Shakespeare's minor characters are often as diverse and essential to the plot as their protagonist counterparts, used in his plays to illuminate the goals and feelings of the main characters. The presence of these characters also expands the audience experience by providing audience members with characters they can identify with. In The Tempest, for example, Antonio helps illuminate Prospero's latest difficulties, creating sympathy in the audience, while Shakespeare uses Stephano to parody Antonio, creating humor in this mockery. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay The character of Antonio is first introduced to the audience in the first scene, on the boat, and further explained in Prospero's story of how he was forced into Milan. Prospero's description of his brother, “Your false uncle” and “that a brother should be so wicked,” gives the audience an indication of the character's nature. This would be seen as a biased statement, causing the audience to suspect Prospero's interpretations, were it not for Antonio's actions on the boat, where he proved himself to be an extremely unpleasant character in his treatment of both those inferior to him in position, the Boatswain and older than him in wisdom, Gonzalo. For example, the quote “Hang cur! Hang me, you son of a bitch, you insolent noisemaker. We are less afraid of drowning than you." Antonio then makes it clear that he does not regret supplanting his brother's power, as when asked about his conscience he says, "Yes, sir: where is it?". This has the dramatic effect of alienating him from the audience as he feels no guilt after betraying his own family. Antonio is effective as a minor character as he is one of the few characters on the island who has the power to stop Prospero. Prospero needs Alonso, the king, to be reinstated as Duke of Milan. However, Antonio's plot to kill the king and Gonzalo, "gather, and when I lift up my hands, you do the same, to fall on Gonzalo", threatens this and creates a sense of anticipation and fear in his various appearances.Where Shakespeare uses Antonio to darken the overall atmosphere of the play, contrasts with another minor character, Stephano, whose plot is designed to be entertaining. Its story revolves around a plot to kill Prospero with Caliban, "yes, yes, my lord: I will give him the sleeper, where thou mightest drive a nail into his head", which Shakespeare presents as a parody of the plot to kill. the king. This character's humor is evident through the lines "I was the man in the moon when it was time", as contemporary audiences would know that he had one of the lowest social positions of all the characters on the island, yet Caliban foolishly believes that a god. Shakespeare once again uses his minor characters to throw off his major plot lines, as Stephano's treatment of Caliban increases the audience's sympathy towards him, as well as giving them a harsher view of Prospero, due to the connotations of slavery. Analyzing the play through a postcolonial reading, the associations of racism and Prospero's acquisition of the island that once belonged to Caliban present Caliban as less of an antagonist. Miranda's accusation of rape, "until you tried to violate my son's honor," can also be linked to the white population's belief that people from colonized countries were savages who were seen killing and raping. The characters of Robin and Rafe from Marlowe's Doctor Faustus are used in a similar technique, as they illuminate the madness of.