Are We Being Historical Yet

7/25/2019 Are We Being Historical Yet

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"Are We Being Historical Yet?" Colonialist Interpretations of Shakespeare's Tempest

By Ben Ross Schneider, r!

ot long ago, Carolyn #orter, in an article entitled "Are WeBeing Historical Yet?", assessed the achie$e%ents of the "ne& historicists"! Agreeing &ith (o)is *ontrose that ne& historicis% &as "on its&ay to +eco%ing the ne&est acade%ic orthodoy," especially in Renaissance st)dies, she concl)ded, that altho)gh ne& historicis% had pro$ided a %)chneeded correcti$e to traditionally ahistorical literaryst)dy, the ans&er to the -)estion raised in her title &as "o!"./ In&hat follo&s I shall etend her criti-)e to recent &ork on The Tem-

pest, a play that has attracted &idespread attention a%ong ne&historicists as a paradig% of early %odern colonialis%!.0 *y findingscorro+orate #rofessor #orter's concl)sion1 &e still ha$e a long &ayto go +efore &e can feel e$en so%e&hat confident that &e are historici2ing, if &e e$er can!

According to #rofessor #orter, it is their fiation on 3o)ca)lt's

concept)ali2ation of po&er that stands +et&een the ne& historicistsand effecti$e historici2ation!.4

3o)ca)lt's perspecti$e on the disc)rsi$e field apparently fosters 5a tendency in ne& historicist practice6 to ecl)de, &hich is a necessary precondition for addressing a partic)lar c)lt)ral disco)rse, +)t then to repress the fact of that ecl)sion, so that a partic)lar disco)rse, or set of disco)rses, co%es to stand for the hori2onless field of 7isco)rse!.8

9h)s she &atches Stephen :reen+latt and Ste$en *)llaney %arginali2ethe $ery others ;Algonkians, Welsh< &hose othering they so clearlydeplore, erasing their history, in the process of sho&ing ho& po&er onthe 3o)ca)ldian %odel, "a+sol)ti2ed as a transhistorical force, ! ! !relentlessly prod)ces and recontains s)+$ersion!".= As a res)lt, &eare

li%ited to one set of disco)rses those &hich for% the site of a do%inant ideology and then reifying that li%it as if it &ere coter%ino)s &ith the li%its of disco)rse in general! It is this iss)e of fra%ing the disc)rsi$e field &hich ne& historicists %ost )rgently need to address!.>

It is "this iss)e of fra%ing" that I shall address again in ast)dy of eight recent analyses of The Tempest! By choosing

colonialis% as a fra%e,and then "reifying" that fra%e as if it &erecoter%in)s &ith the li%its of disco)rse in general, I find that theydo indeed %arginali2e not only a large field of pertinent conte%porarydisco)rse, +)t also The Tempest itself! 3or as &e are constantlyre%inded, &e %)st eplore, "+oth the social presence to the &orld ofthe literary tet and the social presence of the &orld in theliterary tet!". 9o carry o)t this pro@ect, &e ha$e to ans&er the-)estion, "What difference did The Tempest %ake to &hat fields ofdisco)rse?" By too assid)o)sly i%ple%enting the colonialist fra%e,the eight critics I st)dy here effecti$ely forestall any atte%pt to

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ans&er it in ter%s of a f)ll range of possi+ilities! 9his happensdespite the ostensi+le $ariety of approaches they take to the play!

9ho%as Cartelli ;/<., +asing his acco)nt on the &ork ofAfrican and Cari++ean &riters, takes the stance that Shakespeare is to+la%e for the &ay in &hich British i%perialists ha$e @)stifiedcolonial oppression on the %odel of Cali+an's apparent ined)ca+ility!C)rt Breight ;/<. holds that the play is innocent of this charge,and is instead an epose of a%es I's r)le, in &hich #rospero's disciplinary %eas)res caricat)re the cro&n's terror tactics in s)ch +roadstrokes that a aco+ean a)dience co)ld not %iss the%! Dactlyre$ersing this position, (ori (eininger ;/<./ percei$es that farfro% eposing the in@)stices of the society in &hich it is e%+edded,the play is g)ilty of trying to co$er the% )p, altho)gh it fails tohandle all sorts of easperating ano%alies! Dpressing the sa%edissatisfaction in %ore theoretical ter%s, #a)l Bro&n ;/=<.//%aintains that The Tempest act)ally "inter$ened" in "an a%+i$alentand e$en contradictory conte%porary disco)rse" of colonialis%1

9his inter$ention takes the for% of a po&erf)l and pleas)ra+le

narrati$e &hich seeks at once to har%oni2e dis@)nction, to transcend irreconcila+le contradictions and to %ystify the political conditions &hich de%and colonialist disco)rse! Yet the narrati$e )lti%ately fails to deli$er that contain%ent and instead %ay +e seen to foregro)nd precisely those pro+le%s &hich it &orks to efface or o$erco%e!./0

9he tea% of 3rancis Barker and #eter H)l%e./4 is %ore interested inthe contradictions in o)r o&n society1 "9he on)s on ne& readings,especially radical readings a&are of their o&n theoretical andpolitical positioning, sho)ld +e to proceed +y %eans of a criti-)e ofthe do%inant readings of a tet!"./8 Stephen Ergel ;/<./=, in theeha)sti$e Introd)ction to his splendid Eford edition, a$oidstheoretical ter%inology, +)t his treat%ent is patently adeconstr)ction of the traditional idealist reading! Dric Cheyfet2,./>&ho approaches colonialis% and The Tempest $ia the %etaphor oftranslation finds interesting parallels +et&een #rospero as dictatorof an official lang)age and the &ay in &hich official lang)ages are)sed in the con-)est of nati$e peoples! 3inally, Stephen :reen+latt;/< in his "*artial (a& in the (and of Cokaigne"./ fra%es hiscriti-)e &ith his o&n theory of "sal)tary aniety," deri$ed fro% ananecdote of Bishop (ati%er, and sho&ing that go$ernors, #rospero +einga case in point, %ay raise the threat of i%%inent cala%ity in order to&in credit for a$erting it!

3or so%e reason the great $ariety of theoretical )nderpinning inthis set of essays does not prod)ce a corresponding $ariety of

interpretation! All criti-)es proceed in %)ch the sa%e fashion todis%antle a pres)%ed "a)thori2ed $ersion" of the play that ideali2esand ro%antici2es #rospero as a no+le regenerator of fallenh)%anity!./ Er to p)t it in the &ords of Barker and H)l%e, "ath&artits alleged )nity, the tet is in fact %arked and fiss)red +y theinterplay of the disco)rses that constit)te it!"./ When &e ha$edeconstr)cted the play, &e find o)rsel$es standing in the presence ofnaked po&er! It +eco%es e$ident, as one s)r$eys these ne& historicistinterpretations, that the "fiss)res" %ost co%%only detected tend to +ethe sa%e ones1



























9he stor%1All +)t one of these critics pick, as the opening fiss)re in the

ro%antic s)rface of the play the "refreshingly s)+$ersi$e".0 stor%scene &ith &hich the play +egins, in &hich helpless, hapless no+les%)st p)t )p &ith the ins)lts of desperate %ariners trying to sa$e theship!.0/ Right a&ay po&er re$eals itself in s)+$ersion! 9he nearly)nani%o)s choice of this scene is sy%pto%atic of the &hole criticalapproach! By fra%ing the scene as colonial disco)rse, these criticsforeclose the possi+ility that the stor% ;in nat)re and society<represents and dra%ati2es, as in Lear ,the social disorder thatens)es &hen a state is irresponsi+ly go$erned! What does the titlesignify? It see%s %ore likely here that The Tempest is hereparticipating in conte%porary disco)rse on go$ern%ent, a+o)t &hich Ishall ha$e %ore to say later!

#rospero's selfcontradictory and contradicted prolog)e ;/!0<.00 In his long eposition to *iranda, telling her &ho they are, ho&they got here, and &hat they are doing no&, #rospero, according tothese critics is at crossp)rposes &ith hi%self! While his anger at

the )s)rpers of his 7)kedo% see%s to kno& no +o)nds, he at the sa%eti%e +la%es his o$erthro& on his inattention to d)ty, his ha$ingretired fro% p)+lic affairs to st)dy "li+eral arts!".04 Here &e seepo&er at &ork, disg)ising its o&n %oti$es and intentions, e$en fro%itself! Here conte%porary disco)rse on anger co)ld +e rele$ant, +)tthe critical approach closes the door in ad$ance on any nonpoliticaleplanation!

3)rther, +y gi$ing credit to "#ro$idence 7i$ine" ;/!/!/=< forcasting the% )pon the island, #rospero i%plies that he legiti%atelyr)les the island +y so%e sort of %anifest destiny!.08 B)t the ens)ingscenes &ith Ariel and Cali+an %ake it clear that Cali+an's %other onceo&ned the island and that Cali+an inherits it fro% her!.0= In short,the official $ersion, for *iranda's ears only, is &rong1 #rosperor)les not +y %anifest destiny +)t +y force!.0> Again the fra%e%arginali2es other options, for it is not a forgone concl)sion that#rospero's pri%ary reason for taking charge of the island is to %akeit his colony!

Ho&e$er, it t)rns o)t that Cali+an has atte%pted to rape *iranda!Is he an innocent $icti% of colonial eploitation or a cri%inaldeser$edly p)nished for a cri%e? 9he -)estion co)ld +e left open inthe na%e of that pl)rality of on &hich Ergel insists in hisintrod)ction! B)t the fra%e does not allo& pl)rality, and the criticshere s)r$eyed do their +est to &eaken the $iolence force of the rape!3irst, say they, #rospero +rings )p the %atter of the rape to di$ertattention fro% Cali+an's rightf)l clai% to the islandF and second,

colonialists al&ays ec)se their +ar+arity +y attri+)ting s)+h)%ancharacteristics to the nati$e pop)lation! Read properly, this+)siness a+o)t rape is @)st another colonialist tactic, a tired ec)sefor repressi$e $iolence!.0

9his rationali2ation is not $ery con$incing in ter%s of the tetthat it effaces, +)t &hich is ne$ertheless still there! 9o esta+lishthe rape ec)se theory, one %)st o$ert)rn three &itnesses, incl)dingthe &o)ld+e rapist hi%self still l)sting after the $icti%! And ifCali+an and Ariel are opposites, as &e are certainly in$ited to



















s)ppose, the colonialist fra%e %arginali2es this &ay of looking at theplay as &ell!

#rospero's o)t+)rsts1

Barker and H)l%e speak of "#rospero's &ellkno&nirasci+ility!".0 Chiefly noted are

his i%patient asides to *iranda d)ring his introd)ctory speechF.0

his annoyance at Ariel's plea for freedo%F.4

his "hysterical" response to Cali+an's clai% of prior o&nershipF.4/

his irate chastise%ent of 3erdinand, his o&n choice for hisda)ghter's hand, on a tr)%ped)p chargeF.40

his o+$io)s @oy at the s)ffering of his ene%iesF.44

and certainly his easperated reali2ation, in the %idst of the

%as-)e cele+rating the +etrothal of 3erdinand and *iranda, that if hedoesn't act fast he %ay soon +e %)rdered +y Cali+an's @)nta!.48

#rospero's fre-)ent and "p)22ling" losses of te%per do indeed %arthe +ea)tif)l s)rface of a ro%antic Tempest! B)t are they reallyleaks in the play's ro%antic en$elope &hich re$eal the )glycolonialis% &ithin, or do they +etter fit another paradig%! Again thefra%e c)ts off spec)lation!

Ho&e$er, close on the point &here #rospero's rage peaks ;8!/!/8=<co%es #rospero's ren)nciation of $engeance and his a+@)ration of%agic, acts &hich introd)ce real pro+le%s for the colonialisthypothesis, for if &e accept this re$ersal at face $al)e, herep)diates his &hole career as a despot! Again, instead of lea$ing )sin a state of negati$e capa+ility, the fra%e re-)ires an ela+orateeercise in looking the other &ay! In so doing the colonialistcritics si%ply erase the cli%a of the play!

3or #a)l Bro&n, after the %as-)e, after the tri$iali2ation +yridic)le of Cali+an's re+ellion, after the cele+ration of )pperclasssolidarity in the &edding of 3erdinand and *iranda, #rospero's pro@ectis finishedF he has "e)phe%i2ed" his o&n po&er politics so &ell thathe has $irt)ally n)llified hi%self, and no& has nothing to do +)t goho%e and &ait for death! "9he co%pletion of the colonialist pro@ectsignals the +anish%ent of its s)pre%e eponent e$en as his tri)%ph isdeclared!".4= C)rt Breight, )sing the analogy of #rospero's scaretactics to a%es I's techni-)e of death sentences and reprie$es, sees

#rospero's refor%ation in al%ost eactly the sa%e &ay, as a f)rthereercise of po&er!.4> Stephen Ergel arg)es that the ending in reconciliation and ren)nciation is a total sha%! 9he e$il +rother has notrepentedF #rospero %ay not )lti%ately keep his pro%ise to +reak his&andF he has not gi$en )p a da)ghter, +)t &on a throne1 in ret)rningto *ilan he &ill reach all the goals that his %agic &as %eant toachie$e! In the end &e &itness, not the ren)nciation of %agic, +)t%agic's "tri)%ph!".4 or are 9ho%as Cartelli and (ori (einingerfooled +y the ending, a $ain atte%pt to hide an o)trage that ref)sesto +e hid!.4 3rancis Barker and #eter H)l%e allo& so%e a%+i$alence,

























+)t "the lengths 5they say6 to &hich the play has to go to achie$e alegiti%ate ending %ay ! ! ! +e read as the -)elling of a f)nda%entaldis-)iet concerning its o&n f)nctions &ithin the pro@ects ofcolonialist disco)rse!.4 It's @)st a co$er)p after all, and the playis an egregio)s hypocrite! Here the application of the colonialistfra%e re-)ires the "ref)tation of the ending!".8

It is not @)st the cli%a that has +een effaced,.8/ +)t &ith itan etensi$e field of early %odern D)ropean disco)rse on &hich itdra&s and to &hich it reports! #rospero's change of heart occ)rs @)stafter Cali+an and his fello&%)tineers ha$e +een p)nished for theirassa)lt on his life! Ariel is reporting the stat)s of his chasteningof the )pperclass conspirators!

Yo)r char% so strongly &orks 'e%9hat if yo) no& +eheld the%, yo)r affections

Wo)ld +eco%e tender! G#ros! 7ost tho) think so, spirit? GAri! *ine &o)ld, sir, &ere I h)%an!

G#ros! And %ine shall! Hast tho), &hich art +)t air, a to)ch, a feeling, Ef their afflictions, and shall not %yself

Ene of their kind, that relish all as sharply #assion as they, +e kindlier %o$'d than tho) art? 9ho)gh &ith their high &rongs I a% strook to th'-)ick, Yet, &ith %y no+ler reason, 'gainst %y fury

7o I take part! 9he rarer action is In virtue than in vengeance! ;=!/!/0<

So%e years ago Dleanor #rosser.80 traced this passage to ohn3lorio's translation of *ontaigne's essay On Cruelty ! 3lorio'slang)age is indeed close ;I ha$e e%phasi2ed the &ords that +oth he andShakespeare )se<1

He that thro)gh a nat)rall facilitie and gen)ine %ildnesse sho)ld neglect or conte%ne in@)ries recei$ed, sho)ld no do)+t perfor%s a rare action, and &orthy co%%endation1 +)t he &ho +eing to)cht and st)ng to the -)icke &ith any &rong or offence recei$ed, sho)ld ar%e hi%selfe &ith reason against this furiously +lind desire of revenge, and in the end after a great conflict yeeld hi%selfe %aster o$er it, sho)ld do)+tlesse doe %)ch %ore! 9he first sho)ld doe &ell, the other vertuously 1 the one action %ight +e ter%ed :oodnesse, the other Vertue! 3or it see%eth that the $ery na%e of Vertue pres)pposeth diffic)ltie, and inferreth resistance, and cannot &ell eercise itselfe &itho)t an ene%y!.84

(ong +efore 3lorio had Dnglished these &ords ;/>4<, 9ho%as Dlyot hadepressed $ery %)ch the sa%e senti%ent in his hand+ook for gentle%en,na%ed The Governour ;/=4/<, )nder the heading "Ef #acience ins)stayninge &ronges and re+)kes1"

nto hy% that is $alya)nt of co)rage, it is a great payne and diffic)ltie to s)stayne Ini)rie, and nat to +e forth&ith re)enged! And yet often ty%es is acco)nted %ore $alya)ntnesse in the s)ffera)nce than in hasty re)engynge!.88















In a&arding points for degree of diffic)lty, Dlyot %anages toanticipate *ontaigne! Jing a%es I, in his letter of ad$ice to hisson ;/>4<citing Cicero's ad$ice to his son ;De Officiis<,Seneca's essay on cle%ency, the Aeneid , and Aristotle's Ethicsco)nsels the apparent f)t)re king to

D%+race tre& %agnani%itie, not in +eeing $indicti)e, &hich the corr)pted )dge%ents of the &orld thinke to +e tre& *agnani%itie, +)t +y the contrarie, in thinking yo)r offendo)r not &orthie of yo)r &rath, e%pyring o)er yo)r o&ne passion, and tri)%phing in the co%%a)nding yo)r selfe to forgi)e!.8=

In his Characters of the Virtues and Vices ;/>< oseph Hall, laterBishop, co)nsels like&ise1

9he #atient *an finds that $ictory consists in yielding! He is a+o$e nat)re, &hile he see%s +elo& hi%self! 9he $ilest creat)re kno&s ho& to t)rn again, +)t to co%%and hi%self not to resist, +eing )rged, is %ore than heroical!.8>

9hese echoes s)ggest a co%%on origin, and, of co)rse, they ha$e one1in the &ritings of the Ro%an %oralists1

57o not6 listen to those &ho think that one sho)ld ind)lge in $iolent anger against one's political ene%ies and i%agine that s)ch is the attit)de of a greatspirited, +ra$e %an! 3or nothing is %ore co%%enda+le, nothing %ore +eco%ing in a pree%inently great %an than co)rtesy and for+earance! ;Cicero, De

Officiis<.8

Re$enge is the confession of a h)rtF no %ind is tr)ly great that +ends +efore in@)ry! ! ! ! 9here is no s)rer proof of greatness than to +e in a state &here nothing can possi+ly happen to dist)r+ yo)! ! ! ! 9he lofty %ind is al&ays cal%, at rest in a -)iet ha$enF cr)shing do&n all that engenders anger, it is re strained, co%%ands respect, and is properly ordered! ;Seneca, Moral Essays<.8

Dditors of The Tempest are p)22led +y the fact that "$irt)e"and "$engeance" don't see% to +e correlati$es!.8 In Ro%an disco)rseof %orality they are!

9he idea that Shakespeare is the )ni$ersal %an, tied to no ti%eor place, dies $ery hard, so hard that e$en the scholars %ostdedicated to rehistorici2ing hi% cannot see% to +reak the%sel$es of

the ha+it of thinking of hi% as one of )s, seeing his ti%es thro)gho)r eyes! Bet&een )s and Shakespeare lie the de$elop%ent ofcapitalist society, and the 3rench, Ro%antic, and ind)strialre$ol)tions! B)t &e read Shakespeare al%ost as if nothing hadhappened! Sho)ld &e not, in order to )nderstand hi%, his a)dience,and, +y $irt)e of the )nco%pro%ising la& of +elie$a+ility, his characters, +eco%e fa%iliar &ith the "ethic" that preceded 9he #rotestantDthic and 9he Spirit of Capitalis%? What notions of good and +adgo$erned early %odern decision%aking? Social historians generallyagree that they &ere -)ite different fro% o)rs! According to Jarl













*ar,

9he Bo)rgeoisie, &here$er it has got the )pper hand, has p)t an end to all fe)dal, patriarchal, idyllic relations! It has pitilessly torn as)nder the %otley fe)dal ties that +o)nd %an to his 'nat)ral s)periors,' and left re%aining no other ne)s +et&een %an and %an than naked selfinterest, than callo)s cash pay%ent! It has dro&ned the %ost hea$enly ecstacies of religio)s fer$or, of chi$alro)s enth)sias%, of philistine senti%entalis%, in the icy &ater of egotistical calc)lation! It has resol$ed personal &orth into echange $al)e, and in place of the n)%+erless indefeasi+le chartered freedo%s, it has set )p that single )nconsciona+le freedo%3ree 9rade! ;Communist Manifesto<.=

In his factfilled st)dy, The orld e !ave Lost ;/>=<, #eter(aslett -)otes this passage as the "&ords 5of6 the %ost penetrating ofall o+ser$ers of the &orld &e ha$e lost!".=/

9he great *a We+er epands on *ar's "icy &ater of egotistical

calc)lation" in his "rotestant Ethic and the #pirit of Capitalism,+)t has %ore to say a+o)t the ethic that co%es +efore in his Essays

in #ociology 1

9he ancient econo%ic ethic of neigh+orliness 5&as fostered6 +y the g)ild, or the partners in seafaring, h)nting and &arring epeditions! 9hese co%%)nities ha$e kno&n t&o ele%ental principles1 first, the d)alis% of ingro)p and o)tgro)p %oralityF second, for ingro)p %orality, si%ple reciprocity1 'As yo) do )nto %e I shall do )nto yo)!' 3ro% these principles the follo&ing 5conse-)ences6 ha$e res)lted for econo%ic life1 for ingro)p %orality the principled o+ligation to gi$e +rotherly s)pport in distress has eisted! 9he &ealthy and the no+le &ere o+liged to loan, free of charge, goods for the )se of the propertyless, to gi$e credit free of interest, and to etend li+eral hospitality and s)pport! *en &ere o+liged to render ser$ices )pon re-)est of their neigh+ors, and like&ise, on the lord's estate, &itho)t co%pensation other than %ere s)stenance!

All this follo&ed the principle1 yo)r &ant of today %ay +e %ine to%orro&! 9his principle &as not, of co)rse, rationally &eighed, +)t it played its part in senti%ent! Accordingly, higgling in echange and loan sit)ations, as &ell as per%anent ensla$e%ent res)lting, for instance, fro% de+ts, &ere confined to o)tgro)p %orality and applied only to o)tsiders!.=0

3or )rgen Ha+er%as, *ar's "egotistical calc)lation", strippedof its e%oti$e ra%ifications, +eco%es the "p)rposi$erational"

+eha$ior of %odern &estern %an, in &hich right action is &hate$er%akes sense gi$en the goal, as opposed to "sy%+olic interaction," in&hich right action is that &hich coincides &ith %)t)ally)nderstoodsocial nor%s, in defa)lt of any )lti%ate goal!.=4 9oday a "rationalchoice %odel" go$erns the research of %ost political scientists,tho)gh it is no& stren)o)sly challenged ;see, for instance, S$en(ongstreth, 3rank Stein%o and Jathleen 9helen, #tructuring "olitics$

!istorical %nstitutionalism in Comparative Analysis, ch! /<!.=8 3orShakespeare's society, if &e are to take the ad$ice of the socialhistorians, a "sy%+olic interaction %odel" &o)ld prod)ce a +etter fit!













Jarl #olanyi, in The Great Transformation holds that altho)gh"p)rposi$erational" ethics go hand in hand &ith ind)striali2ation, notr)ly p)rposi$erational society has e$er eisted, )nless for a shortti%e in the "satanic %ills" of 7ickens's Dngland, &hen so%e a%o)nt ofstar$ation &as rationali2ed as necessary to la+or's +eco%ing aco%%odity in fact! Before and since, tho)gh they ha$e tolerated ahigh degree of rationality in h)%an relations, "free %arket" societiesha$e si%ply ref)sed to tolerate star$ation! In /88 #olanyi &rote

9he o)tstanding disco$ery of recent historical and anthropological research is that %an's econo%y, as a r)le, is s)+%erged in his social relationships! He does not act so as to safeg)ard his indi$id)al interest in the possession of %aterial goodsF he acts so as to safeg)ard his social standing, his social clai%s, his social assets! He $al)es %aterial goods only in so far as they ser$e this end!.==

Er, as Shakespeare p)t the case, o)t of the %o)th of Iago into the ear

of Ethello1

Who steals %y p)rse steals trashF 'tis so%ething, nothingF '9&as %ine, 'tis his, and has +een sla$e to tho)sandsF B)t he that filches fro% %e %y good na%e Ro+s %e of that &hich not enriches hi%, And %akes %e poor indeed! ;4!4!/==/>/<

Er again, fro% the %o)th of Cassio1 "E, I ha$e lost %y rep)tationK Iha$e lost the i%%ortal part of %yself, and &hat re%ains is +estial";0!4!0>00>=<!

9he "nor%s" of &hich these social scientists speak are of co)rsea pro%inent feat)re of those "pri%iti$e" societies that capti$ate theanthropologists1 for ea%ple, *arcel *a)ss in his classic The Gift$

&orms and &unctions of E'change in Archaic #ocieties, introd)ced +yD! D! D$ans#ritchard ;/=8<F.=> and *arshall Sahlins in #tone Age

Economics, his a%a2ing acco)nt of the idyllic life of act)al h)ntersand gatherers!.= In The Gift$ %magination and the Erotic Life of

"roperty , (e&is Hyde has eplored the f)nction of these sa%e stoneage econo%ics in the prod)ction of art!.= 9he Ro%ans apparentlyre%e%+ered or o+ser$ed or retained $estiges of this preagric)lt)ralage, and ad%ired it, as Seneca testifies in -)oting Lirgil'sGeorgics1

o plo)gh%an tilled the soil, nor &as it right 9o portion off or +o)nd one's property!

*en shared their gains, and earth %ore freely ga$e Her riches to her sons &ho so)ght the% not!

What race of %en 5co%%ents Seneca6 &as e$er %ore +lest than that race? 9hey en@oyed all nat)re in partnership! at)re s)fficed for the% ! ! ! and this her gift consisted of the ass)red possession +y each %an of the co%%on reso)rces!.=

When &e st)dy J&aki)tl society, &e try to find o)t &hat the()a*iutls think they are doing +efore &e decide &hat )e think they













are doing! If it &ere kno&n that e$ery J&aki)tl had access to a +ookof r)les for righteo)s li$ing, &e &o)ld certainly cons)lt this +ook+efore pres)%ing to eplain J&aki)tl +eha$ior! Closer to ho%e,+efore &e declare the aco+ean position on colonialis%, sho)ldn't &ekno& &hat ethical tools the aco+eans +ro)ght to the task of @)dgingit? 3or Shakespeare's society h)ndreds of %oral r)le +ooks area$aila+le, +)t they are al%ost ne$er cons)lted! 9he res)lt, to )seHa+er%as's ter%s, is that &e're trying to i%pose a "p)rposi$erational" %odel on a society controlled +y "sy%+olic interaction",a+o)t as sensi+le a proced)re as )sing the Boy Sco)t's (a& to eplainthe J&aki)tls!

Considering o)r %anifest need for c)lt)ral %aterial pertaining toShakespeare's &ork, it is diffic)lt to i%agine ho& &e can ha$eo$erlooked the ocean of early %odern ethical disco)rse opened to )s inR)th Jelso's %on)%ental +i+liography of Renaissance +ooks pertainingto the Doctrine of the English Gentleman ;/0< and The Doctrine

for the Lady ;/=><!.> 9hese &orks co%prise al%ost /= titles,a+o)t onethird in Dnglish! And #rofessor Jelso does not incl)declassical %oralists in their o&n or %odern lang)ages, &hich &o)ld %ore

than do)+le that n)%+er! In her second +ook she s)%%ari2es herfindings as follo&s1 "the +)lk of all that these treatises contain is%ade )p of co%%onplaces, c)lled %ostly fro% the ancients, &hose na%es+esprinkle the pages of all &riters! ! ! ! 9here is plenty ofe$idence that these sa%e co%%onplaces &ere not of %ere acade%icinterest, for the letters, speeches, and fiction of the ti%e are f)llof the sa%e ideas and r)les for cond)ct!".>/ 9he fa%o)s "h)%anists"&ho pop)lated Renaissance )ni$ersities %ade their li$ings +y teachinggra%%ar, rhetoric, poetry, history and %oral philosophy!.>0 Since+oth rhetoric and history &ere gi$en strong %oral e%phasis, it %ay +esaid that the )ni$ersities &ere to a great etent schools of $irt)e!At Eford and Ca%+ridge, )ndergrad)ates %ay still "read" %oralphilosophy for the B!A! degree!

#erhaps &e ha$e slighted Renaissance %orality +eca)se &e'refollo&ing a false scent! Altho)gh a great %any classical &riters &ereredisco$ered and re+orn d)ring the Renaissance, there &as no renaissance of %oral philosophers, +eca)se they ne$er died, and co)ldn't+e re+orn! 9hey si%ply &eren't &hat happened, and therefore they donot fig)re in o)r history of the Renaissance!.>4 So, for ea%ple,Jerrigan and Braden's %dea of the +enaissance ;/< a+andons theperiod's enor%o)s in$est%ent in %orality in order to p)rs)e a $isionof personal, political, and philosophical de$elop%ent leading tode%ocratic ;+o)rgeois< indi$id)alis% and Jantian idealis%!.>8 Si%ilarly, in a chapter of his +ook on the Senecan tradition act)allyentitled "Stoicis% in the Renaissance," Braden o%its any %ention ofStoicis%'s do%ination of school and college ed)cation and the self

i%pro$e%ent %arket!.>= In s)ch &ays the $ast ocean of %oral disco)rseon &hich Shakespeare's plays float has +een drained o)t of the past +ythe &hig $ie& of history and the idea of progress!

We %ay also +e $icti%s of a %isdefinition of Stoicis% leading tothe %istaken notion that Shakespeare re@ected the &hole syste%! IfStoicis% is defined si%ply as lack of feeling, as &e tend to do,.>>then Shakespeare is o+$io)sly not a Stoic! B)t Stoics ha$e lots tosay a+o)t responsi+ility, reciprocity, co)rage, integrity, rep)tation,fort)ne, lo$e, d)ty, death, ed)cation, go$ern%ent, and %any other

















categories of life! 9hey cannot +e red)ced to their position onpassion! And +eca)se Stoic disco)rse only %akes eplicit forShakespeare's generation a precapitalist ethical sche%e &hose originsare the tri+al eperience, anti-)ity, Christianity, chi$alry, theRo%an occ)pation itself, and school and )ni$ersity ed)cation, theyonly reinforce ha+its that already %ake )p the fa+ric of society!Altho)gh his stat)s as an intellect)al re-)ires hi% to sho&fa%iliarity &ith their disco)rses, the Stoics do not really"infl)ence" Shakespeare! 9hey are already an integral part of hisreality and of the test of pro+a+ility that his characters %)st pass!

3ort)nately for )s #rofessor Jelso's list of those ancients %ostco%%only cited in cond)ct +ooks is $ery short, consisting solely of#lato, Aristotle, Cicero, and Seneca!.> Since only scholars co%%onlyread :reek, that lea$es Cicero and Seneca in co%%and of the greaterpart of the reading p)+lic! Apparently the principal cond)its ofclassical %oral tho)ght in Shakespeare's ti%e &ere Cicero's De

Officiis and Seneca's Essays and Epistles, in partic)lar his De

,eneficiis, a co%prehensi$e philosophical in$estigation of e$erypossi+le ra%ification of gift echange ;translated into Dnglish in

/=<!

De Officiis &as the first classical tet e$er printed!;/8>=<.> 9he ,ritish Museum Catalogue lists // printed editions ofit +efore /> interlinear trots, / Dnglish &itho)t (atin, and 0 in(atin! / %ore editions &ere p)+lished +efore /! 3or co%parison,the ,MC lists no edition of any dialog)e of #lato in any lang)ageprinted in Dngland +efore />, and only one edition of Aristotle'sEthics, a translation into Dnglish of Br)netto (atini's co%pendi)%of its "preceptes of good +eha)o)r and perfighte honestie!" Sir9ho%as Dlyot, in his fa%o)s Governour ;/=4/<, a standard &ork on thetraining of gentle%en, lists three essential tets1 #lato's &orks,Aristotle's Ethics, and De Officiis! "9hose three +okes," Dlyotsays, "+e al%ost s)fficient to %ake a perfecte and ecellent go$erno)r"!.> In The Complete Gentleman ;/>00<, Henry #eacha% i%pliesthat De Officiis is a standard +eginning (atin tet, along &ithAesop's 3a+les for +eginning :reek!. In the preface to histranslation of />/ Sir Roger ('Dstrange calls it "the co%%onestschool +ook that &e ha$e," and goes on to o+ser$e, "as it is the +estof +ooks, so it is applied to the +est of p)rposes, that is to say, totraining )p of yo)th in the st)dy and eercise of $irt)e!" Jinga%es I's o&n de officiis, ,asili*on Doron, in &hich he tells hisson #rince Henry his d)ties as %an and r)ler, refers hi% to Cicero ==ti%es, /> of the% to De Officiis!

"In the Renaissance no (atin a)thor &as %ore highly estee%ed thanSeneca," said 9! S! Dliot!./ *ontaigne confesses that his oe)$re is

totally dependent on Seneca and #l)tarch!.0 Dras%)s, )st)s (ipsi)s,and ! 3! :rono$i)s p)+lished "fa%o)s editions" of Seneca's Essays

in the />th and /th cent)ries!.4 9he ,MC sho&s that in /=8 thefirst Senecan epistle &as translated into Dnglish +y R! Whyttynton,#oet (a)reate! Arth)r :olding translated his De ,eneficiis in /=,-)ite soon eno)gh for Shakespeare to ha$e read it +efore &riting 9heMerchant, and in />/8 9ho%as (odge translated the co%plete %oral&orks! So%ething called #enecas Morals, pro+a+ly a co%pendi)% ofecerpts, &as p)+lished in Dnglish in />! 9hen, in />, Sir Roger('Dstrange p)+lished #enecas Morals .y ay of A.stract! By /4 it

















had gone into / editions! I fo)nd a copy ;Cle$eland1 /=>< in %y%otherinla&'s Illinois far%ho)se!

If Ann ennalie Cook is right, the field of disco)rse I ha$e +eendescri+ing &o)ld ha$e +een a %a@or %eans of co%%)nication +et&eenShakespeare and his a)dience, for her copio)s e$idence sho&s that the+est ed)cated and %ost &ellread seg%ent of society, and therefore the%ost steeped in classical %orality, co%posed the %ain +ody of hisa)dience!.8 So%e disco)rses do%inate the &ay other disco)rses are)nderstood, as for instance, no&adays, fe%inist disco)rse! Was notStoicis%, in the co%prehensi$e sense I arg)e for here, s)ch adisco)rse d)ring the Renaissance?

7isco)rse of Anger

If &hat I a% proposing is tr)e, it is no s)rprise that*ontaigne's essay on Cr)elty, &here #rofessor #rosser fo)nd thepassage on $irt)e and $engeance, is a re%ake of Seneca's treatise onAnger!.= 3or Seneca, this passion is one of the t&o %ost destr)cti$ethat plag)e %ankind! ;9he other is ()st!<

Anger 5he says6 is te%porary %adness! 3or it is e-)ally de$oid of selfcontrol, forgetf)l of decency, )n%indf)l of ties, persis tent and diligent in &hate$er it +egins, closed to reason and co)nsel, ecited +y trifling ca)ses, )nfit to discern the right and tr)e!.>

If &e identify #rospero as an ee%plar of the Senecan angry %an, his+eha$ior is easier to eplain! He @oins a si2a+le list of Shakespeare's angry %ad%en, &hose f)ry dri$es the% do&n an irre$ersi+le co)rseto certain disaster, nota+ly (ear, Hotsp)r, Coriolan)s, *ac+eth,Ethello, 9i%on! Anger interr)pts the tale of #rospero's depositionthat he had hi%self to +la%e only adds f)el to the fla%e! Anger+ridles at Ariel's recalcitrance! Anger p)nishes Cali+an'sins)+ordination &ith etre%e cr)elty!. Anger %akes hi% )na+le tocontain his hatred of 3erdinand, his chosen heir, +eca)se he is theson of his %ortal ene%y! And anger prod)ces his e$ident glee at thes)ccess of his p)nish%ents of the conspirators!

It is only an ill)sion of ro%antic critics that #rospero is incontrol of his do%ain! ;In their adaptation of The Tempest forRestoration a)diences, 7ryden and 7a$enant e%phasi2e his +)nglinginco%petence!. "A %an cannot +e called po&erf)lno, not e$en freeif he is the capti$e of his anger," says Seneca!. Anger is incharge, and #rospero dances to its t)ne! o &onder he eplodes intothe %ost re%arka+le rage in his da)ghter's %e%ory &hen he re%e%+ers,d)ring the %as-)e, that he is a+o)t to +e %)rdered +y Cali+an and his

dr)nken cre&! We ha$e +een &atching a slo& +)rn! When &ill he ha$epeace? Seneca speaks to his predica%ent1

Rage &ill s&eep yo) hither and yon, this &ay and that, and yo)r %adness &ill +e prolonged +y ne& pro$ocations that constantly arise! 9ell %e, )nhappy %an, &ill yo) e$er find ti%e to lo$e?

What precio)s ti%e yo) are &asting )pon an e$il thingK Ho& %)ch +etter &o)ld it +e at this present %o%ent to +e gaining friends, reconciling ene%ies, ser$ing the state, de$oting effort to pri$ate affairs, than to +e casting a+o)t to see &hat e$il yo)















can do to so%e %an, &hat &o)nd yo) %ay deal to his position, his estate, or his person! ! ! .

When, pro%pted +y his "no+ler reason ;=!/!0><, he ad%its hisco%%on h)%anity ad%its "feeling 5the sa%e6 passion as they";=!/!08<the play is again speaking the lang)age of Stoicis%, forfollo&ing reason to s)ch a concl)sion is Seneca's reco%%ended therapyfor anger!

o %an of sense &ill hate the erringF other&ise he &ill hate hi%self! (et hi% reflect ho& %any ti%es he offends against %orality, ho& %any of his acts stand in need of pardonF then he &ill +e angry &ith hi%self also!./ Whereas Seneca gloo%ily insists that &e are all as +ad as the &orst,Dlyot tr)sts that &e are all as good as the +est1

Ef no +etter claye ;as I %o)ght frankely saye< is a gentil%an %ade than a carter, and of li+ertie of &ille as %oche is gy)en of god to the poore herde%an, as to the great and %ighty

e%pero)r!.0

B)t perhaps e-)ating )p is no different fro% e-)ating do&n!

E+ser$ing that &e do not get re$enge on d)%+ ani%als &ho in@)re)s, Seneca &onders &hy &e are so hard on o)r o&n species1

3or &hat difference does it %ake that 5a %an's6 other -)alities are )nlike those of d)%+ ani%als if he rese%+les the% in the one -)ality that ec)ses d)%+ ani%als for e$ery %isdeed a %ind that is all darkness?.4

9hat "darkness.8 that fills the %ind" tor%ents Seneca

not so %)ch the necessity of going astray, as the lo$e of straying! 9hat yo) %ay not +e angry &ith indi$id)als, yo) %)st forgi$e %ankind at large, yo) %)st grant ind)lgence to the h)%an race!.=

3ro% here it is an easy step to #rospero's final position &ith respectto the "+east Cali+an" ;8!/!/8/<, pp! "9his thing of darkness I ackno&ledge %ine" ;=!/!0=<.>, not so p)22ling a re%ark in its %oralcontet as it is in the strictlyfra%ed $ie& of colonialistcritics!.

7isco)rse of 3reedo%

At the cli%a of the play, then, #rospero &ins freedo% fro% thedarkness that fills his %ind! "3reedo%" is another of The Tempest'spo&er &ords, so i%portant that Shakespeare )ses his dra%atic %edi)%'spoints of strongest e%phasis to call it to o)r attention! 9hree actsclose on freedo%, and the play ends &ith the &ord "free!" At the endof act /, Ariel asks for his freedo%! At the end of act 0, Cali+anr)ns offstage sho)ting "3reedo%, highdayK" Act 8 ends &ith #rosperopro%ising Ariel his freedo% after one %ore task!



















If freedo% is %astery, act 4 also ends on freedo%, &hen#rospero's has his ene%ies &here he &ants the%! 9his is the sa%e kindof freedo% that Cali+an cro&ed a+o)t at the end of act 0! B)t theonly tr)e freedo% in all these act endings is the one that thea)dience %ay or %ay not gi$e the actor of #rospero +y appla)ding hislast line1 "As yo) fro% cri%es &o)ld pardoned +eM(et yo)r ind)lgenceset %e free!"

*)ch of The Tempest is de$oted the p)rs)it of freedo% as po&er!At the end of act 0, this kind of freedo% co%es into $i$id contrast&ith an entirely different kind! As act 0 closes, Cali+an goesoffstage singing that he &ill no %ore "fetch in firing M At re-)iring! ! ! ! 3reedo%, highdayK highday, freedo%K freedo%, highday,freedo%K" ;0!0!/8/N! 9he $ery net scene opens, "Enter &erdinand .earing a log ," introd)cing an entirely different attit)deto&ard fetching firing at re-)iring! 9his @)taposition highlights adialog +et&een t&o senses of freedo% that dri$es the play as a &hole!(ets call the% freedo% of the so)l and freedo% of the +ody!

Before the play starts, +efore Antonio )s)rped his d)kedo%,

#rospero so)ght freedo% of the +ody fro% the cares of office andretired to his cha%+er to st)dy the "li+eral arts" ;/!0!4<! Again,the contet is Stoic! Seneca opposed the st)dy of "li+eral arts,"+eca)se their ai% &as to %ake %oney! 9he one eception &as philosophy, &hich #rospero o+$io)sly hadnt st)died!. Cicero takes a$ery di% $ie& of rel)ctant ad%inistrators like #rospero, declaringflatly1 "to +e dra&n +y st)dy a&ay fro% acti$e life is contrary to%oral d)ty!". 3ollo&ing this e%phasis on doing one's @o+, a%es I&arns his son and heir not to seek

for kno&ledge nakedly, +)t that yo)r principall ende +e, to %ake yo) a+le there+y to $se yo)r officeF ! ! ! not like these $aine Astrologians, that st)die night and day on the co)rse of the starres, onely that they %ay, for satisfying their c)riositie, kno& their co)rse!".

#rospero's %agic, +e it +lack or &hite, is analogo)s to :yges' ring,+)t as #lato &rote his &hole +epu.lic to pro$e, :yges' ring is asnare and a del)sion1 a+sol)te po&er o$er one's fello& %en is not thero)te to freedo%! Cicero tells the &hole story of :yges in De

Officiis!./

Seneca tho)ght that a %an &ho a$oided p)+lic ser$ice had "diede$en +efore he &as dead!".0 9he ancients and their Renaissancepop)lari2ers agree that r)lers ha$e an especially strong o+ligation toser$e the p)+lic! "9he citi2en &ho is patriotic, +ra$e, and &orthy ofa leading place in the state ! ! ! &ill dedicate hi%self )nreser$edly

to his co)ntry, &itho)t ai%ing at infl)ence or po&er for hi%self,"says Cicero!.4 In fact, Seneca agrees, "r)ling 5is6 a ser$ice, notan eercise of royalty!".8 And %oreo$er, "Instead of sacrificing thestate to the%sel$es, 5r)lers6 ha$e sacrificed the%sel$es to thestate!".= Dlyot echoes these senti%ents, saying "that a)ctorite,+einge &ell and diligently )sed, is +)t a token of s)perioritie, +)tin $ery dede it is a +)rden and losse of li+ertie!".> En this notea%es I +egins his ad$ice to his son, re%inding hi% "that +eing +orneto +e a king, ye are rather +orne to onus, th5a6n honos!".























As defined in Stoic disco)rse, freedo% is a state of %ind, not of+ody! As 3erdinand $ery significantly says, pro$ided that &e aret)ned in to this dialog, he is as happy to +e a sla$e for *iranda'ssake "as +ondage e'er of freedo%" ;4!/!< If it is the &ay to &inher, he accepts +ondage to la+or as eagerly as #rospero, Ariel, andCali+an seek freedo% fro% it! (o$e, as defined so +ea)tif)lly in thisscene, is %)t)al $ol)ntary ser$it)de, and $ol)ntary ser$it)de is theonly freedo% The Tempest offers! When Alonso and #rospero gi$e eachother their children in the deno)e%ent, this ancient rit)al of giftechange signifies peace +et&een the%! 9here are t&o &ays ofesta+lishing cooperation in society1 ensla$e%ent ;either to a %asteror to the la&, as in %odern de%ocratic societies<F and reciprocalechange of +enefits ;gifts or ser$ices<!

Starting fro% the Aristotelian pre%ise that %an is a socialani%al, Cicero finds that the social +ond is esta+lished +y %eans of asyste% of "%)t)al interchange of kind ser$icesF ! ! ! 5for6 those+et&een &ho% they are interchanged are )nited +y the ties of anend)ring inti%acy!". Hence

&e o)ght to follo& at)re as o)r g)ide, to contri+)te to the general good +y an interchange of acts of kindness, +y gi$ing and recei$ing, and th)s +y o)r skill, o)r ind)stry, and o)r talents to ce%ent h)%an society %ore closely together, %an to %an!.

Seneca allegori2es the social ce%ent in the process of ans&ering so%e-)estions a+o)t the 9hree :races ;Gratiae, as in "gratit)de,""congrat)late," "grat)ity," "gracias," etc<! 3irst, &hy are therethree of the%?

So%e &o)ld ha$e it appear that there is one for +esto&ing a +enefit, another for recei$ing it, and a third for ret)rning it ! ! ! ! Why do the sisters hand in hand dance in a ring &hich ret)rns )pon itself? 3or the reason that a +enefit passing in its co)rse fro% hand to hand ret)rns ne$ertheless to the gi$erF the +ea)ty of the &hole is destroyed if the co)rse is any&here +roken, and it has %ost +ea)ty if it is contin)o)s and %aintains an )ninterr)pted s)ccession! In the dance, ne$ertheless, an older sister has especial honor, as do those &ho earn +enefits!

9heir faces are cheerf)l, as are ordinarily the faces of those &ho +esto& or recei$e +enefits! 9hey are yo)ng +eca)se the %e%ory of +enefits o)ght not to gro& old! 9hey are %aidens +eca)se +enefits are p)re and )ndefiled and holy in the eyes of allF and it is fitting that there sho)ld +e nothing to +ind or restrict the%, and so the %aidens &ear flo&ing ro+es, and these, too, are transparent +eca)se +enefits desire to +e seen!./

3or Dlyot the $irt)e that ce%ents )s all together

is called h)%anitie &hiche is a generall na%e to those $ert)es in &ho%e se%e to +e a %)t)all concorde and lo)e in the nat)re of %an! And all tho)ghe there +e %any of the said $ert)es, yet +e there thre principall +y &ho%e h)%anitie is chiefly co%pactF +ene)olence, +enificence 5"goode to)rnes"6, and li+eralitie!

By $irt)e of this instinct h)%an +eings, &hile still inferior to :od,are s)perior to +easts!.//











Dssentially &hat happens in The Tempest is that #rospero triesto gain freedo% +y %ai%i2ing his po&erthe :yges ring %ethod+)te$ent)ally, perhaps pro%pted +y 3erdinand and *iranda, he %elts into agenero)s paradig%! He learns that a cr)el %aster cannot e$er ha$e the@oy of a &illing ser$ant! 9hat disco$ery, I +elie$e, ind)ces#rospero's change of heart, and that is &hat his epilog)e is a+o)t1#rospero ;d)keMactor<, ha$ing )sed %agicMstagecraft to coerce hiss)+@ects ;a)dienceMislandersMciti2ens of *ilan< into o+edience, no&+reaks his %agic &andMtheatrical spell and frees his erst&hile sla$es;a)dienceMislandersMciti2ens<! Dssentially, he co%%its )nilateraldisar%a%ent! Ef s)ch grand gest)res, Seneca says, "9o help, to +e ofser$ice ! ! ! 5to gi$e6 +enefits, i%itates the godsF he &ho seeks aret)rn 5i%itates6 %oneylenders!"./0 9he antisocial 7)ke has co%e along &ay!

A typical actorMa)dience relationship differs radically fro% thed)keMciti2en relationship that has pre$ailed )p to this point, for itis a for% of the reciprocal +enefit syste% &e ha$e +een disc)ssing, in&hich the actor gi$es entertain%ent and the a)dience ret)rns appla)se!

It is lo$e, it is %)t)al satisfaction1 gratit)de &ar%s +oth sides ofthe footlights! #erhaps, if #rospero no& alters radically his tacticsof r)le and +eco%es a %agnani%o)s and @)st r)ler concerned only &iththe &elfare of the city entr)sted to hi%, the people &ill +e gratef)l,and &ill ser$e hi% &ith all their hearts! 9he %oralists +elie$e so!9yranny ne$er &orks, says Dlyot, +randishing potent a)thorities

3or the +ene)olente %ynde of a go)erno)r nat onely +yndeth the hartes of the people )nto hy% &ith the chayne of lo)e, %ore stronger than any %ateriall +ondes, +)t also gardeth %ore sa)lfely his persone than any to)re or garison! 9he elo-)ent 9)lli, saithe in his officis, A li+erall harte is ca)se of +ene)olence, altho)gh perchance that po&ar so%e ty%e lackethe!

Contrary &ise he saith, 9hey that desire to +e feared, nedes %)st they drede the%, of &ho% they +e feared! Also #lini the yonger saith, He that is nat en)ironed &ith charite, in $aine is he garded &ith terro)rF sens ar%)re &ith ar%)re is stered! Whiche is ratified +y the %ooste gra)e philosopher Seneke, in his +oke of %ercye that he &rate to ero, &here he saith, He is %oche decei)ed that thinketh a %an to +e s)er, &here nothynge fro% hy% can +e sa)lfe! 3or 5only6 &ith %)t)all ass)rance s)ertie is optained!./4 B)t the final effect of a good deed cannot +e ass)%ed in ad$ance, forif it is calc)lated, then it isn't a good deed1 it's a deal! It'sentirely )p to the citi2ens of *ilan, as it is to an a)dience at theend of a play, &hether to catcallMkill the actorMd)ke or appla)dMser$e

hi% and "&ith 5their6 ind)lgence 5to6 set 5hi%6 free"+y gratef)llyappla)ding his &illing ser$ice!

9he colonialist approach percei$es that #rospero's final ga%+itfails! After all Antonio and Se+astian do not +)rst into tears andfall on their knees!./8 B)t read in ter%s of the rele$ant field ofdisco)rse, their inaction signifies no fail)re! In Stoic ter%s,#rospero is concerned &ith getting control o$er hi%self, not o$er hisene%ies! Stoicis% also p)ts a different spin on the sit)ation1 &hat&e ha$e here is cle%ency, not forgi$eness, and the point is to depri$ethe in@)ror of any en@oy%ent fro% &atching the in@)red one's anger and









chagrin! En this point Dlyot says

9he +est &aye to +e ad)enged is so to conte%ne Ini)rie and re+)ke, and ly)e &ith s)che honestie, that the doer shall at the laste +e therof a sha%ed, or at the leste, lese 5lose6 the fr)te of his %alyce, that is to say, shall nat reioyce and ha)e glorie of thy hyndra)nce or do%age 5da%age6!./=

Hall's Characters ;/>< foc)ses on the glory of i%pert)r+a+ility,rather than on the repentance of the pert)r+er1

9he Laliant *an5's6 po&er is li%ited +y his &ill, and he holds it the no+lest re$enge, that he %ight h)rt and doth not!./>

3)rther%ore, &hen &e reach the end of a Shakespearean co%edy thingsseldo% are settled! 9here is ne$er any g)arantee that the re%ediesdisco$ered in the green &orld &ill ser$e &hen the persons of the playret)rn to the real &orld! 9he poet says good+ye and good l)ck! Hehas sho&n the a)dience &hat they are capa+le of ;+oth good and e$il<!o& they're on their o&n! Will gratit)de for #rospero's ne& start

o$erco%e the years of his neglect? 9he s)lking characters re%ain tokeep this -)estion on the ta+le!

B)t &ait1 there's still that final note of despair! When#rospero tells )s, in his epilog)e that after his ret)rn to *ilan his"e$ery third tho)ght &ill +e 5his6 gra$e!" Can &e call this a happyending? 9heir $ision still ha%pered +y their fra%e, the colonialistcritics &ho pick )p on this talk of the gra$e think not!./ AgainStoic disco)rse sheds a +etter light on the passage! Cicero said "tothink as a philosopher is to learn to die!" *ontaigne )sed thissentence as the title of a long essay on death!./ Dpictet)sehorts, "(et death ! ! ! +e daily +efore yo)r eyes ! ! ! and yo) &illne$er think of anything %ean!"./ *ontaigne &o)ld ha$e )s

co%+at 5death6 &ith a resol)te %inde! And +eing to take the greatest ad$antage she hath )pon )s fro% her, let )s take a cleane contrary &ay fro% the co%%on, let )s re%o$e her strangenesse fro% her, let )s con$erse, fre-)ent, and ac-)aint o)r sel$es &ith her, let )s ha$e nothing so %)ch in %inde as death, let )s at all ti%es and seasons, and in the )gliest %anner that %ay +e, yea &ith all faces shapen and represent the sa%e )nto o)r i%agination! At the st)%+ling of a horse, at the fall of a stone, at the least prick &ith a pinne, let )s presently r)%inate and say &ith o)r sel$es, &hat if it &ere death it selfe?

and there)pon let )s take heart of grace, and call o)r &its together to confront her! ! ! ! 9he pre%editation of death is a forethinking of li+ertie!.//

Again *ontaigne so)nds like Seneca, &ho is al&ays ad$ising that "theso)l %)st +e hardened +y long practice, so that it %ay learn to end)rethe sight and the approach of death!"./// Indeed Seneca isanti-)ity's epert on death, and one gathers that he concei$es of a%an's life as a tale that has no %eaning )ntil it's o$er! 3or a 7)ke,one ass)%es, dying &ell &o)ld %ean dying &ell+elo$ed! 3)rther%ore,since death is one of those co%%on deno%inators that le$el o)t thedistinction +et&een the angry %an and his $icti%, thinking on death&ill ease #rospero's f)ry!.//0 "othing &ill gi$e yo) so %)ch help



















to&ard %oderation as the fre-)ent tho)ght that life is short and)ncertain here +elo&F &hate$er yo) are doing, ha$e regard todeath!".//4 3inally, one %)st co%e to ter%s &ith death in order toachie$e that precio)s freedo% of the so)l, +eca)se fear of death iscertainly the )lti%ate sla$ery! "9o think on death," co)nsels Seneca,is to "think on freedo%! He &ho has learned to die has )nlearnedsla$eryF he is a+o$e any eternal po&er, or, at any rate, he is +eyondit!".//8

9hese senti%ents and those I ha$e already -)oted, I arg)e, tetherThe Tempest to the disc)rsi$e field of early %odern ethicaldisco)rse, to &hich the play reports +ack, in ter%s defined +y thatfield, a $i$id ill)stration of &hat it %eans to +e free! OOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

9he colonialist critics ha$e laid to rest fore$er the idealistinterpretation of #rospero, and definiti$ely located the %ythos ofcolonialis% in his treat%ent of Cali+an! B)t it appears that &e dofind, )pon etending #rofessor #orter's criti-)e of ne& historicis% toThe Tempest, that the o$ersights she descri+es in the &ork of

:reen+latt and *)llaney do also occ)r in ne& historicist &ork on TheTempest, that the play is too large to look at thro)gh the knotholeof colonialist disco)rse! In so doing these critics )nconscio)slysilence other kinds of disco)rse that the play co)ld clearly hear, ando$erlooks the rhetorical strategy +y &hich the play talks +ack to the"hori2onless field!" Certainly The Tempest hears and talks a+o)t%any other fields of disco)rse1 Arth)rian legend, )ngian archetypes,3re)dian psychoses, regeneration rit)als, $egetation c)lts, #lato'sthree parts of the so)l, good angelsM+ad angels, chess, Italy, dra%atheory, Shakespeare's life, %agic, the ethics of %agic, and &ho kno&s&hat else? And disco)rse of colonialis% does of co)rse participate!B)t if &e open the &indo& far eno)gh to incl)de Stoicis%, #rospero'scon-)istadorial acti$ities +eco%e a prod)ct of his anger, and hiscoloni2ing +eco%es a category of tyranny, &hich +y definition go$erns+y ensla$e%ent! Since +oth anger and tyranny are +ad, and theirconse-)ences are +ad, the play deplores coloni2ation! B)t The

Tempest's relation to colonialis% is %ore co%ple than the $ie& fro%the colonialist critics' &indo&!

E9DS

/! Carolyn #orter, "Are We Being Historical Yet?" #outh Atlantic /uarterly

;/<1 84>, esp! =, 0!

0! In "7isco)rse and the Indi$id)al1 9he Case of Colonialis% in The Tem-







pest", *eredith Anne Sk)ra tests the clai%s of colonialist critics against aneha)sti$e reconstit)tion of conte%porary Dnglish disco)rse on the ne&&orld! She finds that records of British coloni2ation &ere not a$aila+le toShakespeare &hen he &rote The Tempest, at &hich ti%e colonialist disco)rsein Dngland &as still in its ro%antic phase! She also contri+)tes a %ost)sef)lco%prehensi$e s)r$ey of etant literat)re on The Tempest! ;#ha*espeare/uarterly 8 5Spring /6, 80>!< Ho&e$er, the )gly practices of othernations had +een p)+lished a+road long +efore the &riting of The Tempest,and *ontaigne protests against the% in the $ery essay "Ef Canni+alles" to&hich Shakespeare clearly refers in :on2alo's speech at 0!/!/84/>! ;Theessays of Michael lord of Montaigne, trans! ohn 3lorio, World's classics edn!5(ondon1 3ro&de, /86, /1 ch! 4!<

4! Si%ilar do)+ts a+o)t 3o)caldian %ethods ha$e recently +een $oiced in other-)arters! See essays in The 0e) !istoricism, ed! H! Ara% Leeser ;e& York1Ro)tledge, /< +y 3rank (entricchia1 "3o)ca)lt's (egacy1 a e&Historicis%?"04/080F +y :erald :raff1 "CoEptation," />//, esp! /0F and +y Brook9ho%as1

"e& Historicis% and Ether Eld3ashioned 9opics," /004, esp! 00!

8! #orter, /!

=! #orter, >!

>! #orter,/!

! :reen+latt, -)oted in #orter, 8!

! "#rospero in Africa1 9he 9e%pest as Colonialist 9et and #retet," in#ha*espeare +eproduced$ The Te't in !istory and %deology , ed! ean D!Ho&ard and *arion 3! E'Connor ;e& York P (ondon1 *eth)en, /<, =//=!

! "'9reason doth ne$er #rosper'1 The Tempest and the 7isco)rse of9reason," #ha*espeare /uarterly 8/;/<1 /0!

/! "Cracking the Code of 9he 9e%pest," #ha*espeare$ Contemporary Critical

Approaches, ed! Harry :ar$in ;(e&is+)rg, #a!1 B)cknell ni$ersity #ress,/<, /0//4/!

//! "'9his thing of darkness I ackno&ledge %ine'1 9he 9e%pest and the7isco)rseof Colonialis%," "olitical #ha*espeare$ 0e) Essays in Cultural Materialism,ed! onathan 7olli%ore and Alan Sinfield ;*anchester1 *anchester ni$ersity#ress, /=<, 8/!

/0! Bro&n, 8>!

/4! 3rancis Barker and #eter H)l%e, "y%phs and Reapers Hea$ily Lanish1 9he7isc)rsi$e Contets of The Tempest," Alternative #ha*espeare, ed! ohn7rakakis ;(ondon1 *eth)en, /=<!

/8! Barker and H)l%e, /=!

/=! Stephen Ergel, "Introd)ction," The Tempest, 9he Eford Shakespeare;Eford1 Eford ni$ersity #ress, /<, /!



/>! Dric Cheyfet2, The "oetics of %mperialism$ Translation and Coloni1ation

from The Tempest to Tar1an ;e& York1 Eford ni$ersity #ress, //<!

/! Stephen :reen+latt, "*artial (a& in the (and of Cocaigne," #ha*espearean

0egotiations$ The Circulation of #ocial Energy in +enaissance England

;Berkeley1 ni$ersity of California #ress, /<, /0!

/! 9hey ha$e +een anticipated +y at least t&o critics of the play &ho re@ectthe "a)thori2ed $ersion" &itho)t the aid of theory! As early as /> (yttonStrachey o+@ected to the recei$ed opinion that #rospero portrays a "spiritof &ise +ene$olence," percei$ing instead

an )npleasantly cr)sty personage, in &ho% a t&el$e years' %onopoly of the con$ersation had de$eloped an inordinate propensity for talking!

9hese %ay ha$e +een the senti%ents of Ariel, safe at the Ber%oothesF +)t to state the% is to risk at least ten years in the knotty entrails of an oak, and it is s)fficient to point o)t that if #rospero is &ise, he is also selfopinionated and so)r, that his gra$ity is often another na%e for pedantic se$erity, and that there is no character in the play

to &ho%, d)ring so%e part of it, he is not st)dio)sly disagreea+le!;,oo*s and Characters2 English and &rench 5e& York1 Harco)rt Brace,

/006, ><!

Sityt&o years later ohn #! C)tts read #rospero as another 3a)st)s,%anip)lating people for his o&n en@oy%ent, an al%ost certain candidate forda%nation &hose repentance like&ise co%es too late! ;+ich and #trange$ A

#tudy of #ha*espeares Last "lays 5#)ll%an1 Washington State ni$ersity#ress, />6<!

/! Barker and H)l%e, /!

0! Breight, /!

0/! Breight, /, /F Bro&n, =4F Barker and H)l%e, /F Cheyfet2, 0, 4F:reen+latt, /=>F (eininger, /00F Ergel, 8, /4!

00! All citations of Shakespeare's plays are taken fro% the Ri$erside Shakespeare, edited +y :! Blake%ore D$ans, /8!

04! Bro&n, =>F Cheyfet2, p!>F Ergel, , /8, /=>, 0/, =0F Breight, /, /8F:reen+latt, 8>, /804, /=>, />!

08! Ergel, 4>, 8, =0F Bro&n, =F :reen+latt, /8, /=8F Breight, /, /, 04!

0=! Cartelli, /=F Barker, /=, /0, 00F Bro&n, >=F Cheyfet2, 0, /=F:reen+latt, /=F Ergel, 08, 0=ff, 4>, 4!

0>! Bro&n, /!

0! Cartelli, />, /, //F Bro&n, >/0, =F Breight, /F Barker and H)l%e,/FCheyfet2, />/F (eininger, /0=F Ergel, 8/, 8!

0! Barker and H)l%e, />!

0! Breight, 08F Bro&n, >!



4! Bro&n, >F Barker and H)l%e, /F :reen+latt, />F Ergel, /=, 00FCheyfet2,/=!

4/! Barker and H)l%e, /F Cartelli, />F :reen+latt, /=F Ergel, 04, 0!

40! Breight, //F :reen+latt, /84, /88F Ergel, 0!

44! Breight, /F :reen+latt, /84!

48! Breight, //F Bro&n, />F Barker and H)l%e, 00F Cheyfet2, F :reen+latt,/88FErgel, =!

4=! Bro&n, >!

4>! Breight,004!

4! Ergel, =8!

4! Cartelli, //>F (eininger, /04!

4! Barker and H)l%e, 00!

8! 9he critical %alpractice of "ref)ting the ending" &as first identified +yRichard (e$in in 0e) +eadings vs3 Old "lays ;Chicago1 ni$ersity of Chicago#ress, /<! Dd&ard #echter finds the practice still pre$alent in his "e&Historicis% and Its 7iscontents," "MLA /0 ;/<1 0044, esp! 0!

8/! 9he ad$ocates of a +ene$olent %ag)s also ignored #rospero's change ofheart, +eca)se it contradicted their hypothesis as &ell! In their interpretations 7'Ersay #earson ;"'nless I Be Relie$'d +y #rayer'1 9he 9e%pest in#erspecti$e," #ha*espeare #tudies 5/86, 0=40, esp! 04< and osephS)%%ers ;"9he Anger of #rospero," Dreams of Love and "o)er$ On #ha*e-

speares "lays 5Eford1 Clarendon, /86< restore the cli%a, #earson ha$ing#rospero reco$er fro% the sin of %agic, and S)%%ers, relying on intratet)ale$idence, ha$ing hi% reco$er fro% a sei2)re of anger, th)s anticipating &hatfollo&s here!

80! Dleanor #rosser, "Shakespeare, *ontaigne, and the Rarer Action,"#ha*espeare #tudies / ;/>=<1 0>/>8!

84! *ontaigne, 01//!

88! 9ho%as Dlyot, The Governour , D$ery%an edn! ;(ondon1 7ent, /<, 04=!

8=! a%es I, "Basilikon 7oron," "olitical or*s of 4ames % , ed! C! D! *cIl&ain;Ca%+ridge1 Har$ard ni$ersity #ress, //<, 4=0, esp! 8/!

8>! oseph Hall, "Characters of Lirt)es and Lices," or*s, $ol! $i, ed! #hilipWynter ;e& York1 A*S #ress, /><, /0=, esp! !

8! *arc)s 9)lli)s Cicero, De Officiis, trans! Walter *iller, (oe+ edn!;Ca%+ridge1 Har$ard ni$ersity #ress, /><, !

8! ()ci)s Annae)s Seneca, Moral Essays, trans! ohn W! Basore, (oe+ edn!



;(ondon1 W! Heine%ann, /0/4=<, /10>!

8! In their glosses on the line +oth 3rank Jer%ode ;Arden edn! 5(ondon1*eth)en, /=6< and Stephen Ergel ;Eford edn! 5Eford1 Eford ni$ersity#ress, /6< feel the need to eplain ;)ncon$incingly< &hy "$engeance";=!/!0<is not +alanced +y "forgi$eness" or "pardon!" See also #rosser, 0>0!

=! Jarl *ar, The Communist Manifesto ;Chicago1 Regnery, /=8<, /0/4!

=/! #eter (aslett, The orld e !ave Lost ;e& York1 Scri+ner, />=<, /!

=0! *a We+er, Essays in #ociology , ed! Hans :erth and C! Wright *ills ;e&York1 Eford ni$ersity #ress, /8><, 40!

=4! )rgen Ha+er%as, To)ard a +ational #ociety$ #tudent "rotest2 #cience2

and "olitics ;Boston1 Beacon #ress, /<, /4!

=8! S$en (ongstreth, 3rank Stein%o, and Jathleen 9helen, #tructuring

"olitics$ !istorical %nstitutionalism in Comparative Analysis ;Ca%+ridge1

Ca%+ridge ni$ersity #ress, /0<

==! Jarl #olan6yi, The Great Transformation 567889 ;Boston1 Beacon #ress,/=<, 8>

=>! *arcel *a)ss, The Gift$ &orms and &unctions of E'change in Archaic

#ocieties 5/0=6, trans! Ian C)nnison ;e& York1 orton, /=8<!

=! *arshall Sahlins, #tone Age Economics ;Chicago and e& York1 AldineAtherton, /0<, 0/8

=! (e&is Hyde, The Gift$ %magination and the Erotic Life of "roperty ;e&York1 Lintage Books, /<!

=! ()ci)s Annae)s Seneca, Moral Epistles, trans! Richard *! :)%%ere, (oe+edn! ;Ca%+ridge1 Har$ard ni$ersity #ress, //0=<, 018048!

>! R)th Jelso, The Doctrine of the English Gentleman in the #i'teenth

Century ;:lo)cester, *ass1 #eter S%ith, />8<F Doctrine for the lady of the

+enaissance ;r+ana1 ni$ersity of Illinois #ress, /=><!

>/! Jelso, Lady , 400!

>0! #a)l Eskar Jristeller, +enaissance Thought and %ts #ources, ed! *ichael*ooney ;e& York1 Col)%+ia ni$ersity #ress, /<, 00!

>4! Jristeller, 0=, 4>, /0!

>8! Willia% Jerrigan and :ordon Braden, The %dea of the +enaissance

;Balti%ore1 ohns Hopkins ni$ersity #ress, /<!

>=! :ordon Braden, +enaissance Tragedy and the #enecan Tradition$ Angers

"rivilege ;e& Ha$en1 Yale ni$ersity #ress, /=<!

>>! 3or a rando% ea%ple consider *ar$in La&ter, "'7i$ision 't&een E)rSo)ls!'1Shakespeare's Stoic Br)t)s," #ha*espeare #tudies ;Col)%+ia1 ni$ersity of



So)th Carolina #ress, /8<, /4/=, esp! /4! Er consider Willia% R!Dlton's magnum opus, (ing Lear and the Gods ;San *arino, Calif!1 H)ntington(i+rary, />><, a +ook hea$ily doc)%ented +y pri%ary so)rces, in &hichStoicis%stands for little else than hardness of heart! 9ho)gh Dlton calls )pon Cicero%any ti%es, he pays no attention to De Officiis, his %ost i%portant ;and %ostprag%atic< +ook!

>! Lady , 4//<!

>! Cicero, $ii!

>! Dlyot, 8!

! Henry #eacha%, The Complete Gentleman2 The Truth of Our Times2 and The

Art of Living in London 5/>006, ed! Lirgil B! Helt2el ;Ithaca1 Cornellni$ersity#ress, />0<, 0!

/! 9! S! Dliot "Shakespeare and the Stoicis% of Seneca," #elected Essays

;e& York1 Harco)rt, Brace, /=<, //0, esp! =0!

0! *ontaigne, /1/>/!

4! Seneca, Essays, /1$!

8! Ann ennalie Cook, The privileged playgoers of #ha*espeares London2

6:;<-6<8= ;#rinceton, !!1 #rinceton ni$ersity #ress, //<!

=! Seneca, "7e Ira," Essays, /1/4==!

>! Seneca, Essays, /1/!

! Cf! Breight, 0/, 08>!

! Cf! *atthe& *! Wikander, "'9he 7)ke *y 3ather's Wrack'1 9he Innocence oftheRestoration 9e%pest," #ha*espeare #urvey , ed! Stanley Wells ;Ca%+ridge1Ca%+ridge ni$ersity #ress, //<, /, esp! /, 4, =, !

! Seneca, Essays, /10>4!

! Seneca, Essays, /140=!

/! Seneca, Dssays, /1/84!

0! Dlyot, 00!

4! Seneca, Essays, /1404!

8! 9he (atin &ord is "caligo," one %eaning of &hich, according to theO'ford

Latin Dictionary is "%oral and intellect)al darkness!"

=! Seneca, Essays, /1/=!



>! (ear's anger si%ilarly s)+sides &hen he learns "to feel &hat &retchesfeel";4!8!48< and recogni2es in #oor 9o% a fello& h)%an +eing!

! Bro&n, >F Cartelli, ///F :reen+latt, /=F Ergel, 04F (eininger, /0!

! Seneca, Epistles, 0148!

! Cicero, >!

! a%es I, 44!

/! Cicero, 4=!

0! Seneca, Epistles, 41=!

4! Cicero, !

8! Seneca, Epistles, 014!

=! Seneca, Epistles, 410/!

>! Dlyot, /8!

! a%es I, 4!

! Cicero, =!

! Cicero, 0=!

/! Seneca, Essays, 41/4!

//! Dlyot, /8!

/0! Seneca, Essays, 41/==!

/4! Dlyot, /==!

/8! :reen+latt, 8>F Breight, /4F Ergel, =/, =0, ==F Cheyfet2, /=!

/=! Dlyot, 04>!

/>! Hall, >!

/! Breight, 0F Barker, >F Bro&n, >F Cheyfet2, >F Ergel, 0!

/! *ontaigne, /1 ch! i!

/! Dpictet)s, Discourses of Epictetus )ith the Encheiridion and &rag-

ments, trans! :eorge (ong ;(ondon1 :eorge Bell, /<, 4!

//! *ontaigne, /1/!

///! Seneca, Epistles, 010=/!

//0! cf! Seneca, Essays, /14=4!



//4! Seneca, Epistles, 414/!

//8! Seneca, Epistles, /1//! *ontaigne thinks of the day of death as theonlyday in o)r li$es &hen "&hate$er the pot containeth %)st +e sho&n!" ;/1/<

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Are We Being Historical Yet