Tragedy versus Comedy

Emotion. Aside from the occasional exception, one could correctly assume the definite ability of emotional perception humans have. Depending upon the goal of a play, or other literary work, the plot of the aforementioned work is designed to evoke a specific, or a range of emotions. The manner in which the literary work in question, achieves a certain emotional response can be characterized by the specific literary elements the work contains. For example, two of the most popular literary styles are tragedies and comedies. The two evoke different responses, and each style can be distinguished by its specific attributes. One could argue that a comedy is the complete opposite of a tragedy, and vice versa, since the two tend to have stark differences. The key differences between a tragedy and a comedy are the character of the protagonist,the struggle of the protagonist, and the conclusion.

In every society ever molded by the hands of man, an unquestionable though sometimes overlooked fact of such societies is the distinction between groups of individuals based upon their perceived worth. This distinction is a fundamental difference between a tragedy and a comedy. In a tragedy, a protagonist is "a prominent and powerful hero,(1),a king, or even a god (4). The hero tends to be stubborn, traditional, and experiences emotions strongly (2). The probability of an audience member having the ability to empathize with such an esteemed character, is low. A comedic protagonist tends to be quite the opposite. The protagonist of a comedy must display at least the minimum amount of personal charm to gain the audience's basic approval and support (1). The protagonist also tend to be more adaptable (2) than a tragic protagonist. The comedic protago...

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... display the ultimate fact that even the best of man cannot exceed himself. Contrary to the aforementioned situation, a comedy provides a differing perspective with a contrastive kind of protagonist. A comedy may suggest that man is a fool (2), but it provides hope of the renewal of man (2). With this concept in mind, a comedic protagonist represents an average man who triumphs through his problems by fate, luck, or will. In essence, a tragedy and a comedy are different because of the difference between their protagonists, the difference in the struggle faced, and the difference of the outcome.

Works Cited

1 http://condor.depaul.edu/dsimpson/tlove/comic-tragic.html

2 http://www3.dbu.edu/mitchell/comedytr.htm

3 http://web.cn.edu/kwheeler/documents/Tragedy_Comedy.pdf

4 http://domainofthebrain.com/comedytragedy.htm

5 http://blue.utb.edu/mimosa/Handouts/T&C.htm