rich and popular. The Ancient Greek defines a tragic hero as a superb character of noble birth within a tragedy whose downfall eventually leads to his hamartia (Donovan‚ n.d.). In this case‚ Willy is not a great man and thus does not fit into the classic definition of a tragic hero. Considered as an ordinary man‚ Willy’s fall is attributed to hamartia‚ which is in line with the Aristotle view of a tragic hero. Aristotle also asserts that a tragic hero is characterized by hubris (excessive pride
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Sophocles Tragic Hero: Creon The play Antigone written by Sophocles (496 B.C -406 B.C.) was first performed around 441 B.C. Sophocles though it was important for this play to be performed during the time as he was witnessing society move away from the gods and toward a anthropocentric view‚ thinking that man and his abilities were more important. This all took place during what was called the Golden Age (480-430B.C.) in Greece during which Pericles ruled (461-439B.C.). The Olympics first took place
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Hamlet as a Tragic Hero The story Hamlet by William Shakespeare is a tale of a young prince of Denmark who seeks revenge. His father who was the king of Denmark was killed by Hamlet’s uncle Claudius. Hamlet was a good soul who just lost his father‚ so he didn’t quite know how to react. Hamlet attempts to be a hero and save Denmark from having a king who killed his own brother just to take the throne. But Hamlet’s hatefulness and indecisiveness leads to his downfall. But in the end‚
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When Abigail threatens to accuse yet another innocent soul of witchcraft in her plot to have him to herself‚ John Proctor breaks forth‚ shouting‚ “It [Abigail] is a whore!... I have made a bell of my honor! I have rung the doom of my good name—you will believe me‚ Mr. Danforth! My wife is innocent‚ except she knew a whore when she saw one!” (Miller 3.3). John Proctor‚ the protagonist of the play‚ The Crucible‚ by Arthur Miller‚ has an affair with Abigail Williams‚ a seventeen-year-old orphan‚ which
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Juliet spelled out the ends for quite a few of its characters. Romeo and Juliet is a dramatic play written by William Shakespeare. Most of its characters are considered tragic heroes; someone who is destined for greatness‚ but is doomed to fail. Because of everything that happens to him‚ Mercutio is the best fit for a tragic hero. Mercutio is a relative of the Prince of Verona‚ so he is of high status‚ but he never really shows this. He has a very cocky‚ arrogant‚ and funny personality‚ and is
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Tragic Hero: Othello In all tragedies there must be a character that experiences disaster. In The Tragedy of Othello‚ Othello qualifies as tragic hero because poor judgement causes a catastrophe that he did not deserve‚ ultimately reversing his fate. Jealousy‚ lack of judgement‚ and concern for reputation are some of Othello’s flaws‚ but the principle flaw that causes his downfall is that he trusts easily. Iago knows that Othello is too trusting and plans to exploit that. During his soliloquy when
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Antigone is a tragic hero. Aristotle says that there are specific characteristics that compose a tragic hero. The hero must suffer more than she deserves‚ the hero must be doomed from the start‚ but bears no responsibility for possessing his flaw‚ the hero’s story should arouse fear and empathy‚ and he has to be faced with a very serious decision that he has to make. Antigone applies all of these categories to be a tragic hero. Antigone is not afraid to be a tragic hero and knows what she is doing
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In Chinua Achebe’s novel Things Fall Apart the protagonist Okonkwo can be compared to a Greek tragic hero. Throughout the novel we see many heroic qualities as well as a tragic flaw that allows Okonkwo to be associated with a Greek tragic hero. There are many positive attributes given and attributed to Okonkwo‚ but it is that tragic flaw that humanizes him and allows us to decipher his growth and how he personally changes. From the very beginning of the novel Okonkwo is described as very strong
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Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe is about a tragic hero named Okonkwo living in the struggles of his changing Ibo culture. Okonkwo is a tragic hero with characteristics such as high social class‚ excessive pride‚ and most importantly‚ a tragic flaw. These characteristics described by Aristotle‚ a famous Greek philosopher‚ represents Okonkwo’s downfall that leads to his tragedy. Aristotle described that tragic heroes usually start off from a high position in society. This makes the hero’s downfall
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Okonkwo was a tragic hero because he was a great warrior‚ great wrestler‚ and had multiple wives. Okonkwo’s flaw is that he has too much pride that led to his downfall. Throughout the course of senior year literature‚ we have read several stories that have tragic heroes as their main characters. In Things Fall Apart‚ Okonkwo is the tragic hero. Okonkwo relates to Willy in Death of a Salesman‚ by Arthur Miller‚ and Oedipus in Oedipus‚ by Sophocles Oedipus. Okonkwo is a tragic hero because he is
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