Othello As A Tragic Hero Essay

When one hears the word tragedy, one can assume that the human emotions are responsible for the collapse of an individual. To the Greek philosopher Aristotle, however, a tragedy is “an imitation of an action of high importance…in language enhanced by distinct and varying beauties…[or] by means of pity and fear effecting its purgation of these emotions” (Kennedy & Gioia, 945). He defined a tragic hero as having three common characteristics: hamartia, or the tragic flaw in the character which coupled with hubris (pride which results in overconfidence) causes his downfall and demise; katharsis, the purgation of the audience’s emotions, which causes the audience to feel “not depressed, but somehow elated”; and anagnorisis, or the recognition of some fact not previously realized by the true identity of the main character (Kennedy & Gioia, 946). Therefore, as defined by Aristotle’s concept of tragedy, William Shakespeare’s Othello could be classified as a tragic hero. Shakespeare’s play includes jealousy and intrigue, which intertwined with pride and suspense create the finest of Aristotelian tragedies. Othello complies with the requirements for a tragic hero as Aristotle began with the premise that the hero must be of “high estate,” as if he were the member of a royal family; however, he yet falls from a hierarchy of power to one of abashment. He has married the daughter of a Venetian nobleman. He starts out well, but his end is one of drama. Moreover, Shakespeare’s plot develops as Othello’s katharsis is revealed through the climax and conclusion of the play, while the anagnorisis with the recognition that Iago was a traitor and Desdemona his innocent victim.

Othello complies with all the requirements of a tragic hero as defined by ...

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...of a tragic hero: hamartia, or moral flaw; katharsis, or purgation of emotions; and anagnorisis, the discovery of something unknown (Kennedy & Gioia, 944-947). The author of Othello, William Shakespeare, created an Aristotelian hero by portraying the destruction of the Venetian general through the incorporation of jealousy, deceit, pride, and tragedy. The complexity of such character qualifies Othello as a tragic hero as classified by the Greek philosopher Aristotle. After all, he is an infallible human with a fatal mistake; the play gives the audience a sort of purgation of emotions; and through Othello’s epiphany, he realizes the tragedy of his trust and the misuse of it. Shakespeare’s tragedy has been consolidated as an English classic in literature because of its themes of human characteristics; after all, all humans are proud, jealous, remorseful, and betraying.