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.
A tragic flaw is a flaw in a character that is the cause of a downfall of the tragic hero in a tragedy. A great example of an awesome tragic hero is Antigone in Sophocles play “Antigone.” In “Antigone” Antigone s a girl whose uncle (Creon) is king. Her brother, Polynecies, has died in a war and King Creon made a decree that no one should bury him. Well, Antigone disobeys Creon and buries her brother. She says that she did it for a higher cause.
A tragic hero is virtuous character in a dramatic tragedy that is destined for a downfall. The hero learns from his mistakes and is the protagonist in the story. To be a tragic hero the character must display the elements of a Greek tragedy. In the play ‘Antigone' by Sophocles, Creon forbids Polynices to be buried because he fought with his brother for the throne and wanted the throne to destroy Thebes. Antigone; Polynices sister tries to bury him and Creon has her captured for a punishment.
“The Moronic Oedipus the King” Throughout history there have been some astounding Greek theaters. Some plays were more comedic in nature, some were romance plays, and subsequently there were some that were tragic plays. One of the furthermost Greek tragedy plays ever written was Oedipus Rex. Luminously conceived and written, Oedipus Rex dramatizes the self-discovery and calamitous demise of Oedipus, the King of Thebes. It tells the chronicle about a young Greek who was preordained to massacre his father, wed his mother, and in the process become the King of Thebes—before ultimately meeting his downfall due to his own conduct.
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.
This is one of the reasons why Willy was the only person to blame for his downfall. “It is the tragedy of a man who did believe that he alone was not meeting the qualifications laid down for mankind.” 2 I agree with this quote written by the playwright, Arthur Miller. With such a strong goal in life, that is to be wealthy and famous, he himself
Aristotle’s play “Oedipus the King” centers on King Oedipus, a tragic hero according to Aristotle’s definition. When defining the tragic hero, Aristotle lists several conditions including: the hero is of noble stature, the hero’s punishment isn’t completely his/her fault, and the hero usually becomes wiser after his/her fall occurs. The story of Oedipus would certainly satisfy all of these conditions. The most important condition however, is that the hero, while not always fully responsible for the misfortunes that befall him/her, usually have a character flaw that is partly responsible for their downfall. Aristotle refers to this as “hamartia,” which is translated to “tragic flaw.” This begs the question: What is Oedipus’s tragic flaw?
The Mode of Tragedy Complicated by Satire in Hamlet Hamlet, written by William Shakespeare, is a play which portrays tragedy beginning in prosperity and ending in misery. Shakespeare illustrates tragedy though the isolation of the hero, Hamlet not being a well developed or realistic character allows himself to be laughed at. Indeed, the mode of tragedy is complicated by satire due to the actions of the satirical hero. Satirical mode within Hamlet’s actions is targeted through his Hamartia, Inquiry with his madness and Ophelia’s insanity. Hamlet is the Prince of Denmark, son of the late King and of Gertrude.
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.
Written in 335 B.C, he codified the genre of tragedy following his reading of the Ancient Greek Tragedians; Euripides, Sophocles and Aeschylus. He codified it using six clear terms. So in order to conclude whether or not Richard II was in fact a tragedy, I am going to investigate whether or not it conforms to all the conventions set out in the Poetics. In this Aristotle explains the tragic hero as an inherently flawed character who makes a crucial mistake, his hamartia. This means he undergoes a moment of peripeteia which forces him into a sudden realisation, his moment of anagnorisis.