How does Shakespeare explore nature versus nurture in “The Tempest”?
When looking at this particular aspect of the play, we firstly need to understand
the true meaning of what nature and nurture really are. Nature is described as
natural growth, and essentially means that when someone grows up in the wild
then they will not be educated or socialised by society or by their parents, but will
socialise themselves, by teaching themselves about how to hunt and how to
survive. However, nurture is when a person is socialised by their education and
their parents and, as a result of this education and socialisation they become,
what we would call civilised, and able to interact with others in society.
Shakespeare raises and explores the important issue of nature versus nature
and how they can overlap in some cases, for example with Caliban and his
natural instincts, as opposed to his learnt behavioural and interactional skills,
which Prospero taught him when he and his daughter Miranda first arrived on the
island.
When we are first introduced to Caliban in Act 1 Scene 2 he is depicted as being
a savage and uncivilised creature who is Prospero’s slave, and who resents
Prospero and the isolated and ugly part of the island that Prospero has exiled
him to. We learn at this stage that although Caliban was seen as a savage on the
island who essentially owned the island before Prospero and Mirada arrived, he
is in fact not what he seems. Although he has not properly been socialised, he
has grown up on the island and has learnt to fend for himself and to survive
(nature). Also, we learn that Prospero has tried to educate Caliban and has
attempted to teach him some basic norms and values, and he has managed to
teach him English. Caliban is therefore not completely savage and still has an
ability to learn and so by this at least we may assume that he does have some
intelligence. “Teach me how to name the bigger light”. Caliban tells us how
Prospero then exiled him to “this hard rock” on the island, instead of letting him
appreciate the beauty of the island. The most interesting thing about Caliban at
this point is that he cherishes and hungers for the beauty of the island, his island,
an island which he clearly loves and holds dear to him. This is not nurture,
because no-one told him how to appreciate beauty, he simply grew up on the
island, did not take for granted what it provided for him, which essentially was a
life, an existence, and he realized the difference between beauty and ugliness on
the island itself. However, this nature which has provided him with beauty does
not help him now, because although he is able to see the beauty and the good
on the island, he cannot see it within people, and as a result, his naivety has
been his downfall and condemned him to a slave-like existence. He showed
Prospero, similarly like the peoples of the “new world” showed the colonists, all
the fruits of the island, “showed thee all the qualities o’th’isle”.
This speech made by Caliban gives us a false impression that Prospero is
completely evil and conceited. This is however, as we later find out, not the case
at all. We learn that Caliban tried to rape Prospero’s daughter, Miranda, and
When looking at this particular aspect of the play, we firstly need to understand
the true meaning of what nature and nurture really are. Nature is described as
natural growth, and essentially means that when someone grows up in the wild
then they will not be educated or socialised by society or by their parents, but will
socialise themselves, by teaching themselves about how to hunt and how to
survive. However, nurture is when a person is socialised by their education and
their parents and, as a result of this education and socialisation they become,
what we would call civilised, and able to interact with others in society.
Shakespeare raises and explores the important issue of nature versus nature
and how they can overlap in some cases, for example with Caliban and his
natural instincts, as opposed to his learnt behavioural and interactional skills,
which Prospero taught him when he and his daughter Miranda first arrived on the
island.
When we are first introduced to Caliban in Act 1 Scene 2 he is depicted as being
a savage and uncivilised creature who is Prospero’s slave, and who resents
Prospero and the isolated and ugly part of the island that Prospero has exiled
him to. We learn at this stage that although Caliban was seen as a savage on the
island who essentially owned the island before Prospero and Mirada arrived, he
is in fact not what he seems. Although he has not properly been socialised, he
has grown up on the island and has learnt to fend for himself and to survive
(nature). Also, we learn that Prospero has tried to educate Caliban and has
attempted to teach him some basic norms and values, and he has managed to
teach him English. Caliban is therefore not completely savage and still has an
ability to learn and so by this at least we may assume that he does have some
intelligence. “Teach me how to name the bigger light”. Caliban tells us how
Prospero then exiled him to “this hard rock” on the island, instead of letting him
appreciate the beauty of the island. The most interesting thing about Caliban at
this point is that he cherishes and hungers for the beauty of the island, his island,
an island which he clearly loves and holds dear to him. This is not nurture,
because no-one told him how to appreciate beauty, he simply grew up on the
island, did not take for granted what it provided for him, which essentially was a
life, an existence, and he realized the difference between beauty and ugliness on
the island itself. However, this nature which has provided him with beauty does
not help him now, because although he is able to see the beauty and the good
on the island, he cannot see it within people, and as a result, his naivety has
been his downfall and condemned him to a slave-like existence. He showed
Prospero, similarly like the peoples of the “new world” showed the colonists, all
the fruits of the island, “showed thee all the qualities o’th’isle”.
This speech made by Caliban gives us a false impression that Prospero is
completely evil and conceited. This is however, as we later find out, not the case
at all. We learn that Caliban tried to rape Prospero’s daughter, Miranda, and
