The Influence of Colonization on Shakespeare’s “The Tempest”:
A Study of Works Between 1980 until 2009
Chelsea McNeil

When comparing the journal articles “A Brave New World of Knowledge: Shakespeare’s ‘The Tempest’ and Early Modern Epistemology” by B. J. Sokol, “Are We Being Historical Yet?: Colonization Interpretations of Shakespeare’s Tempest,” by Ben Ross Schneider, Jr. and “Men of Inde: Renaissance Ethnography and The Tempest” by William M. Hamlin we find an over-riding critique of the influence of colonization on Shakespeare’s “The Tempest.” Significant studies of the play published between 1980 and 2009 aid the readers of “The Tempest” to better understand the historical and political background that had such a big impression on Shakespeare during the time period it was written.  “The Tempest” is a play is about Prospero, a king who’s thrown was usurped, and his daughter Miranda who are living on an island for twelve years.  Prospero causes a shipwreck of the royal party who has dethroned him causing all the characters to be together on this island.  When we look further into the theme and meaning behind the story of “The Tempest” we see the influence of scientific study in the colonies in America, the battle over the position of power in American colonies compared with the island, and we see many similarities between the New World and the island world.

There was much interested into the New World that was recently discovered across the Atlantic Ocean. Shakespeare was “indifferent, if not inimical, to the scientific revolution burgeoning around him during the 17th century,” (Sokol). However, much of the Jacabean population was abuzz about it, and Shakespeare wanted to appeal to the masses.  He put much thought and effort into every one of his characters as he does in each of his plays.  One could say he used a “Freudian reading of anger, guilt and hard work,” (Sokol) into creating the character of Prospero.  In many of the scenes, Prospero is short tempered and criticizes other characters. For example, in act 1 scene 2 when Prospero is chastising Ariel for asking to be freed, he exclaims, “Thou Liest, malignant thing! Hast thou forgot the foul witch Sycroax, who with age and envy was grown into a hoop?” (Shakespeare 1.2.257-260).   This shift to psychoanalysis of his characters also creates a “…possibility that is…every bit as tantalizing as the one about a gentlemen scientist at Jamestown,” (Sokol). Because the allure of the New World was so intriguing, Shakespeare developed a way to interpret his own opinions on the matter into “The Tempest.” It is a play that “…has attracted widespread attention among new historicists as a paradigm of early modern colonies” (Schneider). In order to mask his own beliefs on the scientific revolution, Shakespeare masked the use of knowledge with the cover of magic.  He leads his audience to believe that all of Prospero’s books and literature are the source of his magical powers. Shakespeare even goes on to write that the reasoning for the usurping of Prospero’s throne by his brother Antonio, was because Prospero was too busy studying the liberal arts.  “Prospero…surrendered his ancestral estate to a younger brother before relocating, with his renowned library” (Sokol). As interpreted through “A Brave New World of Knowledge: Shakespeare’s ‘The Tempest’ and Early Modern Epistemology” by B. J. Sokol we can see that Shakespeare’s “The Tempest was impacted not only by the colonization of the New World, but by the scientific revolution that was accompanying it both in America as well as England.

Shakespeare’s “The Tempest” was written in 1667 during the time of early settlement of British colonies in America under the rule of James I. There are many foreshadowing components that can be attributed to the influence of political and historical factors for which Shakespeare wrote this play to entertain the Jacobean audience. When utilizing “Are We Being Historical Yet?: Colonization Interpretations of Shakespeare’s Tempest,” by Ben Ross Schneider, Jr. to better understand “The Tempest,” we can be conscious of the historical affect on the play.  Schneider states that we must “…explore both the social presence to the world of literary text and the social presence of the world in the literary text” (Schneider). We as readers see first Prospero and his daughter Miranda as the only inhabitants of the island, much like the early settlers.  However, then we go on to find out that there were previous inhabitants, much like the First Americans. Ariel, Prospero’s magical servant was imprisoned by a witch named Sycorax who had imprisoned Ariel in a tree. The witch died before Ariel could be freed from the curse, leaving him seemingly stuck in said tree until Prospero came along and freed him, leaving Ariel indebted to his new master. But the reader has to wonder, after discovering Prospero is also the cause for the shipwreck in the opening scene, if he might just “…rise the threat of imminent calamity in order to win credit for adverting it” (Schneider).  Prospero believes in himself as the rightful ruler of the island and fails to admit any responsibility for drama he may cause, he “gives credit to ‘Providence Devine’ for casting them upon the island, Prospero implies that he legitimately rules the island by some sort of manifest destiny” (Schneider). However, we as the reader know that Prospero, unwilling to admit to anyone besides Miranda, that he does not rule by manifest destiny, but by force.  One can compare Prospero’s reasoning for wanting to control the island so badly not only because he was forced to give up his throne, but we can also compare it to his own “colony”.

When looking to compare the theatrics of the island in Shakespeare’s “The Tempest,” to the colonies of the New World, the critique written by William M. Hamlin entitled, “Men of Inde: Renaissance Ethnography and The Tempest” can better help understand readers to the insight of the close similarities. Both the island and the Americas were uncharted lands, leaving an air of mystery to them which aided not only the atmosphere of the play, but also added to the inquisition of explorers.   There are many “…curious parallels between incidents in the play and narratives of early circumnavigatations such as those of Magellan” (Hamlin). According to Hamlin, scholars speculated that Shakespeare may have caught a glimpse of some of the natives of Virginia, Guiana, and New England that were brought to London during the late 16th century.  This may have also caused an inclination into creating a play based on the fantasies that a new world could hold. “Audiences and scholars have long since recognized that the plays of Shakespeare allude in various places and various ways to the New World” (Hamlin). However, it never occurs to any of the characters that much like the First Americans living in America when it was settled by Europeans, there might have been others living on the island before they arrived as well and began having a power struggle.  Stephano and Trinculo are speaking in the presence of Caliban, they are “both reveal a complete obliviousness to the idea that indigenous non-Europeans might have a legitimate claim to the lands upon which Europeans have stumbled” (Hamlin). The power struggle in “The Tempest” can also be compared to “James I’s rule in which Prospero’s disciplinary measures excuse their barbarity by attributing sub-human characteristics to the native population” (Schneider).

In conclusion, comparing the journal articles “A Brave New World of Knowledge: Shakespeare’s ‘The Tempest’ and Early Modern Epistemology” by B. J. Sokol, “Are We Being Historical Yet?: Colonization Interpretations of Shakespeare’s Tempest,” by Ben Ross Schneider, Jr. and “Men of Inde: Renaissance Ethnography and The Tempest” by William M. Hamlin we find an over-riding critique of the influence of colonization on Shakespeare’s “The Tempest.”  In order to better understand the historical and political background that had such a big impression on Shakespeare during the writing of “The Tempest” we look to significant studies of the play published between 1980 and 2009.  Using these journal articles to understand “The Tempest” we see the influence of scientific study in the colonies in America, the battle over the position of power in American colonies compared with the island, and  many similarities between the New World and the island world.