Othello, A Tragic Hero
Along with Hamlet, King Lear, and Macbeth, Othello is one of four Shakespeare's greatest play that deals with tragedies. More than anything else, what distinguishes Othello from its great tragedies appears in the role of its villain, Iago. Iago is a character who essentially writes the play's main plot, takes a key part in it, and gives the direction to others, especially, to the noble moor, Othello. In Shakespeare's classic drama, "Othello, the Moore of Venice," Othello is a classic example of Aristotle's theory of a tragic hero- a great man of noble birth, with a high position in his society who now has a flaw that leads to his own downfall.Othello is ultimately a tragic hero in the Greek tradition defined by the critic, Aristotle's concept of a tragic hero. To find the meaning of a tragic hero we must define what a tragic and hero mean. A tragic event is disastrous, dreadful or fateful. A tragic story or play has a serious theme usually results in death or defeat. A hero is a man who displays courage or noble qualities. Normally perceived as a muscular, handsome man who dresses in a tight fitting costume. A tragic hero then must have these characteristics: (1) Be a nobleman, prince or person of high estate; (2) have a tragic
The murder of Desdemona in her bed by Othello was a tragic murder. Later, Othello is given the information that he has been deceived by the one whom he has trusted and honor for life, "Lord have mercy on me" Othello speaks, "...[s]peak of me as I am; nothing extenuate, nor set down aught in malice: then must you speak of one that flaw, and a weakness in judgment; and (3) fall from high to low estate (Bradley,175). Using these criteria, I can easily classify Othello as a tragic hero.
Some common words found in the essay are:
Shakespeare263 Iago, Venice Othello, Cassio Desdemona, Cassio Othello's, Desdemona Othello, Military Cyprus, Othello Barbantio, Desdemona Cassio, Desdemona Barbantio, Emila Othello, tragic hero, othello iago, othello begins, othello speaks, noble birth, strong religious, people venice, othello othello, othello tragic, goes desdemona,
Approximate Word count = 1680
Approximate Pages = 7 (250 words per page double spaced)
|
