This assumption of native behavior is apparent not only in Shakespeare’s writing, but also in historical instances. Caliban is a product of nature, the offspring of the witch Sycorax and the devil. In the 19 th century there was a theory that Caliban’s name came from an Arabic insult, يا كلب [ya kalib], meaning “you dog” (Vaughan & Vaughan 33). Dr. Garceau, The men on board who warned Columbus were Taino or Lucayans, groups that spoke closely related Arawakan languages in the Western Caribbean. John Hamilton Mortimer, Etching of Caliban from Twelve Characters from Shakespeare (1775).

The thing that surprised me the most is that Caliban’s name means “human being” in the Cariban languages. It was very interesting to read the possible etymology of Caliban’s name, and I can’t help but wonder about Shakespeare’s real attitude towards this topic, especially when you alluded to it right at the very end of your blog post. Nevertheless, I found it intriguing the way you were able to apply a variety of secondary sources when searching for the source behind Caliban’s name; so many different soures were taken apart and thoroughly analyzed all while connecting to one another. That aside, I didn't remember Caliban looking in a glass. Similarly how different perspectives might influence one to form a specific opinion of the Spanish conquering the Incas (in reference to the works we read earlier in the quarter). They had, however, just discovered an island in the Atlantic under wondrous circumstances involving a shipwreck.


It made me consider how Caliban’s true character might vary if we hadn’t based our depiction of him solely on how Prospero and Miranda talked so lowly of him. When comparing the name Caliban to Spanish words such as Canibal, is one interpretation I made. It leaves us to question how much more hidden meaning can be found through other components in Shakespeare’s play, and in other works overall. His mother is killed by a strange invader from another nation – one with much more power than him. Last 10 years Read our series of blogs to find out more. The Carib, on the other hand, will become a caníbal – an anthropophagus, a bestial man situated on the margins of civilization, who must be opposed to the very death. If that English translation rings a bell, it is because Shakespeare borrows liberally from it in Gonzalo’s speech about what he would do with Prospero’s island if he were given control of it (II.i.152-61, 164-69). “Hottentot”) people to frame his rejection of “progress,” but we should also recall that the people he refers to as “the people that until now has wandered least from the state of nature” are Caribs (65). These same Island Caribs were then encroaching on the islands of the Greater Antilles, such as modern-day Puerto Rico and Haiti. (English translation by Clements R. Markham). : a savage and deformed slave in Shakespeare's The Tempest. The meaning of the word did not change, but the word itself did and I think this says a lot about language and its shift because we now essentially have a word with a double meaning; and not only is it a double meaning, but the two meanings are on different sides of the spectrum, they are like two different extremes. He goes on to say Caliban’s portrayal is parallel to a typical portrayal of “barbarians” that was used to justify taking away land, but doesn’t really say much about Gonzalo.

Ultimately, It’s all about opinions and point of view, and Shakespeare did a good job of pointing that out by showing us what’s said about Caliban, and the showing us the actual actions of Caliban, and letting the audience/readers realize that Caliban’s original portrayal maybe biased. The Europeans categorized natives as a separate beings and justified treating them differently because of their past actions, which in reality, may not have even occurred (just as you mentioned that there is no substantial evidence for the appearance of native cannibalism). (Nerd alert: The digitized copy of Purchas available through archive.org was originally owned by John Adams, second president of the United States, and you can see his signature in the top right corner of the title page.) Caliban definition: a brutish or brutalized man | Meaning, pronunciation, translations and examples Full text available on Early English Books Online. Granted, being the offspring of the witch, Sycorax, and the devil himself does warrant some level of deformity, I do agree that he is much more than a mere “slave.” More specifically, I was enthralled at the connection between his name to another meaning, “human being” and “the people.” Rather than being a character I initially thought to despise (because of his outright disobedience and defiance and his past attempts of raping Miranda), I came to sympathize with him as he became more and more humanized, and eventually grew to assert his humanity.

ca-li-ban, cal-ib-an] The baby boy name Caliban is pronounced K AE LAHBAHN †. This post was originally published on February 5, 2018.

Rousseau, Jean-Jacques.

In my mind, I thought of him a a European colonizer as he was also someone trying to control a misunderstood subordinate like Caliban himself. This calls into attention the role of the “colonizer” in influencing people’s perceptions of others. I started seeing parallels with the Inca and Caliban. Even I admit that I initially perceived Caliban as a monstrous being with no emotions or any human traits. Webster’s New World College Dictionary, 4th Edition. I enjoyed reading all these possible explanations of where “Caliban” is derived from. One part of your post that particularly resonated with me was when you posed the question of whether Shakespeare named Caliban with the intentions of making him into a “noble savage crushed by European colonization” or a “nefarious man-eater who would kill his neighbors given the chance”. This helps tie in the role of many conquered people and whether or not these Incan people or even the Native Americans from fall quarter were as bad they were portrayed to be. I was wondering if you have analyzed and interpreted how we as a society have made Caliban more human over the generations and what you believe to be the most accurate depiction of Caliban is to date. Caliban, a longtime inhabitant of the island, understands that the island’s ever-present illusions are ultimately harmless. And the possible etymology of Caliban’s name, coming from various names used for people of the Caribbean, was very insightful. [ syll. This insightful post lead me to gain further knowledge of what Shakespeare may have been inspired by while writing The Tempest, as well as how the power dynamics between the natives of the Caribbean and the Spanish may have served as a possible model for Prospero and Caliban’s relationship. It is about a conflict in the solar system that involves Earth, Mars, and the Asteroid Belt (colonies of people living on asteroids, referred to as "Belters"). Your ideas began to make me wonder how Shakespeare portrayed all his cast. I believe that the beauty of The Tempest is found in the characters and how Shakespeare decided to present the idea of the pursuit of freedom. Beyond this cape there stretched out another land or cape, also trending east, which the Indians on board called Bohio [Haiti]. The dispersion of Carib groups across present-day Venezuela, Suriname, and Guyana led this region to be labeled Caribana on many early maps of South America (Vaughan 28-29). Although it is unlikely that Shakespeare knew this, it seems like more than mere. I genuinely enjoyed following your thought-journey in deciphering the origins and different interpretations of Caliban’s name. Hi Camille, I like all of these connections you are making to Dr. O’Toole’s lectures, and to Matthew Restall. Your interpretation of Caliban’s name in relation to the word cannibal is quite telling of European tendencies to justify their wrongdoings.
Throughout most of the play, Caliban is insolent and rebellious and is only controlled through the use of magic. In the Fall Quarter we saw how Jean-Jacques Rousseau used the Khoisan (i.e. Interestingly, depending on which way you look at the origins of Caliban’s name, it seems to shift your perception of how you view and empathize for his character. He is taught the language of this invader and is forced to be his slave. Webster’s New World College Dictionary, 4th Edition. Caliban’s swarthy appearance, his forced servitude, and his native status on the island have led many readers to interpret him as a symbol of the native cultures occupied and suppressed by European colonial societies, which are represented by the power of Prospero. Although it is unlikely that Shakespeare knew this, it seems like more than mere coincidence that Caliban’s name means “human being” in the Cariban languages, and that his last words in the play highlight his intention to “seek for grace,” whatever that might entail (V.i.296). If, in fact, the interpretation of Caliban’s name stemming from cannibalism is true, it makes sense as to why Shakespeare portrays Prospero as ‘rightfully’ enslaving Caliban. If Caliban was a “stupid indigenous” person why did Shakespeare choose to make Caliban speak out?

Before reading this I hadn’t realized how little of a description we got of Caliban and I hadn’t thought of what what the meaning behind his name. Great points Brian! This connection, based purely on his proclaimed deformity and his description as a villain, gave me a strong bias stacked against Caliban. ‘The nights are fair drawing in’ is a trope about the weather that applies powerfully as you read this. The Languages of the Amazon. Between 1585 and 1604, England and Spain were in a state of constant but undeclared war, and there was a great deal of Anti-Spanish propaganda circulating in London when Shakespeare was writing his plays. If they had not come there in the first place and tried to colonize him for their own benefit, he would not have become such a wretched character. I’m sure a lot of people would agree that we live in strange times. Often times we may overlook such characters and not think much of them; however, what makes Caliban unique is that he is a personality that has been interpreted in NUMEROUS ways, by different people for many years. I think Shakespeare allowed us to draw this connection back to this meaning. Both conjure up a hypothetical society that could exist anywhere and show the relations between what is “civilized” and what is “barbaric”. Download our English Dictionary apps - available for both iOS and Android. This was a very elaborate and detailed read about the etymology of Caliban, the seemingly unconnected relations between languages and coincidences aligning so much that they are anything but. I couldn’t figure out who or what Caliban was.

These people are the Kalinago, called Caribs in English, and in fact, the words ‘Carib,’ ‘cannibal,’ and ‘Caribbean’ all come from their name.