Tragic heros have to start out as a success, making them a ‘hero’ and they usually have some sort of outstanding quality or greatness. Then, they experience a downfall and that could be associated with a flaw that this person has, giving them the ‘tragic’ characteristic. At the end of it all, the downfall will have had a huge impact, not only on the ‘tragic hero’ but the people around them. Britney Spears is a perfect example of a tragic hero. She started becoming famous at the very young age of 11. After this, her popularity was already very high, so she decided to release her first album. She truly was a huge celebrity. Then in 2007 things started to go downhill for her. She started doing things she was not proud of until it pushed her to
Amy Tan was born on February 19, 1952 in Oakland, California. As a child, her family frequently moved around, eventually settling in Santa Clara, California. Her father, John Tan, was a Baptist Minister and an electrical engineering who came to America to escape the Chinese Civil War. Tan’s mother, Daisy, fled to America to leave behind an abusive marriage in China. The traumatic early life of abuse of her mother would later inspire Amy Tan to write The Kitchen God’s Wife. Growing up, her parents had dreams of her becoming a concert pianist or a doctor, but to their dismay was constantly reading and dreamed of being an artist. When Tan was 15 years old, her older brother, Peter, and father died due to brain tumors. These devastating events lead Daisy Tan to relocate the remaining family, Amy and her younger brother and only remaining sibling, John, to Switzerland.
When people think of a tragic hero they picture a hero like Hercules that died in a devastating way. It turns out that a tragic hero is actually someone who has a judgement error or a flaw that fuses with fate to create a tragedy. A tragic hero is more like Shakespeare’s Romeo, he is defined as a tragic hero because of his nobility, his actions and fate that led him to a tragic death. “Into the Wild” by John Krakauer proves that Chris McCandless was a tragic hero. Chris was a tragic hero because of his hubris, good character, high stature, error of judgement, he was his own nemesis, and the pity he got from the audience.
Aristotle’s definition of a tragic hero is someone of great importance or royalty. The hero must go through something terrible such as a relative’s death. We must feel what this character is feeling throughout the story. Aristotle also said that a tragic hero scan be defeated by a tragic flaw, such as hubris or human pride. In Sophocles’ tragedy Antigone, both Creon and Antigone are tragic heroes.
Unexpectedly, the fans caught on to her personal drug life. The media noticed she began to lose weight. She had dropped three whole dress sizes within months. She then explained to the public that “I’m a musician, not a model.” Amy cared little about what people thought of her, as long as she put out selling music that attracted fans. Delaying the drugs for a few weeks, she recorded and dropped her second album “Back to Black.” The album was released November 5, 2007. It won Best pop vocal album and was nominated album of the year. Amy also tied with five other artists as being the most awarded female for a single award ceremony. “Rehab”, which became her hit single on the album hit number seven on the charts in the U.K and was number nine on the Billboard Hot 100 in the U.S. The record alone won five grammys including Record of the Year, Song of the Year, and Best Female Pop Vocal Performance. The song was written about her refusing to attend an alcohol rehabilitation center.
There has been a lot of discussion about what truly defines a tragic hero. If we take a look at the work of well known Philosopher Aristotle, he clearly defined what is needed for a character to be considered a tragic hero. He pointed out 5 specific traits that the person must have to fit the role. They must have skewed judgement, which normally puts them in the position that they are facing. The character must have a realization during the story, there should be an event where they find out that their immoral ways have led them down a path of destruction. They should figure out their wrong doings on their own by taking the time to reflect upon themselves and understand the mistakes they have been making in life, and how to correct them. The person should be filled with pride, as if no one can touch
A tragic hero can be described as a great or virtuous character in a dramatic tragedy who is
A tragic hero is a person who has qualities of a hero such as intelligence and strength but makes choices that lead to their self-destruction. The tragic hero is usually from a noble family or high position. Oedipus from The Sophocles is a tragic hero because he possesses tragic flaws such as hubris, hamartia, and too much curiosity. Marcus Brutus, a Roman politician, also serves to be a tragic hero since he is too naive, honest, and sometimes impulsive. Both Oedipus and Brutus have certain characteristics that determine them to be a tragic hero.
"A man doesn't become a hero until he can see the root of his own downfall." -Aristotle No one wants to be a tragic hero. A great or virtuous character, but sadly they are destined for downfall because of their own judgement. Sophocles’ Oedipus exemplifies Aristotle’s definition of a tragic hero.
According to Aristotle, “A tragic hero is a character who is not eminently good and just, yet whose misfortune is brought about not by vice and depravity, but by some error or frailty…” The classic tragic hero has some type of tragic character flaw which creates an inner struggle, leads to his making a serious error in judgment, and leads to his eventual downfall and death.
Whitney Houston is a superstar. She works with a lot of people who struggle with additive behaviors. This social exposure has been difficult for her to handle. From media reports, Ms. Houston appears to be very stressed over family matters. She reports that she had a tumultuous marriage; suffering through many years of infidelity and public scandals in addition to the drug and alcohol arrests of her husband. Additionally, Whitney has been embroiled in another legal battle with her father for failure to settle a $100 million debt she owed his company (Whitney Houston, 2011).
definition of a tragic hero: ‘A man who is highly renowned and prosperous, but one who is not
By definition, a tragic hero is a protagonist that due to some tragic flaw loses everything he has. Throughout history, literature has always been filled with main characters possessing some tragic flaw. In Macbeth, Macbeth’s tragic flaw is his enormous ambition to become king. In Hamlet, Hamlet’s tragic flaw is his need for revenge for the death of his father at the hands of his uncle. In the Epic of Gilgamesh, Gilgamesh’s tragic flaw is his need to be remembered. In the Anglo-Saxon epic Beowulf, Beowulf also has a tragic flaw, excessive pride and the search for fame, which ultimately leads to his demise.
A tragic hero in literature is a type of character who has fallen from grace, where the downfall suggests feelings of misfortune and distress among the audience. The tragic flaw of the hero leads to their demise or downfall that in turn brings a tragic end. Aristotle defines a tragic hero as “a person who must evoke a sense of pity and fear in the audience. He is considered a man of misfortune that comes to him through error of judgment.” The characteristics of a tragic hero described by Aristotle are hamartia, hubris, peripeteia, anagnorisis, nemesis and catharsis which allows the audience to have a catharsis of arousing feelings.
A Tragic Hero is a common figure in many of Shakespeare’s works. A Tragic Hero is usually a figure of royalty, fame or greatness. This person is predominately good, but falls from prominence due to personality flaws that eventually lead to self-destruction.