The play itself (Allegory)
Césaire's A Tempest is a reworking of Shakespeare's play The Tempest, and makes it explicitly postcolonial, by specifying the races of Prospero's enslaved workers, Caliban and Ariel. Thus, in Césaire's hands, the story becomes not simply a fable about a magical island, but a meditation on colonialism, subjugation, and racial violence. Shakespeare's play gives less attention to the tale of Prospero's magical slaves, while Césaire's centers that story and changes it completely to make it an allegory for the system of colonialism at large.
The Tempest (Symbol)
The play begins, as in Shakespeare's version, with a tempest, a large storm. The storm is conjured by Prospero, with Ariel's hope, to avenge wrongs done to him in the Neapolitan court. It is symbolic of Prospero's desire for vengeance, the fury he feels towards those who have wronged him, and his desire to shake them up and throw them off balance.
Colonialism (Motif)
While colonialism is not frequently discussed on an explicit level, it is a recurring theme. Various white characters in the play discuss the potential of the island for colonization, the fact that they might be able to pillage the land and profit from it. Additionally, Caliban explicitly addresses the colonization of his island—Prospero's exploitation of its resources and its people, including him. The motif of colonialism, which is mostly absent in Shakespeare's version, here becomes a thematic motif.
Caliban's Greeting (Symbol)
Caliban's native language, Swahili, has been forbidden by Prospero, yet each time Caliban greets him he says the word "Uhuru," a Swahili interjection meaning "freedom." This symbolizes Caliban's defiance and refusal to live by Prospero's rules, while also symbolically invoking his resistance and intention to break free from Prospero's charge.
Eshu (Symbol)
The only new character in Césaire's version is the Yoruba god Eshu, a deviant trickster who crashes Prospero's evening entertainment, a performance by a pantheon of Roman gods. Here, he represents the Africa of pre-colonial times as well as a hope that the colonized might be able to badger and oust the colonizers. He manages to thwart all of Prospero's efforts to maintain his authority, symbolizing the endurance of the old beliefs and spirituality, which refuse to bend or capitulate to European colonialist dominance.
