The Tempest conveys the miseries of colonial oppression. To what extent do you agree with this reading of the play?

In recent years, Shakespeare’s ‘The Tempest’ has regularly been read as a symbol of the colonial plight and as an anti-colonial proponent. In the postcolonial world context, scholars such as Cesaire support the view that ‘The Tempest’ conveys the miseries of colonial oppression. Cesaire even went so far as to rewrite Shakespeare’s play in 1969, taking the action to ‘the brink’ (Nixon, 1987, p.573) of colonialism’s demise by not allowing Prospero to return to Italy and presenting a more empowered version of Caliban. To produce this version from the original, he had to see a potential within Shakespeare’s work for the misery experienced by the colonised to become a source of strength. However, it must be remembered that Cesaire was reading ‘The Tempest’ in politically charged context: independence was being gained in former colonies and traditional power relations were changing (Tipps, 1973). Postcolonialists as a result ‘seized upon The Tempest as a way of amplifying their calls for decolonisation within the bounds of the dominant cultures’ (Nixon, 1987, p.558). ‘Seized’ draws attention to how ‘The Tempest’ can be manipulated to support a specific goal in a specific context, something Barker and Hulme (2004) support in their argument that ‘texts can never simply be encountered but are, on the contrary, repeatedly constructed under definite conditions’ (p.782). Whilst in the twenty-first century, ‘The Tempest’ is frequently seen as conveying the miseries of colonial oppression, it must be remembered that this was not necessarily Shakespeare’s primary or even secondary purpose, nor has the play always been interpreted this way. ‘The Tempest’ has even been used to “show” non-European inferiority (Nixon, 1987, p.561). Readings of the play must be remembered as such. This essay will argue that ‘The Tempest’ most definitely conveys more misery than happiness, however, this misery is not specifically colonial. Whilst the question can be agreed with to an extent, it cannot fully be agreed with as reading ‘The Tempest’ as a colonial text is indicative of the current political and global context.