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The Tragic Hero Of Hamlet By William Shakespeare

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Philosopher Aristotle said “the change of fortune presented must not be the spectacle of a virtuous man brought from prosperity to adversity." From Aristotle’s “Poetics,” he suggested that a hero must evoke in the audience a sense of fear and pity. In many ways, Hamlet is the quintessential tragic hero. Like the classical tragic hero, Hamlet begins with the noblest motivations, to punish his father’s murderer, but he does not survive to see the full outcome of his actions. Hamlet’s tragic flaw as well as his extensive knowledge, causes him to think through everything before acting, effectively stopping him from being decisive, and bringing about his necessary tragic ending. Hamlet’s deep connection with knowledge causes him to base his perceptions of reality on his interpretation and understanding of the world, and he allows himself to become obsessed with the meaning of his life and revenge of his father’s death. By contemplating death, ruining his love of Ophelia, and his obsession with exposing Claudius, Hamlet’s cloudy judgment and inability to take decisive action characterizes him as a tragic hero.
Shakespeare reveals Hamlet’s tragic flaw when Hamlet begins to question his role in life, in the famous “to be or not to be” soliloquy. Nonetheless, Hamlet cannot kill himself because of his tragic flaw within the depths of his mind and his obsession with revenge against Claudius. Throughout the speech, it is obvious that Hamlet is over thinking and wavering between two

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