Willy Loman And Oedipus Tragic Hero

Aristotle, the Greek philosopher describes a tragic hero to be a person, who is essentially a good person whose misfortune is brought out by certain flaws or weakness. Three requirements that Aristotle deems to make a tragic hero is high social standing, goodness, and a mistake committed by the hero. Two men in different storylines are great examples of Aristotle’s idea of a tragic hero. These two men being Oedipus Rex and Willy Loman. Oedipus and Willy answer to the requirements shown by Aristotle tragic hero requirement. But, what were these tragic flaws that doomed these two individuals into pit of darkness and despair. There are many flaws that doomed both them from the start of their story lines but, the most impactful ones are having

It all boils down to Willy fundamental flaw in his thinking that makes him the tragic hero that he is. He is always preoccupied with his fantasy and desires, so much that he denies and ignores anything that goes against his own beliefs. Willy thinks that the amount of a man’s success is how much wealth he has amass and that this wealth is obtained by being well liked. He is convinced that popularity is enough to lead to success and this would then lead him to his demise. When Willy makes the decision on committing suicide by intentionally getting into an auto accident this doesn’t show that the Willy has recognized his fatal flaw. This shows how he wanted an easy way out of life where his family receives a good amount of money. But, in return Willy is left with fake satisfaction that he was successful sales man, and his son will become successful after his death because of the money he is gaining from the car accident. This fake satisfaction truly does show how Willy is ignorant to reality. On the other hand Oedipus ignorance causes him to miss obvious references to his fate, but if he had noticed in time, he could have escaped his demise. His ignorance is first seen in the encounter with Tiresias. The wise man clearly states the killer of Laius, he says, “I say that you are the murderer whom you seek” “[Oedipus] hears the prophecy in language, which is ominous as it is plain and unmistakable.” But, it truly is Oedipus’s ignorance that limits his understanding of this grave subject. He prioritizes the truth above his own well-being, and by doing that, admits his view of fate as a weaker force in his consciousness than the safety of Thebes. Then there is his ignorance in the play which is expressed through light and dark imagery. Light meaning knowledge and dark representing ignorance. The play shows a huge amount off references to Oedipus’s darkness, which shows no only his ignorance, but also his terrible demise.