Greek tragedy would not be complete with out a tragic hero. Sophocles wrote Antigone with a specific character in mind for this part. Based on Aristotle’s definition‚ Creon is the tragic hero of Antigone. Creon fits Aristotle’s tragic hero traits as a significant person who is faced with difficult decisions. Creon is significant because he is king. This makes him both renowned and prosperous. Creon is not completely good nor completely bad; he is somewhere in-between‚ as humans are. The audience
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Hamlet as a Tragic Hero William Shakespeare‚ the greatest playwright of the English language‚ wrote a total of 37 plays in his lifetime‚ all of which can be categorized under tragedy‚ comedy‚ or history. The Tragedy of Hamlet‚ Shakespeare’s most popular and greatest tragedy‚ displays his genius as a playwright‚ as literary critics and academic commentators have found an unusual number of themes and literary techniques present in Hamlet. Hamlet concerns the murder of the king of Denmark and the
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Antigone: Not the Tragic Hero Sophocles‚ a great tragedian‚ was the one who gave Greek tragedies their traditional form. An important part of traditional Greek tragedies is the presence of a tragic hero. All tragic heroes should have the characteristics of rank‚ a tragic flaw‚ a downfall‚ and a recognition of mistakes. The seemingly tragic hero is Antigone. She wants to bury her brother Polyneices even though this would be going against Creon‚ who is her uncle and the king. When Antigone buries
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Illusions A Midsummer Night’s Dream Essay Is it a dream or reality? The connection between the real world and a world created by our own vivid imagination while we sleep is somewhat uncanny. A plethora of individuals cannot fathom how the brain can create such realistic scenarios in such little time. In A Midsummer Night’s Dream by William Shakespeare‚ the author uses his knowledge of dreams to create his play. A Midsummer Night’s Dream is not only the title of this play but the overall theme
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Brutus & Julius Caesar The tragic hero archetype has been played with for as long as literature has been created‚ but no one had quite a spin on it like William Shakespeare. Shakespeare’s tragic heroes were specifically designed to elicit pity and fear from the audience and to really feel their downfall. In Julius Caesar‚ the protagonist Brutus is a well-made example. But the character of which the play is named after is often not considered as one. Although the character of Julius Caesar does not
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his success goes to his head and he begins to make bad decisions and ignore the gods. He is punished for his actions and eventually he commits suicide. Each of these things shows that the character of Okonkwo is a perfect example of Aristotle’s tragic hero. Okonkwo’s story begins with demonstrations of his great pride and various accomplishments that help him to become an important member of the tribe. One of his first accomplishments is becoming a renowned wrestler: “As a young man of eighteen
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led‚ through pride or a secret flaw in their personalities‚ to suffering that changes their fortune. The tragic hero must begin in a high position and end in death or some sort of degraded role" (Definitions of Tragedy). Based on human nature‚ Aristotle’s philosophy of tragedy‚ and current literary criticism of Shakespeare’s Macbeth‚ the main character‚ Macbeth‚ is classified as a tragic hero. Born in 384 B.C. at Stagirus‚ well known philosopher Aristotle was a student to Plato for over twenty
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considered a tragic hero. Throughout the book‚ The Death of a Salesman‚ we see how Willy’s character develops and how he is a tragic hero. Some may argue that he is not a tragic hero because he is not a good father due to his excessive pride‚ but this can be overlooked since Arthur Miller‚ the author of the play‚ even supports the fact that he is a tragic hero. Furthermore‚ the flashbacks willy sees show that he does indeed wants to be a good father which means that he is a tragic hero. “Tragedy
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Aristotle uses six different points to define a tragic hero. The tragic hero must be of noble stature and have greatness. Though the tragic hero is pre-eminently great‚ he/she is not perfect. The hero’s downfall is partially his/her own fault‚ the result of free choice‚ not of accidental means. The hero’s misfortune is not wholly deserved and the punishment exceeds the crime. The fall is not pure loss. And though it arouses solemn emotion‚ tragedy does not leave the audience in a state
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To be a tragic hero‚ the heroes must be inherently good people who have good intentions. In addition to their changes in fortune‚ tragic heroes must‚ in the end‚ recognize their own responsibility for their behavior and accept their fate with dignity. In Sophocles‚ Antigone there are two types of tragic heroes a traditional tragic hero and a sophoclean tragic hero. Traditional Greek tragic heroes have four main qualities: Arete‚ a type of excellence‚ Hubris‚ an excessive degree of pride‚ Ate‚ imprudence
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