Othello V.’S. Macbeth: Battle of Tragedy
In Shakespeare’s plays Othello and Macbeth the audience is presented with two great heroes who both poses a certain character flaw that inevitably leads to their downfall. This is the idea behind a tragic hero; a person of great importance comes to a tragic end because of a serious flaw in his character. Both Othello and Macbeth find themselves on top of the world one moment and being crushed beneath it the next. The next logical comparison to make between two of Shakespeare’s tragic heroes is who is more tragic, who fits the design of the tragic hero more closely, Othello or Macbeth.
In order for one to judge who best fits the mold of the tragic hero, Othello or Macbeth, some criteria for being compared must be decided upon. The great Greek philosopher Aristotle set four main criteria by which one can judge a character tragic or not. First, the hero must be an inherently good person from the beginning of the play regardless of his station in life. Second, the character must be suitable to the idea of the hero. The character cannot be any peasant off the street or a run of the mill soldier who aspires to greatness; someone noble and believable must be employed. Third, The character must be true to life; his actions must be believable and not slanted to one extreme or another. Aristotle’s final criteria for judging a character tragic or not is character must be consistent in his actions throughout the play (Jancar 255). If a character saves a baby from a burning house and returns it to its mother in one scene he cannot take another baby and dash its head against a stone in anger in another. Also the audience should be able to somewhat guess the characters next action, to understand where the character is coming from and his motivations throughout the play.
Although not part of his four main criterions Aristotle did have three other, lesser criteria which would help enhance the tragic aspect of the work. First, the character should be of higher standing than the
In order for one to judge who best fits the mold of the tragic hero, Othello or Macbeth, some criteria for being compared must be decided upon. The great Greek philosopher Aristotle set four main criteria by which one can judge a character tragic or not. First, the hero must be an inherently good person from the beginning of the play regardless of his station in life. Second, the character must be suitable to the idea of the hero. The character cannot be any peasant off the street or a run of the mill soldier who aspires to greatness; someone noble and believable must be employed. Third, The character must be true to life; his actions must be believable and not slanted to one extreme or another. Aristotle’s final criteria for judging a character tragic or not is character must be consistent in his actions throughout the play (Jancar 255). If a character saves a baby from a burning house and returns it to its mother in one scene he cannot take another baby and dash its head against a stone in anger in another. Also the audience should be able to somewhat guess the characters next action, to understand where the character is coming from and his motivations throughout the play.
Although not part of his four main criterions Aristotle did have three other, lesser criteria which would help enhance the tragic aspect of the work. First, the character should be of higher standing than the
Cited: Bloom, Harold, ed. Macbeth. New York: Chelsea House Publishers, 1991. Campbell, Lilly, B. Shakespeare’s Tragic Heroes. Cambridge: University Press, 1930. Dean, Leonard F, ed. A Casebook on Othello. New York: Thomas Y. Crowell Company, 1961. Jancar, Barbara. The Philosophy of Aristotle. New York: Monarch Press, 1996. Shakespeare, William. Othello. Ed. Louis B. Wright, Virginia A. Lamar. New York: Pocket Books, 1957.