To What Extent are ‘Othello’ and 'Oedipus Rex' Perfect Examples of Tragedy

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.

The tragedy of Othello, written by William Shakespeare, presents the main character Othello, as a respectable, honorable, and dignified man, but because of his insecurities and good nature, he is easily taken advantage of and manipulated by his peers and alleged friends. The dynamic of Othello’s character significantly changes throughout the play. The contrast is most pronounced from the beginning of the play to its conclusion, switching from being calm and peaceful to acts of uncontrolled venomous rage. Othello’s motivation in the play appears to be his love and concern for his wife Desdemona, which ironically, ends up being his downfall in the end.

Shakespeare mocks society’s extreme measures by suggesting death as the sole option for Othello when he fails to understand that Desdemona may not fit female stereotypes. Without the ability to label her, Othello fails to “assert Desdemona’s chastity and corruptibility simultaneously” and “murders Desdemona to redeem her from degradation” (Neely). The characters, like many people, struggle to alter views that have been so firmly pressed into their minds. In this way, Shakespeare negatively comments on humans’ inabilities to see beyond what society tells them and to comprehend truths unique to a specific person rather than his gender roles. Shakespeare uses the characters Desdemona and Othello to display how people become accustomed to the gender identities that society defines for them. Therefore, both characters, as depicted by their deaths, fail to understand each other personally as individuals instead of as the stereotypical man or woman that is being presented.

Her death is therefore her punishment, furthermore making Emilia a tragic victim as she has died through no fault of her own. Like Emilia, Desdemona is also a tragic victim of the men in ‘Othello’. Her murder, like Emilia’s, is through no fault of her own is a result of Othello’s jealousy and Iago’s interference. What makes Desdemona even more tragic to the audience is the fact that even in death she tries to protect her husband, telling Emilia that she has killed herself, “nobody, I myself”, this further depicts to the audience that Desdemona is a good and pure character. Her devotion to her husband makes her a tragic victim in the play as she can not be blamed for her death.

*INTRO*The character Oedipus in the play Oedipus the King by Sophocles, and the character Othello in the play Othello the Moor of Venice by Shakespeare are both tragic characters. Oedipus ends up killing his father, and marrying and having children with his mother, whereas Othello ends up mistrusting and killing his wife. These two individuals have similarities and differences in several aspects such as the roundness of their characters, the retribution that they incur upon themselves and upon their respective wives whether directly or indirectly, and their horrors.

The extent of which Othello is a tragic hero has been open to much debate; the basis on which he is judged falls to Aristotle’s established view of the crucial elements that distinguish whether a person is truly tragic. According to Aristotle, a tragic protagonist is a nobleman or person from high status, who contributes to his own demise and illustrates a flaw or weakness in judgment. The tragic protagonist must make a fall from a high state of being to a low state or death. The tragic hero’s downfall, said Aristotle, was brought upon by some error of judgement. Aristotle’s theory is not the final word on tragedy, however it can support in pinpointing the pivotal traits in

There is no denying that Shakespeare is a definitive playwright. He has presented us with classic works that have set the precedent for drama and the theatre. Among Shakespeare’s more notable plays are his tragedies. In the tragedy his protagonists are often given flaws in their character and hence, are suitably named tragic heroes. The downfall of these protagonists is often a result of their own character flaws and unfortunately, they suffer a doomed and unhappy ending. While the tragic hero is flawed they must also be honorable and worthy of the audience’s understanding and sympathy. On a quest for righteousness the tragic hero often goes through immense suffering which is why the audience can feel bad for him. For the most

The play Othello, written by William Shakespeare, can spark numerous thoughts and interpretations that differ between individuals based on the point of view of each particular character. For example, one of the main characters, Othello, endures a considerable amount of complications and events that lead to his downfall, which he concludes with a final speech. In T.S. Eliot’s essay called “Shakespeare and the Stoicism of Seneca,” the analyzation of the context suggests that Othello’s words and explanations are simply making the audience think about himself, rather than the horrific actions that he performed. By examining the language, the tone, and the context of Othello’s final speech, I believe that Othello is partly drawing sympathy for

In Shakespeare?s play Othello, Othello himself is the tragic hero. He is an individual of high stature who is destroyed by his surroundings, his own actions, and his fate. His destruction is essentially precipitated by his own actions, as well as by the actions of the characters surrounding him. The tragedy of Othello is not a fault of a single person, but is rather the consequence of a wide range of feelings, judgments, misjudgments, and attempts for personal justification revealed by the characters.

The dramas of both Othello, Moor of Venice and Oedipus are both very hard-hitting dramas that provide a valuable lesson. This research paper will discuss and analyze the dramas in full, and provide a thoughtful answer to the statement, “The downfall of Oedipus is the work of the gods; the downfall of Othello is self-inflicted”. When observing Shakespeare and Sophocles’ dramas, it can be noted that both stories have provided a tragic hero. According to the Person e text definition of philosopher Aristotle a tragic hero is that, “... every tragic hero has some fatal weakness, some moral Achille‘s heel, that brings him to a bad end.” This statement cannot be ever more true in the downfall of both Kind Oedipus, and the great general Othello. When comparing these two great but self-destructive men, it can be observed how their downfalls resemble the statement provided above. This essay will further analyze these two men, and the stories that encompass them. In addition, the essay will provide information from several scholarly sources, that will bring forth more details on how these two men ended up in their disastrous, and even early downfalls.

   The Shakespearean tragedy Othello contains a number of themes; their relative importance and priority is debated by literary critics. In this essay let us examine the various themes and determine which are dominant and which subordinate.

In the play Othello by William Shakespeare we see tragic patters grow in individual characters such as the main protagonist Othello. Othello is a character of high stature who is destroyed by his surroundings, his own actions, and his fate. His destruction is essentially precipitated by his own actions, as well as by the actions of the characters surrounding him.

In Othello, Desdemona is killed as of a result of Othello’s jealousy and rage in which was created through his insecurities about Desdemona. Othello’s downfall is the creation of a suspenseful end that makes the audience question who’s to blame for Othello’s downfall because of jealousy from successful general to a murder.

In the play Othello, by William Shakespeare, we are introduced to a character named Othello, who at first sight seems noble and good. As a result, we begin the story believing that he is a hero. However, as the story unfolds itself as a tragedy, the question begins to develop and becomes the following: Is Othello a tragic hero according to the principles of Aristotelian Tragedy. To answer the question mentioned before, this essay will focus on the main points that define a tragic hero. That is whether Othello is of noble blood, whether he is morally equal to most people, whether he meets his fate, because of a tragic flaw and finally whether he causes a catharsis.

“The Tragedy of Othello Written by Shakespeare" highlights a variety of emotions. Act 3 of "The Tragedy of Othello Written by Shakespeare” gave the reader a view of how emotions