“So I have another question. Can you read?”
The question took him by surprise. A flash of fear crossed his face. Reading was illegal for slaves in Virginia. But after a long moment, he said softly, "Yes, miss. I taught myself. I know it's not allowed, but I... I couldn't help it. Books are gateways to places I'll never visit."
“What are you reading?”
“Whatever I can find. Old newspapers, sometimes books I borrow. I read slowly. I haven't learned well, but I read.”
“Have you ever read Shakespeare?”
His eyes widened. "Yes, miss. There's an old copy in the library that no one touches. I read it last night, when everyone's asleep."
“What plays?”
"Hamlet, Romeo and Juliet, The Tempest." His voice grew enthusiastic despite himself. "The Tempest is my favorite. Prospero controlling the island with magic. Ariel longing for freedom. Caliban treated like a monster, yet perhaps more human than anyone else." He stopped abruptly. "Excuse me, miss. I'm talking too much."
"No," I said, smiling. I was smiling genuinely for the first time in this strange conversation. "Keep talking. Tell me about Caliban."
And something extraordinary happened. Josiah, the enormous slave known as the Brute, began discussing Shakespeare with an intelligence that would have impressed university professors.
Caliban is called a monster, but Shakespeare shows us that he was enslaved, his island stolen, his mother's magic ignored. Prospero calls him a savage, but Prospero has arrived on the island and claimed ownership of everything, including Caliban himself. So who is the real monster?
"Do you consider Caliban a character you can empathize with?"
"I see Caliban as a human being, treated as less than human, but still human." His voice trailed off. "Like... like slaves."
