In this scene Caliban curses Prospero and describes the punishments he suffers. Trinculo and Caliban meet, wonder at and hide from the storm together. Stephano, drunk, mistakes them at first for a two-headed monster. He gets them drunk and Caliban adopts him as his new master and as a god, which Trinculo finds hilarious. They form a comic parallel to the three men of sin (Alonso, Sebastian and Antonio), and like them also plot to take power. Their clowning gives the audience an opportunity to relax and laugh, though as always in Shakespeare’s plays the comedy is used to mirror the main action and deepen its meaning.
Definition of Comic Relief (Source: https://literarydevices.net/comic-relief/)
Comic relief is a literary device used in plays and novels to introduce light entertainment between tragic scenes. It is often used in the shape of a humorous incident, a funny incident, a tricky remark or a laughing commentary. It is deliberately inserted to make the audiences feel relief. In this sense, it makes the tragedy seem less intense. Although it is often considered a diversion, it plays a significant role in advancing the action of the play or the novel. Etymologically, comic relief is a phrase of two words comic and relief. The meanings are clear that it is a relief provided through comic incidents or remarks.
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