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Examples Of Aristotle's Idea Of A Tragic Hero

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Aristotle’s idea of a tragic hero first begins with a character of noble stature. Oedipus, the King of Thebes is renowned and prosperous. Prior to becoming the king, Oedipus saved the city from the sphinx by answering its riddle because of this the people of Thebes look up to Oedipus. A second characteristic of a tragic hero is, that he is a great but not perfect human. An example of this is would be no matter what good Oedipus had done in the past (the sphinx, swearing justice for Laios death, etc.) he cannot escape the tragedy awaiting him. Oedipus’ tragic flaw is his pride, he cannot accept the predictions made against his life and therefore fights against them. Therefore, Oedipus runs away from his adoptive family, kills his father, and
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Throughout history, there have been numerous heroes who have been celebrated and decorated because of their accomplishments. On the other hand, there are also numerous heroes who would have been decorated, but experience a downfall that tarnishes their status. This concept, the tragic hero, is a theory first pondered by Aristotle. In order to fully understand the tragic hero, it is important to first define it. According to Aristotle, the tragic hero is a character of noble stature, aligned with greatness but also flawed, experiences a downfall as a result of free choice, and does not wholly deserve their misfortune.

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One such philosopher is Aristotle. His concepts of the Tragic hero is articulate and shed more light on what the modern - day literature laureates define as the tragic hero. To begin with, Aristotle gives a very comprehensive understanding of who a tragic hero character in plays. He asserts that the real and ideal tragic hero is the one charged with the mandate of making the audience feel a catharsis at the end of the play and make the audience experience cleansing sessions after watching or reading a play. The catharsis experienced by the audience is as a result of the twist and turns of the protagonist trying to do well.

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In A Lesson Before Dying, we see Jefferson’s rise from hog to hero, but in what sense is he a hero? Aristotle’s notion of a tragic hero includes many different aspects and qualifications. Jefferson certainly seems to embody many of the characteristics that we often associate with a classic hero, but this analysis will specifically dive into five of the characteristics described by Aristotle in determining a tragic hero. Though Jefferson does not neatly fit into every one of Aristotle’s categories, it is clear by his actions in A Lesson Before Dying that he is in fact a tragic hero. One of the characteristics of a tragic hero, as described by Aristotle, is that the hero should pass from fortune to misfortune due to some mistake or flaw.

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There is bound to be a tragic hero in “The Tragedy of Julius Caesar” because of all the tragedies that occur in the story. In Aristotle’s characteristics of a tragic hero, he named three main tragic hero characteristics. The tragic hero must have a hamartia, a flaw or error of judgement. The hero must be extremely

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846 Words | 4 Pages

A tragic hero is said to be someone with a fatal flaw that leads to their downfall. To be considered a tragic hero you have to meet four characteristics. The first characteristic is goodness; the character must show that they are a moral or ethical person. The second characteristic is that the character must have some form of superiority.

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He does not have a hamartia and his downfall proved to have no greater purpose. While it is true that in modern times, the tragic hero may be seen differently than when Aristotle first defined him/her, and some characteristics have the capability to be tweaked to accommodate modern society, there are concrete parts to a tragic hero that cannot change and must be present in order for a literary character to be labeled as

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Ancient greece evoked many things, and one of them was tragic hero. Tragic hero is someone who can be noble, tragic flaw, reversal of fortune, suffers, recognition, and catharsis. Noble, is someone that is important, they have a high status, and hold an official title. Reversal of fortune is when someone’s life is good at the beginning and ends up being bad or someone life is bad and ends up good. Suffering, is someone who is feeling pain and hurting.

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A tragic hero is a protagonist in a tragedy who is doomed by fate to destruction. The tragic hero displays heroic traits, but also possesses a tragic flaw that brings them down in the end. However, even though the death of the tragic hero has negative effects, the majority is for the greater good. Three main theories of the tragic hero are the Aristotelian model, the Shakespearean model, and the modern tragic hero. Each model has five defining characteristics, which are nobility, hamartia, downfall, anagnorisis, and suffering.

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According to Aristotle the characteristics of a tragic hero are to provoke sad emotions, such as pity or fear, from the audience. When these sad emotions are provoked from the audience, it is hoped that after seeing the tragic hero leading themselves to downfall or death it will transform the audience into good human beings. The characteristics of a tragic hero are shown through Blanche in the play A Streetcar Named Desire, showing tragic flaws. Hamartia is when a tragic flaw causes downfall for a hero.

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He is considered a man of misfortune that comes to him through an error of judgment.” Notice that Aristotle uses the words he, man, and him and not she, woman, or her. This hints that the tragic hero must be a man, not a woman. A tragic hero must also have certain characteristics such as hubris, hamartia, peripeteia, anagnorisis, nemesis, and catharsis. These all mean that the character’s tragic downfall must have a beginning, middle, and end and emanate a feeling of pity and fear in the audience.

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There are four characteristics and three plot elements of a tragic hero. King Creon fits each characteristic and element for the Aristotelian model of the tragic hero in Antigone. To be a tragic hero according to Aristotle, the character According to Aristotle, a tragic hero must have four distinct characteristics. The character must be of noble status have high status, have a fatal flaw called also known as hamartia, recognize his/her mistakes, and experience enlightenment.

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A tragic hero is defined to be a hero who, despite being virtuous and great, also possesses qualities that lead to their downfall. This downfall is often predestined and is a common theme in Greek literature. Antigone is the tragic hero in Antigone because of her bravery, but also because of the dangerous loyalty and stubbornness that lead to her downfall. Antigone is a tragic hero because of her headstrong loyalty to her brother and the morals of the gods, which leads to Creon’s retaliation and her downfall.

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Truly, Oedipus sets out to change his destiny. His self determination proves he has pride in himself and confidence that he can somehow change the future. When Oedipus killed his father he allowed his pride and arrogance to control him. He was thinking with his pride and did not use self control. This hubris that is instilled in Oedipus is a serious flaw of his.

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577 Words | 3 Pages

Oedipus was a tragic hero he was seen as a great man and was king,but he fell to misfortune because of his disability to see past his pride and anger which led to his demise. By not being able to see past his pride and anger Oedipus was not able to to avoid his prophetic destiny. He was blinded by his pride and anger so much that it became his tragic flaw ultimately leading him to his

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703 Words | 3 Pages

An Aristotelian tragic hero is a character born of noble birth and, by destiny, has a tragic flaw that inevitably leads to his or her downfall and redeems his or herself by the end of the tragedy. For one to consider a play a tragedy, the character of the play must be noble, and the play typically starts off with happiness and wealth. The play ends with sadness and the hero has a tragic flaw that causes their downfall. In The Tragedy of Macbeth by William Shakespeare, Macbeth fits the definition of an Aristotelian tragic hero. Macbeth is a tragic hero because he starts by being loyal and trustworthy, develops a tragic flaw that leads to his downfall, and he redeems a small measure of himself before he dies.

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