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What Does A Prayer For Owen Meany A Tragic Hero

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In the novel A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving, the author represented that Owen Meany is a tragic hero. A tragic hero is when a literary character makes judgments that lead to their own destruction or downfall. Owen wants to go to Vietnam to get himself killed in combat, saving children. Owen’s motives on going to Vietnam is that he believes that it is his destiny. Owen has also been told that he is “GOD'S INSTRUMENT” and believes that he is a miracle throughout the novel. Lastly, Owen’s idiotic parents tell him that he is the second coming of Jesus Christ, leading him to his downfall. Owen has a far fetched destiny because he goes after it for no reason and, his death is one hundred percent avoidable. Johnny (the narrator) and Hester (Johnny’s cousin and Owen’s …show more content…

Since Owen was, per say, a miracle - because of his size - his parents told multiple churches that he is the ‘second coming’ of Jesus. None of the churches believed them and thought they were insane, which they were. Owens parents told Johnny about this idea that Owen could be this second Jesus after Owen’s death. Johnny’s overwhelming response was, “It seemed to me that Owen Meany had been used as cruelty by ignorance as he had been in design. I had seen what God has used him for; now I saw how ignorance had used him, too.” (Irving 537). The Meany’s believed that Owen was some sort of angle because of an apparent ‘virgin birth’. Then, ignorance starts to set in, having the audacity to believe something that is not true. Owen got his ignorance from his parents and people follow in their parent's footsteps, trusting them. Owen’s parents lead to his downfall by telling Owen that he is more special than he really was. He was special in his disability but not being a “second Jesus” special; this drove ignorance. Throughout his life, he thought he was more of a miracle than he really should have

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