Medea, an ancient Greek tragedy written by Euripides has Medea, a female character as the tragic hero. Many people consider her a wicked villain but they overlook her positive individualities. Medea has three vital characteristics described in Aristotle’s Peotics that makes up a tragic hero. Thus, Medea is a tragic hero with heroic code, superhuman skills and most important of all a tragic misfortune. Every hero requires having certain code of conduct which distinguishes him among ordinary people.
Antigone; Polynices sister tries to bury him and Creon has her captured for a punishment. In ‘Antigone’ Creon is the tragic hero because he displays the elements of a Greek tragedy peripeteia, anagnorisis and hubris. Hubris is the excessive pride of arrogance; it is the quality in a character that most often brings about their downfall in tragedy. Creon portrays hubris toward several characters in the play like; Antigone and Teiresias. 'I do believe the creatures both are mad, one lately crazed, the other from her birth' (Sophocles 141) In this quote Creon is calling both Antigone and Iseme crazy for feeling sorrow for their brothers death.This displays hubris because he is being ignorant as he is filled with excessive pride.
According to Aristotle’s theory of tragedy and the most confirmed definition of the central character, Oedipus from the Greek play, Oedipus Rex, is considered of a classical model of the tragic hero. Oedipus, being the tragic hero of the play, must demonstrate an essential element to arouse emotions of pity and fear within the audience to achieve the emotional catharsis or purgation. With that being noted, Oedipus had to have some features and characteristics to ensure the state of purgation throughout the audience. In fact, Oedipus as a character in the play has all the features of the tragic hero Aristotle has concluded about. Firstly, for the reader to understand why Oedipus in the Greek play, Oedipus Rex is a classical example of tragic hero, one must know the theory.
Tragic heroes are, generally, the main character of a tragedy. Tragic heroes often error in their own actions and judgments of others leading them to their ultimate downfall, which commonly ends in their own death. Aristotle defines a tragic hero as, “a man of noble stature. He is not an ordinary man, but a man with outstanding quality and greatness about him” (Aristotle). In order to be a tragic hero, the audience must be able to understand the character, and to feel pity and fear for him.
Antigone was also doomed from the beginning. She was doomed from the beginning despite her noble intentions to bury her dead brother. Antigone from the play “Antigone”, by Sophocles, is a tragic her because she exhibits all the qualities of a tragic hero. A tragic hero is a protagonist in a tragedy who must have a tragic flaw. Antigone from the play “Antigone” indeed does have a tragic flaw.
In Shakespeare’s play Macbeth guilt strongly affects Macbeth and Lady Macbeth as it is shown through the emotions, the murder and the suicide. The changes of Macbeth’s emotions demonstrates how guilt develop within him. Through Macbeth aggressiveness he demonstrates the cause of his guilt. Macbeth, no longer acts like his past self, and violently kills Duncan. This betrayal that he demonstrates,
Aristotle’s definition of tragedy is “Tragedy is a story taking the hero from happiness to misery because of a fatal flaw or mistake on his part. To be a true tragic hero he must also elicit a strong emotional response of pity and fear from the audience.” (Aristotle) Creon fits perfectly into this description of a tragic hero.There have been many controversies regarding the true nature of Creon in the play “Antigone” by Anouilh.In this essay of mine, we shall perceive Creon as a noble man rather than an arrogant tyrant.In my view,Creon was the protagonist while Antigone was undoubtedly the antagonist, the cause of the whole tragedy who caused her own downfall as well as the downfall of Haemon and Eurydice courtesy of her obnoxious and immature behaviour. To prove my point here, I shall start with the fact that Creon hadn’t desired power.He was a patron of art, a lover of music, an idealist. This had been stated by the Chorus in the Prologue. This throne had been forced upon him by the circumstances after the death of Eteocles.
In The Tragedy of Macbeth, William Shakespeare demonstrates the build of guilt and remorse that Macbeth and his Queen begin to develop, consequently aids and foreshadows their demise. Shakespeare uses a wide variety of imagery to emphasize how guilt affects Macbeth’s life. Also, throughout the play, multiple pieces of evidence are displayed to prove how Macbeth and Lady Macbeth both change drastically from the beginning to the end of this piece. Finally, towards the end of the play, Macbeth finally comes to terms with himself and his devious actions, thus restoring his old mentality. Guilt is a factor of human nature and touches just about everyone at some point.
Oedipus was similar to Macbeth because both Oedipus and Macbeth were confronted and destroyed by a set of circumstances, Oedipus by fate and Macbeth by the witches and their prophecies. Oedipus the king is given the throne of Thebes because he answered the riddle of the sphinx correctly. Oedipus unknowingly killed the king of Thebes and took his place and ruler. When he was young, Oedipus received a prophecy that he would eventually kill his father and marry his mother. Sickened by this prophecy, Oedipus ran away from home to prevent these horrid events from occurring.
Oedipus Rex, by Sophocles is one of the most famous tragedies ever written. The play centers on Oedipus the King of Thebes, who is cursed with an unfortunate prophecy. Though Oedipus is doomed by fate, his own qualities lead to his eventual ruin. Oedipus is in fact a tragic hero, because he embodies every aspect of the definition itself, the first part of the definition states the character/protagonist must be of noble birth and possess noble and moralistic character, the second portion of the definition explains the character is not perfect; he or she contains a harmartia or tragic flaw, and the third component of the definition states the character must recognize their role in their own demise and in turn experience great self realization. The character Oedipus accommodates the first aspect of the definition of a tragic hero.