A View From the Bridge

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A tragic hero is a great character in a dramatic tragedy who is destined for his/her downfall. The character ends up dying. Eddie is a longshoreman that unloads boats on the docks of Sicily. He supports his wife Beatrice and his niece, Catherine. However, Eddie has twisted feelings towards Catherine as he has raised her like his own daughter, and feels a strong connection towards Catherine. Eddie’s feeling and jealousy causes him to need to have Catherine in his life, and his irrational behaviour leads to his death. Eddie is so focused on having his honour and reputation that he is oblivious to the chaos that he creates.

Eddie’s actions change throughout the story due to his out of control spiral of love towards Catherine. This is an example of a tragic hero as Eddie was a respected husband and member of the community, but has now turned bad. He has treated Catherine like his own daughter, and has become overprotective. “I don’t understand you; she’s seventeen years old, you gonna keep her in the house all her life?” This quote from Beatrice shows that Eddie needs Catherine close...

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