to the fact that they refer to him as a monster. Although Caliban is quite firm with himself being the only true member of the island, he does not mind at this point, that his ‘invaders’ are referring to him in insulting ways. Another reason why the repetition of the word monster occurs so many times, is that Stephano and Trinculo both thrive on each others stupidity, so Stephano calling Caliban a monster, may be indirectly prompting Trinculo to call Caliban a monster as well. The word ‘fairy’ (line 3) that follows is also a reference to one of the main themes of the play; magic.
‘I do smell all horse-piss,’ is a use of language that contributes to the theme of comedy. The scatological humour is definitely not what is expected of a court jester, and more expected of a lower social class ‘devil.’ Caliban does not speak in language as crude as this, and this brings together a contrast which says a lot about Caliban. Although Caliban’s appearance may be that of a monster, he has sense and morality within him to realise the right way to speak.
Caliban says ‘good my lord,’ and the paired assonance adds an effective technique. The repetition of the ‘ood’ sound, adds a harsh feeling about the language, and can tell the reader about the way Caliban is speaking here. The following line (11) is an iambic pentameter and be ‘patient for the prize’ also incorporates an indirect use of alliteration, because there are two simultaneous ‘p’ sound made by the iambic pentameter; ‘patient’ ‘prize’
‘Alls hushed as midnight yet’ is a line that can be visualized as a very softly spoken line, and the words hushed and midnight, tell the audience that it’s very quite and dark, which suggests peacefulness and tranquillity, as well as obscurity. This line tells an audience that Caliban is capable of speaking in a calming way, which recollects his beautiful poetry about the ‘isle having noises.’ This gives a clear view of Caliban as a character in the audiences mind.
Following this scene, we see Trinculo becoming disorientated because he ‘loses his bottle in the pool’, and he is very concerned about this. On the other hand, Caliban says ‘this is the mouth o’ th’ cell,’ which portrays to the audience that this is a focused character. Caliban shows a focused sense of plan here, whereas Stephano and Trinculo in their drunken states are becoming distressed by other things, such as the lost bottle. The words ‘foot licker,’ spoken by Caliban, are a clear example of Caliban’s ability to manipulate Stephano and Trinculo’s minds, promising them that they will be given ‘a prize’ (line 11) if they all work together and co-operate. Shakespeare effectively sets a persuasive tone to this section to portray Caliban as a persuasive and manipulative character.
He says
‘Let it alone, thou fool, it is but trash,’
Indicating a clear understanding of Prospero’s capabilities, by Caliban. The trap has been set by Prospero for the three drunkards, because Prospero is portayed by Shakespeare as the most powerful. Caliban realises the trap, and this recollects his focused frame of mind when he notices ‘the mouth o’ th’ cell.’
On line 20, 26 and 36, the words ‘king,’ ‘king’ and ‘crown’ respectively, give a tone of the main theme of the play one of the main themes of the play, is kingship and royalty. These words suggest exactly this again, contributing to the overall effect of the leadership in the play.
Finally the word’ murder’ portrays imagery of death and tragedy which would be a sort of conflict in the average Victorians mind. ‘The Tempest’ is widely known as a comedy, perhaps because of literally, comical moments, or that it has a happy ending, but a suggestion to murder actually shocks the audience. Quite ironically, Caliban is an anagram of cannibal, which is somewhat amusing since he speaks about the murder of Prospero.
Caliban becomes a parody of himself. In his first speech to Prospero, he regretfully reminds the magician of how he showed him all the ins and outs of the island when Prospero first arrived. Only a few scenes later, however, we see Caliban drunk and fawning before a new magical being in his life: Stefano and his bottle of liquor. Soon, Caliban begs to show Stefano the island and even asks to lick his shoe. Caliban repeats the mistakes he claims to curse. In his final act of rebellion, he is once more entirely subdued by Prospero in the most petty way—he is dunked in a stinking bog and ordered to clean up Prospero’s cell in preparation for dinner.
Despite his savage demeanor and grotesque appearance, however, Caliban has a nobler, more sensitive side that the audience is only allowed to glimpse briefly, and which Prospero and Miranda do not acknowledge at all. His beautiful speeches about his island home provide some of the most affecting imagery in the play, reminding the audience that Caliban really did occupy the island before Prospero came, and that he may be right in thinking his enslavement to be monstrously unjust
