Compare And Contrast Fences And Death Of A Salesman

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In Fences and Death of a Salesman, two main characters are presented, Troy Maxson and Willy Loman. These main characters cannot be portrayed as tragic characters because they are not men of noble stature. These characters cannot be considered tragic characters because they do not fit Aristotle's criteria of being a tragic hero. Aristotle's criteria gives a set of guidelines for deciphering whether a character can be considered a tragic hero or tragic character. First, Aristotle's guide states that in order for a character to be considered a tragic character, they must be of noble stature. It can be inferred from the dramas that neither of these characters are men of noble stature. From the guidelines, it can be inferred that Willy Loman and …show more content…

A man of noble stature would be content and grateful for having a job. Instead, Troy Maxson complains about the company not hiring any black drivers for the garbage trucks. Troy is offered a promotion as a garbage truck driver, but when he starts the job he is not happy with it. A noble man would be happy with the graces life has given him. Because of this, Troy cannot be considered a tragic character. Similarly, Willy Loman resembles Troy's business life. Willy lies about his social status in the business community. Another thing that makes these two characters similar would be that they disregard the feelings of others. For example, Willy and Biff's relationship when they were younger was stronger. Later in life, Willy starts to have his own ideals on what he wants for Biff. Biff would try to explain to his father how he feels, but his father would not pay attention. In a similar way, Troy wanted to live his life through his son Cory. When Troy found out that Cory lied to him about his job, Troy made him quit the football team. This angered Cory and made their bond deteriorate. All this information supports the claim that these characters are not tragic characters because these actions are not noble. By leading separate lives, Willy and Troy show that they are not tragic

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