REMNS Theory of the Tragic Hero

A tragic hero is a literary character whos own tragic flaw unknowingly leads to his/her own destruction. "the plots of the best tragedies must be complex, not simplethe plot of a tragedy must be an imitation of pitiable and fearful incidentsunqualifiedly good human beings must not appear to fall from good fortune to bad for that is neither pitiable nor fearful it is rather repellent. !or must an extremely e"il man appear to mo"e from bad fortune to good fortune for that is the most untragic situation of all because it has none of the necessary requirements of tragedy it both "iolates our human sympathy and contains nothing of the pitiable or fearful in it. #urthermore, a "illainous man should not appear to fall from good fortune to bad. #or, although such a plot would be in accordance with our human sympathy, it would not contain the necessary elements of pity and fear for pity is aroused by someone who undeser"edly falls into misfortune, and fear is e"oked by our recogni$ing that it is someone like oursel"es who encounters this misfortune. %herefore the emotional effect of the situation &ust mentioned will be neither pitiable nor fearful. 'hat is left, after our considerations, is someone between these extremes. %his would be a person who is neither perfect in "irtue and &ustice, nor one who falls into misfortune through "ice and depra"ity but rather, one who succumbs through some miscalculation." ~ Aristotle, Poetics, Chapter 13 As outline in Poetics, Aristotle !elie"e that a hero is so#eone $ho is not all goo or all !a % &nstea , a hero is hu#an, $hich is to say fla$e % The au ience i entifies $ith the essential hu#anity of the hero '' he is (so#eone li)e oursel"es%( *or this reason, $e are a!le to feel sy#pathy or pity for the hero% +ithin the story of a trage y, the hero falls !ecause of un)no$ingly sur#ounte to his tragic fla$% Ma, is to su!orn in his #in to let a corrupt lea er scare the people of his to$n in $ho# he lo"es, lea ing hi# to fight an e"entually )ill the corrupt lea er% This is usually not !ecause he co##its an e"il ee or has #alice% +hen this happens, the au ience e,periences fear '' !ecause $e i entify an sy#pathi-e $ith the hero, $e fear that $e coul !e trappe !y our o$n tragic fla$s an en up $ith his sa#e fate% *or e,a#ple Ma,i#us oes not $ant to ie fighting the Caesar !ut !ecause his is stu!!orn in his #orals for )eeping his people safe, he $ill sacrifice his o$n life an the au iences only fear is getting caught in the sa#e ile##a an arri"ing at the sa#e fate% +e reali-e that a person #ay !e estroye e"en $hile atte#pting to !e goo +e reali-e that there is a conflict !et$een hu#an goo ness an reality +e see that e"en in the na#e of goo ness a hu#an can cause his.her o$n o$nfall /&R0N12

Aristotle once said that (A man doesnt become a hero until he can see the root of his own downfall.) Aristotle belie"ed that *ophocles+ play Oedipus Rex was a perfect example of a tragedy. Aristotle de"eloped a theory about what a tragedy is and does.

He i entifie 3 essential criteria4 ,. A tragedy is an imitation of action -mimesis. that is complete // it has a definite beginning, middle, and end -#reytag+s pyramid is seen0 exposition, rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution.. 1. A tragedy has a unified, complex plot in which all actions are connected // e"ery cause has an effect, there aren+t any random e"ents or loose ends. 2. A tragedy possesses a certain magnitude -uni"ersal rele"ance or significance and pro"iding inspiration for the audience.. 3. A tragedy arouses pity and fear in the audience. 4. A tragedy causes catharsis -purging of emotions. at the end. 5"entually the Aristotelian tragic hero dies a tragic death, ha"ing fallen from great heights or ha"e fallen into an inescapable fate while ha"ing a tragic flaw lead to his/her own death. %he hero must courageously accept his/her death with honor. 0ther Co##on Traits4 6ero must suffer more than he deser"es. 6ero must be doomed from the start, but bears no responsibility for possessing his flaw. 6ero must be noble in nature, but imperfect so that the audience can see themsel"es in him/her. 6ero must ha"e an understanding for his/her fate by his/her own actions, not by things happening to him/her. 6ero must see and understand his/her doom, as well the fact that his fate was disco"ered by his/her own actions. 6eros story should arouse fear, pity and empathy. 6ero must be physically or spiritually wounded by his experiences, often resulting in his/her death, exploiting their tragic flaw. 7deally, the hero should be a king or leader of men-who has worked hard to get a position or title., so that his/her people experience his/her fall with him/her. 6ero must be intelligent so he/she may learn from his/her mistakes. 6ero must ha"e a weakness usually it is pride. 6ero has to be faced with a "ery serious decision. 6ero must ha"e something gone wrong in his/her current life-8aximus is sold into sla"ery.. %he suffering of the hero must ha"e meaning-%he burning of his family ga"e him the "engeance he needed in order to carry out killing the 9aesar..

&#portant Ter#s4 tragic fla$ /hamartia2 4 an unwitting error or a negati"e trait that the character feels they cannot control that leads to the downfall of the hero peripeteia4 a re"ersal of intention, a character produces the opposite effect of what was intended anagnorisis4 a re"elation, the mo"ement from ignorance to knowledge

catastrophe4 a change in fortune contract of or er4 according to the ancient :reeks, this is the hierarchy of power that go"erns the uni"erse. All entities are expected to obser"e their proper place -:ods, kings, priests, man, nature. act of aggression4 the e"ent that disrupts order, the precipitating e"ent that sets the wheels of the tragedy in motion Sacrifice of life4 %he tragic hero must be willing to gi"e his life for his/her ultimate goal