A tragic hero is somebody who is well-known and of high position with heroic or potentially heroic qualities. A tragic hero, is remarkable, however not impeccable, therefore being possible to relate to as a human being. The hero 's downfall is the result of a fatal flaw in his or her character. Their downfall is the result of free will, not of an accident or insignificant destiny. The hero 's fall is never a complete loss. There is always an increase in awareness, a gain in self-knowledge, or some sort of discovery on the part of the tragic hero. There are numerous events that occur within Maximus ' life that prove that he is indeed a tragic hero. Maximus is viewed as an outstanding individual for the vengeance he brings to his people. He …show more content…
He matches Aristotle’s definition of a tragic hero because of his fatal flaw. His tragic flaw was attempting to faithfully continue serving the "true" Emperor Marcos Aurelius, not considering the possible consequences he might have to face in order to return Rome to a Republic for the people. Captain John H. Miller was the captain of the American Army. He, like Maximus, does not give up very easily. Even though his mission is to save one man and risk many of his men, he presents a full effort to complete this mission no matter how senseless he believed it was. He proves his intelligence and strength. He remains positive and calm no matter the circumstance. His flaw is that he is too good-hearted, which in the end, gets him killed. Both Maximus Meridius and Captain John H. Miller have the qualities of a tragic hero, which are: a high position, a fatal flaw, and a downfall caused by their flaw. It is clear that Miller is a superior example of a tragic hero because he displays a larger amount of humanly traits such as fear and his situation is tragic because if he was still alive, his life could have been better, he could have been around the love of his life, unlike …show more content…
Maximus Meridius and Captain John H. Miller have many similarities and differences regarding their character and their situations. They both have a large amount of skill and experience in combat. The two are also very intelligent and strategic, which is why they both obtain important positions in the army. Since they are of such high position, they are looked up at, therefore they must hide any fear they might have. Although they both are brave individuals, Miller unintentionally displays his fear when his hands begin to shake uncontrollably due to post traumatic stress disorder. On the other hand, Maximus does not show an inch of fear, which could be understood since he is fuming with rage because of the death of his family. He no longer has anything to lose, and if he dies, he gets to reunite with his family. Their love for their family is another thing they have in common. Nothing else in the world matters to them. Unfortunately, they are both separated from their family. They never had a chance to say good-bye either. Part of the reason why these tragic heroes died was because of their family. Maximus fought until the end to get revenge for his family 's death, when he could have lived, but he knew his life would never be the same anyway. As for Miller, he takes part in the battle of Ramelle by choice, he figures that if it can get him closer to coming home to his wife, he will fight. These two have great reputations as leaders. Along their journey in