White Man > Native = BullSH*T

Caliban is the Native American stereotype in Shakespeare’s play The Tempest. He represents those who are native to the area, have had their land (home) taken from them, are subject to serve their superior, and have been labeled as inferior. Although Shakespeare recreates Caliban as a representative of an “average” native, he doesn’t follow the trite formula mentioned in the video: How Hollywood Stereotyped Native Americans. In Acts II and III Caliban doesn’t remain passive to the “white man” or even physically gain power over his possessor. Instead Shakespeare redefines this model of “reality” by having Caliban manipulate one white man (Stephano) against another (Prospero). No longer is the native considered, “vicious killers all of them, not even human,” by the video, but instead a manipulator fighting the resistance with his words not a bow-n-arrow and a hatchet. He is sympathetic to the skewed image of the native to an extent and illustrates this by taking the initiative to rewrite a native’s course of action. However even though Shakespeare decided to change the ideal Hollywood formula, he still manages to keep a native stereotype to define Caliban with. For example, Stephano’s first impression of Caliban is, “What’s the matter? Have we devils here? Do you put tricks upon ‘s with savages and men of Ind, ha? I have not ‘scaped drowning to be afreard now of your four legs …” This enlightens the automatic assumption that Caliban’s presence is that of a devil or a savage and as the dialogue continues and the realization has been made that he is a native, he still bears the title monster. It is shown in the chapter of The Post-Colonial Studies Reader titled Cultural Studies: Post colonialism, African-American Criticism, and Queer Theory that, “these subhumans or ‘savages’ quickly became the inferior and equally ‘evil’ Others, a philosophical concept called alternity whereby ‘the others’ are excluded from positions of power and viewed as different and inferior.” In all three resources the same terms and course of action have been directed to the natives or “blood thirsty savages”. Shakespeare portrays Caliban as a stereotypical native: his land has been taken from him, he is considered a monster, evil, and a savage, and he must obey Prospero better known as the white man. Nevertheless he puts a spin on the stereotypical native story with the introduction of Stephano and Trinculo. Who knew that alcohol could be so powerful? There are an abundant of examples from not only the text but the other two resources as well that exemplify this; nonetheless Shakespeare is rewriting the native’s future he is rewriting the formula.