In the final act of The Tempest, Prospero renounces his magic by casting his books – a figurative representation of his power through language – into the water. By this point, Prospero’s character had evolved so much that he no longer needs dominion over a number of subjects, but for static characters like that of Caliban, the self-loathing slave of Prospero, undoubtedly finds himself in unfamiliar territory in dealing with a new-found state of autonomy versus reverting to his old unhappy, but predictable life as a slave. While The Tempest is fictitious, its hierarchical dynamic between Prospero and Caliban points to the problematic offshoot of empires. Even when the colonizers relinquish their power, the subjugated continue to find themselves still heavily dependent on their former oppressors. As a result, colonizers and the effects they hold over the colonized are transcendental.
As a society, Americans need not look further than Cuba to recognize the irreparably damaged state Spanish imperialism had left Cubans in. Just like Caliban, Cubans found the notion of autonomy strange and even unfathomable. They demanded freedom, but when granted, they’re uncertain how to grasp such an abstract concept especially when nearly half of the population was plagued by chronic unemployment and a quarter of its people were illiterate (“Borgen Projects”). These statistics point directly to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, which encompasses a handful of basic human needs, where food and shelter lie at the very foundation of the triangle. And only when the aforementioned is achieved can the people move up the ladder. From the looks of it, Cuba is still struggling with the very first step for over the past century after declaring independence from Spain in 1898. It’s very rare for a newly decolonized country to functionally transition to a state of democracy; usually and unfortunately, it devolves into another totalitarian regime.
Prospera in Julie Taymor’s feminist adaptation of The Tempest
Going back to Caliban, for someone who yearns freedom, Caliban associates freedom as trading one master for another. In fact, Caliban is ecstatic to have a new master as he plots the overthrowing and demise of Prospero to Stephano and Trinculo: “Ban, ‘Ban, Ca–Caliban/ Has a new master. Get a new man!/ Freedom, high day! High day, freedom!” (Shakespeare 2.2. 192-194). Well, he’s not the only one. I wouldn’t go so far as to say Cubans were overjoyed for a new ‘master’, but they were undoubtedly enthused to have a leader – of distinct Cuban lineage – who promised “to restore the democratic rights that had existed before 1952, make the medical system free and universal, end legal race discrimination, restore land-ownership rights to Cubans and invite foreign investment” (“The Globe and Mail”).
Fidel Castro, like many of his predecessors, was no stranger to the old bait-and-switch campaign. In July of 1959, Castro suspended all free and democratic elections, enforced martial law, and wholly embraced the Soviet Union as Cuba’s sole benefactor and model nation in revolutionizing the world by spreading the red plague. Communism in the Soviet Union and Cuba were in lockstep with one another.
The trend was evident: the effects of colonization is almost always irreversible. When one dictator is toppled, the people find themselves at a crossroads between their predictable old ways – albeit forlorn and uncompromising – or treading in a grave and unforeseeable future. When these two viewpoints gain enough traction, the country goes into an all-out war before restoring order and peace or merely putting in office a new dictator. As Castro put it himself, “a revolution is a struggle to the death between the future and the past” (“Bustle”). Furthermore, it isn’t just Cuba alone that has been destroyed by inferior economic policies, the devastation left behind by Spanish colonization has pretty much left most of Latin America in a state of ruination – from Venezuela to Peru, to Nicaragua, these nations may never fully be decolonized. They learn to cope with the resources at hand and build their country up from the remnants of imperialism.
Hence, even when sovereignty is wrested from the individual and given to the people, the public will always need an adjustment period, but in some part of their mind, they will always be a slave to the past regime, and it may take up to decades and centuries before they can fully champion the notion of independence.
For outsiders, such as Americans who thrive under capitalism, the effects of empire – specifically in South America – serve as a cautionary tale to avoid rewriting history.
Works cited
“Fidel Castro’s Revolution Succeeded, but His Promises Evaporated.” The Globe and Mail, The Globe and Mail, 12 Apr. 2017, http://www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/fidel-castros-revolution-succeeded-but-his-promises-evaporated/article33057887/. Accessed 13 Feb. 2019.
“Top 5 Causes of Poverty in Cuba.” The Borgen Project, 30 May 2018, borgenproject.org/causes-of-poverty-in-cuba/. Accessed 13 Feb. 2019.
Taymor , Julie, director. The Tempest.
Opening gif depicts Fidel Castro speech from 1960: “Castro Speech Data Base – Latin American Network Information Center, LANIC.” LANIC, lanic.utexas.edu/project/castro/db/1960/19600926.html.
Levine, Sara. “This Fidel Castro Quote Is So Powerful.” Bustle, Bustle, 17 Dec. 2018, http://www.bustle.com/articles/197028-this-one-fidel-castro-quote-will-totally-change-how-you-think-about-revolution.
the reason behind the crumbling of a civilization 