Both of these characters show Prospero's twisted sense of justice. Prospero's use of magic to control Caliban through "pinchings" and chains is somewhat more justified, given the story of Caliban's attempted rape of Miranda. It also clearly shows, however, that Prospero assumes control of situations without taking others' feelings or rights into account. Caliban grew up on the island and had the full run of it for years before Prospero came to its shores, yet this is not given even a modicum of respect by Prospero's self-centered (and ethnocentric) view. His treatment of Ariel is even worse; this spirit did nothing to harm Prospero, but rather is enslaved by the magician simply because Prospero freed him from the tree where he was imprisoned. This was not an act of illusion done to give Ariel a "renewed faith in goodness," but rather a very corporeal act that traded imprisonment...
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