Although the magic of Prospero, the deposed Duke of Milan at the center of Shakespeare's The Tempest, is often associated with art or creativity, this reading of the text seems incompatible with a substantive amount of textual evidence. In particular, if the play is a celebration of Prospero's artistic ability, why does the magician renounce his magic once he has achieved his goal: the happy marriage of his daughter and the reconquest of his dukedom? The answer to this question is suggested throughout the text (although Prospero himself never states it directly): Prospero's magic seems to contain a certain dehumanizing and addictive element that Prospero understands to be at least partially responsible for his exile. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay The first evidence that Prospero is addicted to magic occurs in Act I, Scene II of the play, when Prospero explains to his daughter Miranda how he lost the dukedom to his brother Antonio. According to Prospero: And Prospero, the first duke, being thus reputed for dignity, and for liberal arts without equal; these being all my studies, The government I imposed on my brother And became a stranger to my state, transported And kidnapped in secret studies.... (I. ii, 72-77)In short, while Prospero blames his brother due to the loss of the dukedom, he essentially admits that he is more interested in his "secret studies", presumably magical, than in actually leading Milan. This belies the all-consuming nature of magic: Prospero states that "my library was a dukedom large enough" (I. I, 109-110) while blaming his brother for the loss of a kingdom he clearly cared little about. This refusal to take responsibility for his exile seems like a kind of denial: Prospero admits that he is completely consumed by his studies, but refuses to admit that they have made him lose contact with the outside world, his duchy. Further Evidence of Dependence The nature of Prospero's "art" lies in the characterization of Sycorax, the witch who inhabited the island before Prospero. Prosper describes Sycorax as: ...This damned witch Sycorax, by manifold evils and sorceries terrible to enter the human hearing, from Algiers, you know, was banished. (I. ii 265-268) For Prospero, Sycorax's magic is somehow "evil" while his is somehow "good" in nature. However, a comparison of the actions of both wizards reveals fundamental similarities between the two characters. Both Prospero and Sycorax were exiled from their homeland due to their magic. Both proclaim themselves "ruler" of the island by enslaving Ariel, a native spirit, and forcing him to do his bidding. While Prospero states that Sycorax used Ariel to "execute his earthly and abhorred commands," (I ii, 275) Prospero neglects to mention that, in Caliban, he has another less talented servant whom he essentially subjects to slave labor. Furthermore, just as Prospero and Ariel characterize Sycorax's magic as evil, Caliban characterizes Prospero's magic as evil and sinister. Caliban tells Stefano and Trinculo that: ...I am subject to a tyrant, a sorcerer who with his cunning has cheated me of the island. (3.2 41-43) In describing Prospero's magic as inherently "good" in nature, the reader confuses Prospero's arguably noble intentions with his magic itself. After discovering Caliban, Trinculo, and Stephen attempting to steal his belongings, Prospero curses them, stating: Go, accuse my goblins to grind their joints with dry convulsions, shorten their sinews with old cramps, and make them more stained than pard . or mountain cat. (4.1 260-263) With this spell, Prospero demonstrates.