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.
Even though Lear is not a man of intellectual brilliance he is a “great soul,” with the capacity for feeling deeply the sorrow of rejection and abandonment by his own. The character of Lear in “King Lear” was known as a tragic hero, because the play meets all the requirements of a tragedy based on Aristotle’s Poetics via A.C. Bradley’s, the Shakespearean tragic Hero. Aristotle suggests that a hero of a tragedy must evoke from the audience a sense of pity or fear, saying, the change of fortune presented must not be the spectacle of a virtuous man brought from prosperity to adversity. King Lear has many common qualities, which appear to be essential to the tragic effect. According to Aristotle’s criteria of a tragic hero, King Lear shows characteristics of a tragic hero by having pre-eminence, tragic flaw and gaining of interest.
According to Aristotle, a tragic hero must be a character of noble stature and greatness while embodying nobility as an inner virtue. Next, while tragic heroes are great, they are never perfect and always posses character flaws to make them more relatable to the masses. Continuing, a tragic hero’s fall from power is the fault of the hero; the result of free choice usually attributed to the heroes imperfection. Next, A hero’s actions result in an increase of self- awareness and self-knowledge. Finally, the fate of a tragic hero does not leave the audience in a state of depression, but draws solemn emotions of pity and sympathy.
Yes, Aristotle did say that happiness is complete in itself; he is saying that the ultimate goal in the end is happiness, but in order for us to reach this final goal we must exercise virtues because happiness depends on the cultivation of virtue. The word happiness can be a misleading word because we usually conceive happiness in a subjective mind, such as having a cold beer on a hot day of some hot cocoa on a cold day. For Aristotle, happiness is the end goal which sums up one’s total life. In order to reach this ultimate end, our actions must be self-sufficient and final, “For we always choose it because of itself, never because of something else” (Hackett 8). Aristotle claims that most people would agree that happiness is the end and that it must meet all the requirements.
Marius and Jean Valjean: Romantic Hero and Antihero The romantic hero is one that rejects established norms and conventions, has been rejected by society, and has the self as the center of his or her own existence. Based on this explanation, Marius Pontemercy is truly a romantic hero. In the book Les Misérables, the characters of Marius and Jean Valjean are both truly heroic men throughout the story. However, they are polar opposites in a romantic sense, with Jean Valjean being an antihero and Marius a knight in shining armor. Marius goes against reason, is one who has been rejected in society, and is the center of his own existence… and therefore, even though Jean Valjean’s intentions are noble, Marius is the true romantic hero.
A Hapless Hero Arthur Miller demonstrated in Death of a Salesman that tragic heroism still possible in the modern world, but the tragic hero or tragic heroine should be of noble birth or hold an important social position, be basically virtuous, and desire to do good. However, Wily Loman is not a tragic hero because he is hapless rather than heroic, his personal tragedy that comes from his lack in ability to admit his errors and learn from them. Instead, he fits Miller's description of the pathetic character, one who "by virtue of his witlessness, his insensitivity, or the very air he gives off, is incapable of grappling with a much superior force," (Miller1). The definition of a tragic hero is a condition of life that allows an individual to find the route of self-realization and discover to the fullest extent of his or her capabilities. This insight only occurs when an individual bravely endure the "total examination of the 'unchangeable' environment" (Miller1).
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. The theory of Greek tragedy refers to the protagonist or hero whom suffers some serious misfortune which is not accidental, mostly predetermined and very significant in that the misfortune is logically connected with the hero’s actions. This tragedy stresses the vulnerability of human beings
Othello: A Tragic Hero and an Aristotelian Tragedy I. Othello, the Moor of Venice by William Shakespeare is one of his most acclaimed tragedies. “Othello’s story is a tragedy, and not just a very sad story, because it is a story of the destruction of a noble, deeply admirable man brought about through his own weaknesses, systematically exploited by a malicious enemy” (Porter, 2005, pg. 27). However, it has long been debated whether Othello satisfies the requirements of an Aristotelian tragedy. A.
Othello: A Tragic Hero Othello is the epitome of a tragic hero. He starts out as a rather respectable and rational General, but was eventually consumed by jealousy and anger. A tragic hero must start out high in power and have tragic flaws that lead him to ultimately a tragedy. Othello’s tragic flaw is that he is easily manipulated, leading him to trust the wrong people. The play begins by showing the readers that Othello is a noble General.
While it may seem, that the tragedy of Othello was caused by the evil villain Iago, I believe that he was not the only one to blame. Although Iago played a big role in destroying his enemy, it was Othello’s character flaws that led himself to his own downfall. It is because of Othello’s gullibility, lack of trust in others, insecurity, and jealousy that he becomes a victim of his own tragedy. Othello is a very gullible person, and it is because of his gullibility that he is easily tricked into this situation by Iago. There many points in the play that show just how gullible Othello is***He trusted Iago; even after realizing Iago had a “monstrous” plan in mind Othello still trusted him, in 3.3.106-107 Othello says “by heaven, thou echoest me, As if there were some monster in thy thought.” Othello suspects Iago of having an agenda, in 3.3.118-119 when he asks Iago why he is weighing his words so carefully before he speaks, “And for I know thou’rt full of love and honesty and weig’st thy words before giv’st them breath.” In this quote we can see that Othello is on to Iago, he realizes how careful Iago is and even gets the feeling that maybe he is hiding something from him but what does he do?