Oedipus

There are many characteristics that complete Aristotle’s definition of a tragic hero; these being the presence of hamartia and peripeteia, a sense of self-awareness, the audience’s pity for the character, and the hero is of noble birth.

Aristotle’s definition: The definition of a tragic hero is fairly self-explanatory, however, Aristotle’s definition of the term is the best description. He writes that a tragic hero is a literary character who makes an error of judgment or has a fatal flaw that, combined with fate and external forces, brings on tragedy. When referring to the play, Oedipus the King, many people question whether Oedipus should have the title of a tragic hero based on the events that take place in the play. When deciding if this label is true, we must look into some of the significant elements that make up the character of a tragic hero.

The five main characteristics of a tragic hero: There are five important foundations that I will be focusing in on that distinguish a tragic hero from a regular character in a play. Hamartia, peripeteia, noble birth, self-awareness, and audience pity are five central pieces of the story. These five elements are equally crucial and are very important parts of who the character is and how the story ultimately pans out.

The first aspect of the characterization of a tragic hero is the presence of hamartia, which by definition is the fatal flaw leading to the tragic downfall of a hero. This fatal mistake is often also known as the climax of the tragedy. The presence of hamartia are common in most, if not all Greek tragedy plays.

Oedipus proclaims, “Apollo, when we sent to him, sent us back word that this great pestilence would life, but only if we established clearly the identity of thos...

... middle of paper ...

...bel of a tragic hero because by saving everyone around him, he caused pain and heartache on himself.

Works Cited

Kennedy, X. J., and Dana Gioia. Literature: An Introduction to Fiction, Poetry, Drama, and Writing. New York: Pearson Longman, 2007. Print.

Java, Amy. "Critical Analysis of "Oedipus the King"" HubPages. HubPages, 23 June 2009. Web. 28 Feb. 2014.

Storr, F. "The Internet Classics Archive | Oedipus the King by Sophocles." The Internet Classics Archive | Oedipus the King by Sophocles. N.p., 2013. Web. 26 Feb. 2014.

McManus, Barbara F. "Plot Structure of Oedipus the King." Plot Structure of Oedipus the King. Aristotle's Theory of Tragedy, Nov. 2000. Web. 28 Feb. 2014.

"Tragic Hero." Dictionary.com. Dictionary.com, 2014. Web. 28 Feb. 2014.

"Oedipus Rex or Oedipus the King Summary." Study Guides & Essay Editing. Grade Saver, 2014. Web. 28 Feb. 2014.