In “The Tempest,” the spirit imprisoned in a cloven pine is Ariel.
Before Prospero arrived on the island, the witch Sycorax imprisoned Ariel inside a split pine tree as punishment for refusing to obey her commands. Ariel remained trapped there for twelve years, suffering in torment while Sycorax eventually died.
Prospero later released Ariel, but freedom did not come immediately. In exchange for rescue, Ariel became Prospero’s servant and carried out his magical commands, including creating the storm that gives the play its title. Ariel repeatedly reminds Prospero of his promise to set him free.
A common mix-up is to identify Caliban, rather than Ariel, as the imprisoned supernatural figure. Caliban is Sycorax’s son and the island’s original inhabitant, while Ariel is an airy spirit associated with music, invisibility, and elemental magic. Ariel’s eventual freedom helps complete the play’s movement from control and revenge toward mercy and release.