Intertextual Analysis

Your task will be to focus on your study of ‘The Tempest’ and at least one other text that you have
studied this year and present an analytical/ discursive essay that presents an intertextual reading of
one of these texts. That is, how has your reading of ONE text influenced your interpretation of
OTHER texts.

Intertextual analysis can be made between any two texts drawing relations and distinctions between
the two to present the ideas or representations communicated. Our personal interpretation of
William Shakespeare’s ‘The Tempest’ has been influenced by our readings and interpretations of
other texts including the likes of Sophocles’ ‘Antigone’, Craig Silvey’s ‘Jasper Jones’ and H.G. Wells’
‘The Island of Dr. Moreau’ to communicate the ideas of the practicality of monarchy, unjustified
treatment of racial others and the freedom of possible messages possible by isolating the setting of a
text.

Firstly, the representation of monarchy in ‘Antigone’ by Sophocles influences and contrasts greatly
with its representation in Shakespeare’s ‘The Tempest’ due to the context in which the texts were
written. Both texts have monarchies as their system of government, ‘Antigone’, written during a
period of democratic uprising, depicts monarchy as selfish and greed-based through the
characterization of Creon whilst ‘The Tempest’ displays royalty as although flawed, they can learn
from their mistakes and be redeemed through the plot and resolution of the text. Written in Ancient
Greece after the establishment of democracy, Antigone provides a pro-democratic message for its
viewers, highlighting the possible injustices and consequences of having a sole individual rule the
throne solely because they were born into the family and attempts to communicate the
inclusiveness and equality in a democracy. ‘The Tempest’ on the hand, written during a monarchy,
for the monarchy whilst not portraying them as perfect, does demonstrate the humanity and dignity
within a monarchy and conveys that it should be a system of government that is upheld and
sustained. Sophocles depicts royalty as self-centered and egocentric through his characterization of
Creon, after inheriting the throne he remarks; “I now possess the throne and all its powers”, and
“am I to rule this land for others or myself?”, demonstrating his quite selfish and self-absorbed
outlooks on wielding the throne. Shakespeare constructs the monarch of ‘The Tempest’ Prospero, as
although imperfect and neglectful, a caring father and able to redeem himself by the resolution of
the play, “I have done nothing but in care of thee”, “The government I cast upon my brother and to
my state grew stranger, being transported and rapt in secret studies.”. Prospero being too focused
on his study in magic let Antonio take responsibility only for him to usurp Prospero and banish him,
Prospero loses his power as a result of his neglect of governing Milan, and by the end of the text
when Prospero reunites the characters on the island, Antonio forgives him and returns his dukedom
to him, Prospero then delivers an epilogue to the audience asking for his forgiveness. The regal
figure in ‘Antigone’ is constructed as quite irrational, egocentric, and self-centered to connote
negative ideas towards royalty whereas the regal figure in ‘The Tempest’ is characterized as
honourable, wise, and compassionate to convey positive ideas toward monarchy. ‘Antigone’ has
influenced my reading of ‘The Tempest’ in a way that has provided some depth into the possible
benefits of ruling with a monarchy and that not all monarchies are greedy ego-driven disasters. In
summary, the representation of monarchy in both ‘Antigone’ and ‘The Tempest’ is heavily influenced
by the context in which they were produced to manufacture altering messages and ideas about the
practicality of having a monarch-based system of government.

Secondly, the treatment of the character Caliban in “The Tempest” reminded me very much of the
treatment of Jasper Jones from “Jasper Jones” as both individuals are a part of their respective text’s
‘minority’ race to explore the effects of colonialism. Caliban in the text was raised and lived
peacefully on the island before Prospero came and enslaved him to become his servant whilst Jasper
Jones is an indigenous boy growing up in a white-dominated suburb in 60’s Australia, having to face
and put up with racist stereotypes and mindsets prevailing at the time. Having been living on the
island before the arrival of Prospero, Prospero doesn’t acknowledge Caliban as being of the same
importance as himself and assumes power over the island, that he should also be grateful for
educating him. Prospero views him as lesser and a “savage”, he also begins to abuse him “Thou shalt
be pinched as thick as honeycomb, each pinch more stinging than bees that made ‘em”,
demonstrates the lack of humanity Prospero had towards Caliban and can be inferred to illustrate
the treatment of the lesser kind by white colonisers during the expansion of the British Empire.
Jasper Jones, an Aboriginal boy growing up in a white suburban town also faces ill treatment
because of his race by the English folk of Corrigan. Being an established English colony, Australia’s
Indigenous people have been looked down upon by white people for many generations with all this
built-up resentment shown in ‘Jasper Jones’; “They reckon it’s in my nature [to steal] … I never once
been caught…. They expect it.”, as a half-caste child, the town finds him an easy target and a
scapegoat for any issues or problems occurring around the neighbourhood. “I felt him go… Jasper
Jones fell out of the world, and nobody noticed.”, this highlights the ostracism and lack of
connection and belonging, there’s a lack of observation from society as nobody would care enough
to notice if he left. If any other child went missing the whole neighbourhood would go on the
lookout to find them whereas if Jasper Jones went missing nobody would notice and continue with
their lives, this demonstrates the unequal treatment of the minority in a racist society. ‘Jasper Jones’
has influenced my reading of ‘The Tempest’ in a way that explores the effects of colonialism on the
lesser minority to display the harshness of racial-driven conquests and ideologies with some still
present in society today through the treatment of the racial minority in the texts.

Lastly, the setting of the text on an island in ‘The Island of Dr. Moreau’ reminded me very much of
the setting in the play ‘The Tempest’ by William Shakespeare where setting the story somewhere
isolated from the boundaries of society allows the authors to experiment with communicating
messages and ideas that could be considered controversial if were instead placed in their respectful
countries. As the texts weren’t set on English soil, any ideas or themes deemed inappropriate by
English standards couldn’t have been contested as well, they weren’t in England. For ‘The Tempest’
the themes of magic and witchcraft would have been slandered as witches were hunted and
slaughtered during the play’s production so having the text set away from England allows characters
like Prospero and Ariel to have magical powers without the audience hating them. For ‘The Island of
Dr. Moreau’, the themes of vivisection were highly debated in English society, so placing the text
away from England would stop the text from receiving any pro-vivisection backlash. What setting the
text in isolated locations do is allow the author to portray the representations of ideas and themes
as outlooks on society itself, being able to demonstrate societal beliefs and representations with the
capacity to challenge or reinforce ideas, a microcosm of society. Both Shakespeare and H.G. Wells
are using the setting as a base for being able to present potentially risky representations of ideas and
stances on society without consequence. In summary, the like setting of ‘The Tempest’ has
influenced my reading of ‘The Island of Dr. Moreau’ as isolating the location of the text allows the
authors to push the boundaries on the representations they’re free to make.

In summary, an intertextual analysis is used to compare the morals and representations from two
different texts to bring forward perhaps new or reinforce existing ideas. Shakespeare’s ‘The
Tempest’ after applying an intertextual analysis with ‘Antigone’, ‘Jasper Jones’ and ‘The Island of Dr.
Moreau’ connotes the messages of the practicality of monarchy, the unjustified mistreatment
towards racial others and how isolating the setting of a text allows the author to experiment with
potentially controversial ideas and representations.