Sebastian : Character Sketch
Sebastian is the brother of King Alonso. He is a villain of the play”The Tempest”. He becomes a partner with Antonio in the conspiracy against his brother, Alonso. Some traits of his character are –
• Cruel and Evil
Sebastian is a symbol of evil as there is nothing that is redeeming in him. Sebastian’s cruelty appears first when Gonzalo tries to console Alonso in his grief over the supposed death of his son, Ferdinand, Sebastian simply aggravates the King’s grief. Sebastian seems to have no feeling for Ferdinand, nor does he offer any word of sympathy to his brother Alonso. On the other hand he enhances Alonso’s grief by putting the blame for the whole misfortune on Alonso.
•A Scoffer
Like Antonio, Sebastian seems to be a habitual scoffer. Sebastian’s mockery is merely a cloak for his own guilt.
As Gonzalo says, Sebastian is one of those men who have such sensibility and nimble lungs that they always use to laugh at nothing. Like Antonio, again he mocks not only at Gonzalo but also the strange shapes who bring in the banquet.
When Ariel threatens the three sinners with dire consequences, Sebastian in a defiant and mocking tone says that he can fight all the devils provided they come one by one.
• A Conspirator and Hungry of Power
Sebastian becomes a partner with Antonio in the conspiracy against his own brother, Alonso. Though the plot is suggested by Antonio, but Sebastian offers ready soil for the seeds of the conspiracy which Antonio tries to sow. There is in him an unconscious ambition, a latent desire for power. And therefore, when an opportunity comes, he readily seizes upon it. He hardly offers any resistance to the evil which Antonio injects into him.
• Having No Repentance and Remorseful feeling
Of the there criminals responsible for the wrong done to Prospero, Alonso is the only one who is filled with remorse and repentance. In the case of Sebastian as in that of Antonio, we do not find any signs of repentance. Prospero does speaks towards the end of the play as if he has perceived some remorse in these two men we, however doubt whether such is the case. Like Antonio Sebastian seems to be utterly unscrupulous and unrepentant. It is true that the evil in him has been stimulated chiefly by Antonio, but once that evil has been aroused, Sebastian has no thought of the consequences nor does he allow his conscience to exercise any check upon him.