For several centuries, tragedy is one of the many popular genres of literature. In every tragedy, there is a tragic hero who makes an error that leads to their own downfall. William Shakespeare is known to have written many tragedies, which includes Julius Caesar. Due to the many downfalls of numerous characters during the play, it consequently led to arguments about who the tragic hero is. Some critics argued that Julius Caesar, who the play is named after, is the tragic hero while others reason that Marcus Brutus is the tragic hero. However, through the analysis of two essays “Julius Caesar- A Tragic Hero” and Toby Le’s “The Tragic Hero of Julius Caesar”, it became evident that Marcus Brutus is the tragic hero of the play because he demonstrates several characteristics: a tragic dilemma, tragic flaw, downfall, and an epiphany. Considering the main points explained in both of these essays, I am also persuaded that Brutus’s character best fits the standards of a tragic hero.
Few stories are as renowned and appreciated as those written by William Shakespeare. His many plays have survived the centuries, and one of his most well-known plays, The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet, tells the story of two-star crossed lovers as their lives are lead to tragedy because of a feud between their families. Fate works against them, and they both end up killing themselves thinking they can not live without the other. One of the qualities of this play is it recurring use of foils to highlight the attributes of another character.. Mercutio serves as a foil for Romeo to help built both characters by their view of love, how they showcase one another’s flaws, and how Mercutio’s death motivates Romeo fro the purpose of giving the audience a deeper understanding.
A tragedy in its own right must evoke emotion and a response from the audience through effective use of several elements evident in Shakespeare’s and Aristotle’s style of tragic writing. The plot progression of a tragedy should be rather specific under the idea which leads, ultimately, to the downfall of the protagonist. Despite the sorrowful story behind Richard Van Camp’s short story “Mermaids,” the exclusion of several core elements from both styles of writing prevent this piece from being classified a tragedy. “Mermaids” lacked the development of a tragic flaw in the main character, Torchy, and furthermore did not lead the character to their tragic demise, Van Camp also excluded the idea of isolating him over time and rather brought him closer to those around him to get over his inner conflict, which is unlike a tragedy.
In the short story, the author depicted tragedy through dramatized actions, willing blindness and pity using the Aristotle style of the elements of tragedy. Alongside Torchy losing his beloved brother through his blind
In the play The Tragedy of Julius Caesar the main character, Brutus, experiences many things that lead him to become a tragic hero. From the interactions between Cassius and Brutus, the two characters contract each other, Brutus’s character develops into a tragic hero, and the plot advances and a theme is also created.
The entire play comes to a tragic end. And with dramatic irony is clearly seen in the entire play. Oedipus killed his father and murdered his mother, but Oedipus and Jocasta did not find out until the end, Tieresias ' warnings and prophecy clearly portray the use of irony. Rhetorical questions are seen questioning himself or fate. What, born as mine were born?”
The play demonstrates recognition of Othello in Act V, his character changes from gullible and insecure to aware. The ideas of Aristotelian tragic components are discussed in depth in his Poetics. Aristotelian components include; the importance of events, the catharsis, the dramatic form, the reversal and recognition, and the tragic hero giving substantial proof that the play is an Aristotelian tragedy, and that Othello is a tragic hero according to Aristotle.
Hundreds of years ago Greek plays were very popular. People would plan to go to these plays for entertainment and to have fun with their friends. These plays would also help to teach the audience all about Greek mythology. The main character in these plays often had something tragic occur at the end, such as death. This character was the referred to as the “tragic hero.” A couple hundred years later a Greek philosopher named Aristotle described tragedy with 4 simple elements, nobility of the character, the flaws of the tragic hero, the start of the tragic hero’s downfall, and his/her punishment. In Things Fall Apart, Oedipus, and Antigone there is a character that shows this definition of tragedy by the end of the book and or play. This is usually caused by something called hubris, excessive pride. Things Fall Apart, Oedipus, and Antigone all fulfill Aristotle 's definition of tragedy.
play has the perfect Aristotelian tragic plot consisting of peripateia, anagnorisis and catastrophe; it has the perfect tragic character that suffers from happiness to misery due to his hamartia (tragic flaw) and the play evokes pity and fear that produces the tragic effect, catharsis (a purging of emotion).
A “tragedy, for Shakespeare, is the genre of uncompensated suffering” (Dutton and Howard, 2003, p. 9). To really understand the play Othello is to truly understand a tragedy; thus, this researcher will analyze Aristotle’s view point and compare it to phrases (or quotes) from Shakespeare’s Othello.
Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream is a play that utilises comedy to convey complex ideas that are seen throughout the play, concepts like the jealousy Helena has towards Hermia, Egeus’s strong hostility towards Hermia and Lysander’s relationship and unrequited love. He uses comical tools like unconscious irony and hyperbole to turn rather difficult topics into humorous representations of them. Events like how Puck thinks Titania had fallen in love with him, not knowing he was bearing the head of an ass, are portrayed in a humorous way so the viewer understands the meaning, but sees it as a light- hearted narrative. Shakespeare carefully uses comedy that does not overpower the meaning of the play, but puts a completely different perspective on some of the themes.
By using these guidelines, Shakespeare created one of his greatest Aristotelian tragedies. This is because he applied the Poetics’ guidelines to complex plot, the tragic hero, and the establishment of pity, fear, and catharsis of the audience’s emotions. The complex plot follows Othello and his transformation from nobleman to monster through the exploitation of his tragic flaw. As the plot moves from exposition, complication, challenge, conflict, climax, and finally to dénouement, Othello goes through a recognition scene which leads to a reversal in his fortune and his scene of suffering.
The tragedies Hamlet, Oedipus the King, and Death of a Salesman have strikingly different plots and characters; however, each play shares common elements in its resolution. The events in the plays’ closings derive from a tragic flaw possessed by the protagonist in each play. The downfall of each protagonist is caused by his inability to effectively cope with his tragic flaw. The various similarities in the closing of each play include elements of the plot, the reflection of other characters on the misfortune of the tragic hero, and expression of important themes through the dialogue of the characters.
In our modern language, the word “tragedy” has become a word that describes mundane incidents that are negative. At the most, a tragedy is used describe horrific event that involves severe misfortune; however, when comes to the theatre term, the definition of tragedy is much more specific then the modern use of the word. In essence, a tragedy depending on the time and place was used to tell the tale of tragic hero and the flaw that contributed his eventual downfall. Unfortunately, this too simple of an answer. Shakespearean and Aristotelian tragedy are the most widely excepted forms of theatric tragedy, yet their execution and their method of exposition have major difference which greatly effects the interpretation of the story.
Three literary terms seen in the play are irony, characterization, and man vs. himself. Dramatic irony in the story is represented by Oedipus trying to find whose fault was for the plague shown