Comparing Aime Cesaires A Tempest and Shakespeares The...

Comparing A Tempest and The Tempest William Shakespeare wrote The Tempest, arguably his finest work, on the eve of European colonization of the New World in 1611 (Hollander and Kermode 445-46). As a result, common European ideas about the New World in the early 1600s are alluded to throughout the play (446). Through the propagandistic writings of explorers like Captain John Smith, who authored a sensational and unsubstantiated account of his dramatic rescue from death at the hands of Indians by the Indian chiefà ­s beautiful daughter, Pocahontas, many Europeans developed an interest in the inhabitants of the New World (Smith 24-25). Indeed, from the various explorers stories that trickled hack to Europe, two different†¦show more content†¦Indeed, it is arguably the root of all other injustices that Europeans inflicted upon the natives of the New World Karl Marx, pointing to the capitalistic greed that served as a primary catalyst for colonizing the New World, waxes eloquent when he writes that the discovery of gold and silver in America the extirpation, enslavement and entombment in the mines of the aboriginal population, the beginning of the conquest and looting of the East Indies, the turning of Africa into a warren for the commercial hunting of black-skins, signalizes the rosy dawn of capitalist production. (Keen 57) When word of the economic potential of the New World traveled back to Europe, various companies quickly maneuvered to exploit it for their own gain (Graff 55). Ostensibly, Europeans held three reasons for colonizing the New World: glory, God, and gold (Graff 41) While there was some evidence of sincere religious fervor (Graff 27), more often than not, religious ideology gave way to glory and economic gain (Keen 55-56). Worse yet, religion became a thin facade for covering up the greed for economic gain (Keen 106-08). Ironically, the King James Bible of 1611, the very Bible that many Europeans held dear to their hearts, warns of the atrocities of greed in a most prophetic way. For the Love of money is the root of all evil. . . . (I Timothy 6:11). Nevertheless, to many Europeans, the New World represented an opportunity to make a fortune (Garraty 2). It wasShow MoreRelated Comparing Power in Shakespeares Tempest and Aime Cesaires A Tempest1297 Words   |  6 PagesPower in Shakespeare s Tempest and Cà ©saires A Tempest      Ã‚  Ã‚   Power is defined as the possession of control, authority, or influence over others.   In William Shakespeares The Tempest and Aimà © Cà ©saires A Tempest, power is a key element in the relationships that exist between characters.   As Caliban and Prospero battle for dominance over the island, Miranda finds that she holds a certain power of her own as she matures from an innocent youth to a sensual, strong-headed young woman.   Seen byRead More tempcolon Comparing Language in Shakespeares Tempest and Aime Cesaires A Tempest892 Words   |  4 PagesColonial Language in Shakespeares The Tempest and Aime Cesaires A Tempest      Ã‚  Ã‚   Language and literature are the most subtle and seductive tools of domination. They gradually shape thoughts and attitudes on an almost subconscious level. Perhaps Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak states this condition most succinctly in her essay The Burden of English when she writes, Literature buys your assent in an almost clandestine way...for good or ill, as medicine or poison, perhaps always a bit of both(137)