The idea of revenge as a means of catharsis in Shakespeares The Tempest is revealed in the prison setting of Hag-Seed through the characterization of the prisoners and Felix. Prosperos magical performance on the island enables his discovery of an ethic of forgiveness and eventually the relinquishment of the control he has over others through renouncing his magical powers thus reflecting Shakespeares idea of revenge as a means of catharsis. After the politicians enter the green room and eat Felixs drugged grapes, they all fall prey to various frightening delusions. In the midst of their bad trip, TimEEz and Red Coyote, who play Stephano and Trinculo respectively, enter the room and speculate amongst themselves on how best to exploit the physically weakened men. Atwood juxtaposes the prisoners to the politicians to highlight the role reversal that has taken place, as the men ironically state, We could put them on show, Gibbering lunatics. Street people. Addicts. Dregs of society. Always good for a laugh. The prisoners are recycling the rhetoric that politicians use to condemn and marginalize them often for offenses like drug use and petty robbery, which Atwood elucidates stems from poverty and social oppression, rather than inherently bad character. Therefore through the process of Felixs revenge in allowing the prisoners to perform their innermost perspectives, each prison
er is able to exercise their own form of revenge as a means of catharsis through the setting of the green room as a room in which the power of the individual is reversed. This is also evident through Leggs use of rap to debunk the idea that the prisoners, similar to Calibans modern-day heirs, are monsters who deserve to be locked up and exiled from society. His use of derogatory words ironically draws a parallel with the crimes committed by those in authority, You called me dirty, you called me a scum, You called me a criminal, a no-good bum, But youre a white-collar crook, you have been cookin the books, Rakin taxpayer money, we know what you took, So whos more monstrous…than you? He points out that in fact, its the politicians who have used their privilege to commit crimes to their own advantage, often with consequences much greater than the petty felonies for which the prisoners are incarcerated. Once again, the prisoners are flipping the script on the politicians; they transform the rhetoric and speeches to suggest for punishment of the politicians. This, therefore, allows the prisoners to experience catharsis through the process of Felixs revenge within the green room since Felix utilizes this space to allow the powerful to become defenseless. Thus Shakespeares idea of revenge as a means of catharsis is demonstrated through the green room setting within the prison.