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Slaves Bodies Analysis

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Slaves Bodies Analysis
In the article, “Slaves’ Bodies”, written by Ronald Takaki, the comparison of The Tempest and early America society is made. Although most of the article focuses on the details of American society the main points regarding the relation to The Tempest concentrate on the correlation between Caliban and the people of color of North America and Prospero and the white men. Similar to Caliban, the people of color of North America were belittled and thought of as primal or animal like and they were also segregated from the white people. The white people who projected these primal instincts on to the Native and African Americans claimed that they were rational, that they were the mind per say of America's metaphorical body. Whereas the people of color were the body and the primitive, and often sexual, needs of it. But he brings out that as the American Revolution began and the colonists tried to get away from the oppression of Parliament and the King they realized something: that they too were oppressors. Those such as James …show more content…
They both had similar stigmas around them and that did not seem to change. African Americans in particular were viewed as worthless and nothing but slaves. Caliban son of Sycorax is viewed with similar stigmas as well. In Act One Scene two of The Tempest, Caliban talks of his rights to the island and how Prospero does not treat him fairly. Prospero counters with, “Thou most lying slave…” This phrase and the context thereafter shows that Caliban’s opinion is not relevant, for as a slave what Caliban thinks is not important and what he has done in the past makes him (i need a word that means like “not able” but like not able due to his rank). Takaki also brings out that, “Englishmen had felt the need to separate themselves from both the instinctual part of the self and from blacks”. Branding Caliban as his slave and keeping him in a cell, segregated him both socially and
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