Oedipus by Sophocles: An Example of a Tragic Hero

Sophocles presented the world with Oedipus around 2500 years ago. Never-the-less, the story remains among the most riveting of all time. Unfortunately, today when we hear the mention of the name Oedipus we place negative connotations around it. Oedipus, after all, had an unnatural sexual relationship with his own mother! In actuality, however, this relationship emerged entirely innocently. Oedipus was not some misguided sexual pervert of an earlier time. He was, in fact, a man that was driven by a very high internal moral standard. It was that internal moral standard that ultimately entwined him in a sequence of events

By definition tragic heroes can be considered one who is held up high by society for the good deeds they bring, but is then slowly or quickly taken away from that grace and placed in a world far below what they were originally. An example of this is the excerpt and the tragedy of Oedipus the king. The play shows that the faults humanity can fall through when put into a very stressful situation. Oedipus is a tragic hero because he wants to improve the lives of his citizens, he has a major human flaw of being impulsive and easily irritable, Oedipus takes more punishment than what the play told, his life and fate was not fully under his control, and he makes a vast realization with an equal amount of change.

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.

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.

As defined by Aristotle a tragic hero is a literary character who makes a judgment error that inevitably leads to their own destruction. They are born into nobility and have a fate of their own. One also looks at the background information that influences the character to be a tragic hero. In order to be a tragic character a character has to have certain characteristics. In the novel Antigone, the character Antigone meets all these characteristics making her a tragic character.

According to Aristotle’s definition of tragic hero, it is a literary character who makes a judgment error that inevitably leads to his/her own misfortune. For instance, a real life example of a tragic hero is Martin Luther King Jr. He was a venerated man that was determined to perceive equality for African Americans, he was ambitious in reaching this goal but, unfortunately, his ambition caused his downfall. Luther's flaw would be his ambition for equality and his misfortune was not deserved, thereby, he is a real life tragic hero.

A tragic hero is a person of high rank, who accepts his or her downfall with dignity. A tragic hero also has to have four qualities to be considered a tragic hero. One, the person must be high born(royalty/high class). Two, he or she must have experienced a tragic flaw. Three, their tragic flaw causes them to have a downfall. Lastly, he or she must have an catharsis; realizes too late the error of his or her choices.

What is a tragic hero? What are the characteristics of a tragic hero? A tragic hero is a character who makes a judgment error that inevitably leads them to their own downfall. Tragic heroes usually are an exceptional being in the beginning of the story and they have a tragic flaw that causes their downfall. Some example of tragic heroes include Prince Hamlet, Oedipus, Romeo, and Macbeth.

What is a tragic hero? According to Aristotle a tragic hero is a literary character who makes a judgement error that inevitably leads to his or her own destruction. Characteristics include: having discovered their fate through their own actions and not by destiny, a fatal flaw (usually pride), and being faced with a very serious decision. Using Aristotle’s description of a tragic hero, Brutus, in Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar, is a tragic hero. His demise is caused by not one, not two, but three catastrophic mistakes.

By definition, a tragic hero is a character who is unavoidably doomed. That hero’s fate has already been decided but the character usually spends the entire course of a story trying tirelessly and unsuccessfully to change that. Oedipus easily falls into this definition. Oedipus is also a hero that

A tragic hero is defined as a literary character of high nobility who makes a personal judgement error that often leads to their own fate. A tragic hero dominates a tragic flaw, a characters weakness such as excessive pride, aspiration, or jealousy. In literary cases, a tragic hero is neither benevolent nor immortal but has vigorous intentions. Ordinarily a tragic hero is of high royal birth, possesses a tragic flaw, has a downfall due to that flaw, and recognizes their error by accepting the consequences. In Antigone by Sophocles Antigone is a tragic hero, one who is from high noble birth, with grand intentions, and in possession of a tragic flaw.

A “Tragic Hero” as defined by Aristotle, is a literary character who makes a judgmental error that in the end leads to their own destruction. The character endures immense amounts of hardships, and obstacles; is destined to fail, has basic human flaws, has judgment issues, thrives to do the right thing, but forces their own demise, and in the end, shall die honorably. Throughout the tragedy of Oedipus, composed by Sophocles, the author manipulates Oedipus to correlate with Aristotle’s definition by using a person who thrives to do the right thing, but an uneventful fate befalls them. Oedipus is a tragic hero, a character who is neither bad nor good who is always supported despite his flaws until the end of his journey, which is typically a welcomed death.

In the play Oedipus the King, Oedipus struggles to accept the truth and lets his temper over power him. He can be displayed as a tragic hero. His refusal to accept the truth led to Oedipus’ down fall. A tragic hero, as defined by Aristotle, “is a literary character who makes a judgment error that inevitably leads to his/her own destruction.” Sophocles’ Oedipus exemplifies Aristotle’s definition of a tragic hero.

Knox, B. M. (1998). Hero. In Oedipus at Thebes: Sophocles' tragic hero and his time (1st ed., p. 4). New Haven, NY: Yale University Press.

Oedipus the King by Sophocles is a story about a boy who was left by his own parents in the mountains, by himself, to die because of a prophecy that were given to his parents by the Oracle of Delphi. A shepherd found this young child and decided to bring him to King Polybus and Queen Merope, who can’t have a child of their own. The couple decided to adopt the child and name him Oedipus, which means swollen ankles because of the way the shepherd found him with his ankles pierced with pins. When Oedipus grew up, he saved the town from a beast which made Oedipus be considered a hero of his town. Oedipus is considered an epic hero, but also a tragic hero. An epic hero is someone who is applauded for his bravery against the beast. A tragic hero is someone who does good for its town, but does not always do the right thing which leads to their own ruin. Oedipus is a tragic hero because he has a fatal prophecy that he could not bypass.