Roots Tempest

Kera Pezzuti Period 8 10/9/08 Roots and The Tempest To many peoples throughout the world, freedom is something taken for granted, but to other groups, having their independence is not a reality. George Bernard Shaw sums up the feelings of these dominated people by say, “A conquered nation is like a man with cancer: he can think of nothing else.” In Roots by Alex Haley and William Shakespeare’s The Tempest, several groups of people or single people find themselves examples of Shaw’s words. These unfortunate populaces in Roots include the Africans and Native Americans due to the colonies and then the colonies themselves with thanks to the British. In The Tempest, Prospero is usurped by his brother Antonio with assistance from King Alonso of Naples, but, later in the play, Prospero takes control of the native Caliban and a spirit, Ariel. All these characters, nations, and communities are constantly possessed by the same thought of their constraint by others. All the conquered characters in The Tempest express their feelings towards no longer having their independence during the second scene of act two. When Miranda makes an inquiry about the origin of the storm, Prospero begins to tell her a very informative, but long-winded story. Although his daughter appears bored at certain points during the narrative, readers are able to learn a lot about the history of Prospero and Miranda. Here, readers discover Prospero’s obsession with getting revenge on those who attempted to kill him and who are responsible for his lonely residence on the island. From his story, one can deduce that the magician has spent a lengthy period of time plotting against Antonio, the usurper, and King Alonso of Naples who assisted in the seizing of Prospero’s title. During his story, Prospero states, “And by my prescience/ I find my

zenith doth depend upon/ A most auspicious star, whose influence/ If now I court not but omit, my fortunes/ Will ever after droop” (Iii). These words explain to readers how Prospero is completely taken over with the thought of revenge. Just like his fixation on being conquered is analogous to a man with cancer, Prospero suddenly becomes obsessed with chemotherapy-like revenge. During his stay on the enchanted island, Prospero places many other beings into the same conquered fate he was forced into. Many spirits who play small parts in the play, such as Juno and Iris, are under constant control of the magician, and a more powerful and important spirit, Ariel, is also in the hand of Prospero. Throughout the entire play, Ariel questions Prospero about when he will be released which shows the thought of having no freedom is never far from Ariel’s mind. After every completion of a task assigned by Prospero, Ariel attempts to negotiate the duration of his stay under Prospero’s rule. Another creature under the jurisdiction of Milan’s former ruler was an inhabitant of the almost deserted island before the arrival of Prospero and Miranda called Caliban. A cruel and vindictive beast, Caliban and his mother used to own the island, and he never lets Prospero forget about the terrible dead committed by the magician. In Act I, scene ii, Caliban delivers a soliloquy about the history of the possession of the island. He states, “This island's mine, by Sycorax my mother/ Which thou takest from me . . . In this hard rock, whiles you do keep from me/ The rest o' th' island” (Iii). Whenever Caliban is seen during a later part of the play, he is sulking and commenting about the unfair control of Prospero. These two servants of Prospero are, in a way, in a similar position of being conquered that their controller is.

In a different piece of literature, Roots by Alex Haley, the same characteristics are seen on a larger scale by countries and masses of people. The majority of the novel takes place during the time that is the colonial period, a time when the British and colonists are extremely controlling people. Under the rule of the British from across the sea, the colonies became unwilling subjects during the beginning of the 1700s thus leading to the Revolution. During this half a century, the colonists are seen to have displayed various forms of rebellion towards King George III and the rest of Britain. Although controlled themselves, the colonists found the need to also conquer the Native Americans and the Africans. Many characters of Roots heard of tales about the uprisings of slaves on other plantations and of the colonists against the British. Readers diligently follow one such African, Kunta Kinte, a slave who was captured in his native Africa takes many years to become accustomed to the thought of having no freedoms. His every action in the beginning of the stint of his capture screams his desire to be free and home again. Through countless chapters, Kunta thinks of nothing but plans for escape and revenge on those who imprisoned him. Throughout Alex Haley’s Roots and Shakespeare’s The Tempest, many unfortunate characters and races are taken control of and are stripped of their freedoms. In The Tempest, a number of single people match this criterion including Prospero, Caliban, and Ariel. The Africans, Native Americans, and the colonists are populations of people in Roots that are also conquered and without liberations. To men like Prospero and Kunta Kinte who enjoy and take advantage of all their freedoms, being controlled by someone is not a possibility. When they do find themselves subject to this terrible fate, they become obsessed with finding a way out of the mess. In accordance with the words

by George Bernard Shaw, these two characters are great examples of someone fanatical about being conquered. Although other characters and large bodies of people also display the same characteristics of Kunta and Prospero, none take it to the extreme to find their independence again that these two men do.