The tragic hero has served as the foundation of Greek tragedy since its inception in ancient times. He or she serves as a rallying point for the audience to cheer for and mourn with throughout the story, and ultimately teaches the audience a lesson about human vulnerability and strength through defeat. A tragic hero is “a privileged, exalted character of high repute, who, by virtue of a tragic flaw and fate, suffers a fall from glory into suffering” (DiYanni). The combination of the tragic hero’s character traits and the storyline he or she follows make the tragedy an actual tragedy rather than a depressing story with a sad ending. In Sophocles’ Oedipus the King, Oedipus embodies the traits that a tragic hero should have, including being greater than the average man and possessing an ultimately benevolent character, while also following the plot line that a tragic hero must by coming to a great fall through external circumstances and internal character traits and accepting responsibility for his fall.
Many explanations of Greek tragedies and the tragic hero expound that the hero must be “extraordinary rather than typical” in order to make his or her fall more distressing to the audience (“Tragedy” 1221). The creation of the tragic hero has also been described as “an imitation of persons who are better than the average” (Aristotle). The placement of the tragic hero above the rest of mankind creates feelings of fear associated with the impending and unavoidable fall by reminding the audience of the vulnerabilities to which all men are susceptible (“Tragedy” 1223). If the greatest men can come to a bitter end, any normal person would be defenseless against that fate. Sophocles shows that Oedipus is an extraordinary man in the play wh...
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...ble and strong. The audience could empathize with his situation and one can connect to the character because his was not infallible, but he also tried to take the moral course of action through the entirety of the play. The Greek tragedies create characters that are universal and can appeal to modern day audiences, and for this, Sophocles’ Oedipus the King will continue the remain the influential text that it is today.
Works Cited
Aristotle. "On Tragic Character." Perspectives on Sophocles (n.d.): n. pag. Print.
Sophocles. Oedipus the King. Trans. Robert Fagles. The Three Theban Plays: Antigone, Oedipus the King, Oedipus at Colonus. Trans. Robert Fagles. New York: Penguin Classics, 1984. Print.
"Tragedy." A Study of Sophocles (n.d.): 1221-1223. Print.
DiYanni, Robert. "Tragic Hero." Literature - Drama Glossary. McGraw-Hill Higher Education. Web. 26 Feb. 2014.
A Greek drama is a serious of actions within a literary presentation in which the chief character has a disastrous fate. Many Greek dramas fall under theatrical category of a tragedy due to the tragic events and unhappy ending that cause the downfall of the main character. During the famous play “Antigone” the Greek author Sophocles incorporated several features of a tragedy. These features include a morally significant dilemma and the presence of a tragic hero. Grand debate over which character can hold the title of the tragic hero has discussed in the literally world for ages. A tragic hero can be defined as someone with a substantial personality flaw that causes them to endure great suffering with a reversal of character near the end. Antigone possesses certain traits that could potentially render her the tragic hero but Creon truly embodies all characteristics. Creon is the tragic hero in “Antigone” due to several qualities he displays throughout the play; he can’t accept a diminished view of himself, he endures great suffering and he is enlightened in the end.
A tragic hero is one with a supreme pride, yet has an unfaltering sense of commitment and is a good man overall. A tragic hero has the capacity to suffer and, because of an error in judgment, will experience a dramatic transformation that evokes a profound pity. This is a tragic hero and based on this conception, Oedipus is an evident
To identify the tragic hero in Sophocles’ renowned play “Antigone”, we should first consider both the elements present in Greek tragedies and what characteristics define a tragic hero. Aristotle’s definition of tragedy is: “Tragedy is a story taking the hero from happiness to misery because of a fatal flaw or mistake on his part. To be a true tragic hero he must also elicit a strong emotional response of pity and fear from the audience. This is known as catharsis or purging of emotion.” In most cases the tragic hero begins the play with high status, which is often lost in the exodus of the play. For example, in another of Sophocles’ plays, “Oedipus Rex”, in which Oedipus is the undisputed tragic hero, Oedipus begins the play as an illustrious king and ends as a blind beggar. His plight encourages sympathy from the audience because of the curse that had been on him since he was a child.
Considered by Aristotle as the perfect example of tragedy, Sophocles’ Oedipus the King is an Athenian play that follows the undoing of a Theban king by the name of Oedipus. The play presents a question Oedipus himself cannot answer: is it the man’s actions or is it the gods’ decisions that control the man’s destiny? Perhaps the answer is both man and god, but it is the man’s imperfections that determine what fate the gods will give him. While there is no direct proof that gods control everything in a man, from his dreams to his choices, Oedipus still proves that no matter how renowned a man is, that man’s weaknesses will determine his success or his failure. Oedipus fits the convention of a tragic hero as he is a man of high estate who suffers
According to Aristotle, Oedipus in Sophocles's play, Oedipus the King, would be considered a tragic hero. Oedipus is considered a tragic hero not only because he made the mistake of killing Laius, because he ends up exiling himself from his own city. At the end of Sophocles’s play Oedipus eventually reaches an all time low. This downfall is caused by him discovering what negative things he has done to his family and to his city. This downfall was caused by Apollo, the Greek god of Prophecy. Apollo is the cause of the downfall because it is proven many times in the play that you can’t control your own destiny which ultimately means that Oedipus’s fate was already written out for him by the
Over time, history has given society many to whom we call true heroes. There are many reasons these heroes have been looked up to such as: bravery, dedication, confidence, and inspiration. However, a tragic hero requires a few different qualities. Aristotle describes a tragic hero as a “member of royalty,” someone who “must fall from tremendous good fortune,” and someone who creates pity for him or herself (“Connections: A Theory” 2000). In Greek drama, Sophocles’ Antigone and Euripides’ Medea both contain several possible tragic heroes including Medea, Jason, and Creon. More specifically, in Antigone Creon exemplifies the qualities of a tragic hero best due to his prominent power as king of Thebes, the way he holds strong to his stubborn pride, and the sympathy felt for him in his tragic downfall.
Oedipus’ nobility and asset is responsible for his first strategic to success as a tragic hero. The nature of Oedipus ‘noble position as son of a king, earns him veneration from not only people of Thebes, but the audience also. The audience must respect a tragic hero as someone superior and more control below themselves. In line 13 of Oedipus the King play, Oedipus states, “tell me, and never doubt me that I will help you in every way I can”. By saying this he means no matter what it takes, he is willing to sacrifice whatnot for his people, the individuals of Thebes. A kingly courage is something he had and held it high over his head, so high over his head he made a sacrifice to flee away from his own city. Oedipus exiled from the city to die out the plague, so citizens of Thebes wouldn’t harm any longer. He had taken things in his own matters. Oedipus felt he was a problem and things would only be right if it was he who left. Doing this great deed Oedipus shows that he is far from being self-regarding and closer to a leader. His ...
With this in mind, many believe that King Oedipus in Sophocles’ play, Oedipus the King, is the perfect example of Aristotle’s tragic hero. Does he, however, truly fulfill all the “requirements” described in Poetics or is there something we miss in the depths of his fascinating and multi-faceted character that does not fit into Aristotle’s template? Without a doubt, Oe...
The great Sophoclean play, Oedipus Rex is an amazing play, and one of the first of its time to accurately portray the common tragic hero. Written in the time of ancient Greece, Sophocles perfected the use of character flaws in Greek drama with Oedipus Rex. Using Oedipus as his tragic hero, Sophocles’ plays forced the audience to experience a catharsis of emotions. Sophocles showed the play-watchers Oedipus’s life in the beginning as a “privileged, exalted [person] who [earned his] high repute and status by…intelligence.” Then, the great playwright reached in and violently pulled out the audience’s most sorrowful emotions, pity and fear, in showing Oedipus’s “crushing fall” from greatness.
The concept of tragic hero is very important in the construction of tragedy. It is the main cause of pity and fear. The tragic hero is a character between the two extremes; he is neither virtuous nor evil. At the same time, this character is better than the ordinary men or audience, he has some good qualities. Moreover, as a tragic hero, he is moving from happiness to misery by his downfall at the end. In fact, this downfall is caused by an error or a flaw in his character not by a vice or depravity. Another feature in the tragic hero is that he has good reputation and he is a man of prosperity. It can be said that Oedipus is a tragic hero because he has all the previous mentioned characteristics and the whole play is a classical application of this concept.
Sophocles’ Oedipus is the tragedy of tragedies. An honorable king is deceived and manipulated by the gods to the point of his ruination. In the face of ugly consequences Oedipus pursues the truth for the good of his city, finally exiling himself to restore order. Sophocles establishes emotional attachment between the king and the audience, holding them in captivated sympathy as Oedipus draws near his catastrophic discovery. Oedipus draws the audience into a world between a rock and a hard place, where sacrifice must be made for the greater good.
The play Oedipus the King by Sophocles has often been described as the story of a “tragic hero.” This story is indeed tragic; however, Oedipus is not the only character stricken by tragedy. Equally stricken may be the character of Jocasta. She, as well as Oedipus, suffers many tragedies throughout the story. Shifting the story to a different perspective quite possibly may increase how we view it. The point is not to denounce Oedipus’ role as a tragic hero, but to denounce his role as the only tragic character.
Before the twentieth century plays were mainly written as either a tragedy or comedy. In a tragic play the tragic hero will often do something that will eventually destroy him. In the book Oedipus the King, Oedipus is the tragic hero. In this tragic play the main character, which is portrayed as Oedipus, will do a good deed that will in turn make him a hero. This hero will reach his height of pride in the story, and in the end the action, which he had committed earlier, will return and destroy this man who was once called a hero.
Oedipus the King by Sophocles has the ingredients necessary for a good Aristotelian tragedy. The play has the essential parts that form the plot, consisting of the peripeteia, anagnorisis and a catastrophe; which are all necessary for a good tragedy according to the Aristotelian notion. Oedipus is the perfect tragic protagonist, for his happiness changes to misery due to hamartia (an error). Oedipus also evokes both pity and fear in its audience, causing the audience to experience catharsis or a purging of emotion, which is the true test for any tragedy according to Aristotle.
Oedipus is depicted as a “marionette in the hands of a daemonic power”(pg150), but like all tragic hero’s he fights and struggles against fate even when the odds are against him. His most tragic flaw is his morality, as he struggles between the good and the evil of his life. The good is that he was pitied by the Shepard who saved him from death as a baby. The evil is his fate, where he is to kill his father and marry his mother. His hubris or excessive pride and self-righteousness are the lead causes to his downfall. Oedipus is a tragic hero who suffers the consequences of his immoral actions, and must learn from these mistakes. This Aristotelian theory of tragedy exists today, as an example of what happens when men and women that fall from high positions politically and socially.