Sycorax
Unseen witch and mother of Caliban in Shakespeare's The Tempest.
Sycorax never appears onstage in Shakespeare's *The Tempest* (1611), but her presence haunts the play. She is a cruel and formidable witch, the mother of Caliban, one of the island’s few original inhabitants. Prospero, the play’s protagonist, is stranded on that same island. Sycorax died years before the main events unfold, yet memories of her shape key relationships. Caliban claims ownership of the island based on his blood tie to her. Prospero constantly reminds the spirit Ariel of the harsh treatment Sycorax inflicted, using that memory to keep Ariel obedient.
Scholars generally see Sycorax as a foil to Prospero, closely linked to Medea in Ovid’s *Metamorphoses*. Postcolonial critics and writers view her as a figure who gives voice to peoples—especially women—recovering from colonialism. Later adaptations of *The Tempest*, starting with William Davenant’s seventeenth-century version, gave Sycorax spoken lines but kept her as a malevolent antagonist to Prospero.
**Role in the play**
In *The Tempest*, Prospero describes Sycorax as an ancient, foul witch from Algiers. She was banished to the island for practicing sorcery “so strong / That [she] could control the Moon.” Sailors brought her there, and she later arrived on the island 'with child'—meaning Caliban was born on the island, not that she was pregnant during the voyage. Because of her pregnancy, she was spared execution and left behind. On the island, she enslaved the local spirits, especially Ariel, whom she trapped in a pine tree for disobedience. She gave birth to Caliban and taught him to worship the demonic god Setebos. She died long before Prospero and his daughter Miranda arrived. Caliban resents Prospero’s presence and power, insisting the island belongs to him because it was his mother’s before Prospero came.
**Sources**
Scholars have found few concrete facts about Shakespeare’s sources for Sycorax. Beyond her connection to the magical sorceresses Medea and Circe from Greek mythology, nothing definitive has been established. Several linguistic theories compete. Some argue her name combines the Greek *sys* (“sow”) and *corax* (“crow” or “raven”).
Quick Facts
- Series
- The Tempest
- Creator
- William Shakespeare
- Family
- Caliban (son)
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
According to the history provided by the play, Sycorax was banished from her home in Algiers to the island on which the play takes place. She later arrived on the island 'with child,' meaning Caliban was born there, not that she was pregnant at the time of banishment. She proceeded to enslave the spirits there, chief among them Ariel, whom she eventually imprisoned in a pine tree for disobedience. Sycorax birthed Caliban and taught him to worship the demonic god Setebos. She dies long before the arrival of Prospero and his daughter, Miranda. Caliban grows to hate Prospero's presence and power on the island, claiming that the land belongs to him since it was his mother's before Prospero appeared.
Scholars have unearthed very few facts about Shakespeare's sources for Sycorax. In fact, other than her connection to the magical sorceresses Medea and Circe of Greek mythology, nothing conclusive has been proposed. Several competing linguistic theories have been put forth for her name, including combinations of Greek words meaning 'sow' and 'crow,' or 'the Scythian raven,' as well as possible Arabic or Latin origins.
Reader's Guide
Sycorax's silent role plays an important part in postcolonial interpretations of The Tempest. Because she is native to Algiers and her story is only heard through others (Prospero, Ariel, and Caliban), she is championed by some scholars as a representation of the silenced African woman. Postcolonial authors have also claimed her; for example, Kamau Brathwaite, in his 1994 work Barabajan Poems, includes 'Sycorax's book' as a counterpart to 'Prospero's book.' Other postcolonial scholars have argued that Shakespeare's audiences would have connected Sycorax with the threat of Islamic expansionism, inverting traditional interpretations by viewing her as the coloniser rather than Prospero.
In The Tempest, Shakespeare presents two powerful sorcerers, Prospero and Sycorax, who have both controlled the island. Initially appearing as a contrasting pair, upon closer analysis the differences disappear and the similarities grow. Both were exiled from their homelands, both have children, and both coerce Ariel into doing their bidding. Sycorax has been described as the matriarchal figure of The Tempest, with modernist authors such as Sylvia Plath and Ted Hughes alluding to her to illustrate destructive feminine power. Some critics have seen both Caliban and Sycorax as instances of indeterminate racial or ethnic identity, noting that the phrase 'blue-eyed hag' suggests racial uncertainty because North Africans of 'Argier' sometimes have blue eyes.
Did You Know?
- Sycorax is an unseen character in The Tempest; her story is only heard through Prospero, Ariel, and Caliban.
- She was banished from Algiers while pregnant with Caliban and abandoned on the island.
- She imprisoned Ariel in a pine tree for disobedience before dying years before the play's main action.
- Scholars have proposed multiple linguistic origins for her name, including Greek, Arabic, and Latin possibilities.
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