The play is “The Tempest.”
Prospero lives on a remote island and along with him is a slave of his
named Caliban, who is sort of a half-man and half whutizzit. Caliban was born on the isle (his mother was
a she-devil, and you what they’re like)
and he is one of the most debated figures in all of theatrical history. Is he just a belligerent monster or is he
worthy of our sympathy? Some say this play
was Shakespeare’s cogent comment on the excesses of colonialism.
(Also for Three Word Wednesday and ABC Wednesday: "W" is for "worker")
Here’s
another scenelet that should remind you of a well-known play. Which play?
“I appreciate your seeing me on such short notice.”
“Well, it’s a pleasure; we don’t get many visitors
on the island. In fact, you’re the
first.”
“It’s a fascinating operation you’ve got here. Let me introduce myself. My name is Thomas Pilbeam, of the I L O.”
“Is that like the A F of L?”
“Sort of. I L
O stands for the International Labor Organization. You can spell ‘labour’ with a ‘u’ or
without.”
“Good to know.
But I guess I don’t understand why you’ve come here.”
“The I L O is working hard to protect domestic
workers around the world. Domestic workers often work excessively long hours, without
breaks, days off or holidays. The pay is often very low, with wages frequently
delayed.”
“It sounds like you’re doing fine work,
which I certainly support. But again,
what does any of this have to do with me?”
“You have domestic workers, do you not?”
“I don’t know where you got your info,
but you couldn’t be more wrong. This is
a very small island. I live on it and I
run things but I have no domestic workers, if by that you mean someone to cook
and clean and so on. There’s just one
man, my assistant. He does odd jobs…”
“And he is paid?”
“Of course. When I first hired him he was living wildly
on the island with no job, no money, nothing.
Now he has employment, a place to stay and regular meals. That’s pay, and good pay too.”
“I’m afraid that the I L O would
disagree with you on that. He would be
the type of tense worker who has no legal protection, someone excluded from legal
legislation.”
“But you don’t understand all the things
I’ve done for this guy! He was vengeful at first, living
like a savage – a cannibal, practically - and I taught him language! You ought to hear how he has learned to
cuss!”
(The answer will be posted Saturday.)
