The Most Tragic Character in Medea by Euripides

She fell in love and slept with Aeneas after she promised that she would never love anyone regarding her husbands death. As stated before, “One’s honor was more important than one’s own life.” With this being said Dido decides to plan her own death. She then tells her sister to start a pyre to burn all of Aeneas’ things that he left behind. Dido exclames, “It will do me good to destroy every reminder of that evil man- as the priestess told me.” She made it seem as if she was doing all of this to rid everything of what Aeneas owned, but she was really planning her own suicide. In a sense one could say that Dido’s own body was a reminder of what happened so, she could have also committed suicide for that reason.

At the end of the play, the opposite is true: Lady Mecbeth feels guiltier than mecbeth.. Guilt is responsible for the death of Lady Macbeth and Macbeth. In Act II, Scene ii, Macbeth regrets the murder of Duncan as soon as he kills the king. He finds it impossible to pray after Duncan’s two sons waken from a nightmare pray and fall back to sleep : "I had most need of blessing, and "Amen" / Stuck in my throat. "(II;ii;32-3) On the other hand Lady Macbeth tells him to forget about the murder because if they keep thinking of the crime, it will make them both crazy: Consider it not so deeply.

I will either kill them, or myself, or both.” This can explain Antigone’s excessive desire to bury her brother and even further be supported in lines 25-28 when Antigone challenges her sister’s loyalty. Aristotle himself said that a tragic hero should be neither better nor worse normally than a normal person. With that being said Antigone’s sister, Ismene, was in the same position as her. Originally invoking a sense of naturalism this changes with Ismene’s refusal to help bury their brother. The lack of support for Antigone’s plan leaves her no choice, but distances herself from her sister who obviously doesn’t share the same family loyalty beliefs as her (Lines 77-81).

For example, Ophelia is conflicted because she is unsure of what to make of her relationship with Hamlet. Also, her father, Polonius, tells her to end whatever it is she has with Hamlet. Ophelia is very dependent on men to tell her how to behave, and this does not help her present complicated situation with Hamlet. Ophelia starts to think that Hamlet is crazy after he starts to order her to a nunnery. Then Hamlet accidently kills Polonius and Ophelia is stricken with grief.

Third, our two brothers, on a single day...Each killed the other, hand against brother's hand." (Antigone, Lines 59-65) In this quote, Antigone justified her reasons for going against the law describing how her parents went through so much, how their father was banished and due to this their mother had committed suicide because her reputation went down to the drain, even after all that their two brothers went into battle against one another and died in the process. Ismene was sympathetic, but still she was noble and afraid of Creon so she did not offer her help to Antigone. Creon required the support of the Chorus of Theban elders, and for his verdict considering what to do with Polyneices' body. When Creon came to know of Antigone’s plan he called for her and when she did not deny of the fact that she buried her dishonorable brother’s body he grew angry and assumed Ismene her younger sister had helped her.

She dies saying "Thy drugs are quick. Thus with a kiss I die." (p.185) showing that if she cannot be with Romeo, then she would rather not be at all. Juliet's role in the play defies what her traditional role should have been, to obey her parents. She could not see sense and comfort once she fell in love with Romeo and this eventually lead to tragedy.

The Nurse, not only laments the lengths, up to and including murder, that Medea has already went to in her love of Jason, but also the fact that she knows Medea is not going to put up with the treatment she is now receiving. Jason has decided to marry the king’s daughter, effectively abandoning Medea and their children. Adding insult to injury Kreon, the princess’s father intends to exile Medea running her and her children from the land. Both Jason and Kreon underestimate Medea’s rage and intellect. Medea devises a diabolical plot to kill Jason’s betrothed and her own children.

This can be seen in Oedipus the King. After Oedipus hears of his destiny from Teiresias that he is going to marry his mother and kill his father, he starts to live in fear that one day his destiny would truly come to light. Oedipus denies all that Teiresias tells him and begins to blame Teiresias and Creon for the death of Laius. Fear leads Oedipus to absurd conclusions. Jocasta tells Oedipus to not fear the bed of his mother but he replied “All that you say would be said perfectly if she were dead; but since she lives I must still fear, although you talk so well, Jocasta”(Sophocles 1075-1077).

She does not accept her full punishment of being forced to live in the tomb, but takes the easy way out and kills herself. This is almost an acceptance of defeat to Creon showing she was not willing to go forth with her punishment. Antigone's decision to carry through with the burial of her brother Polynices brought forth no seeable good. Only more catastrophe and chaos struck a family to which they are no strangers. If Antigone had put the good of her countrymen before her deceased brother, the situation could have turned out to benefit all of Thebes.

In Medea, a play by Euripides, Jason possesses many traits that lead to his downfall. After Medea assists Jason in his quest to get the Golden Fleece, killing her brother and disgracing her father and her native land in the process, Jason finds a new bride despite swearing an oath of fidelity to Medea. Medea is devastated when she finds out that Jason left her for another woman after two children and now wants to banish her. Medea plots revenge on Jason after he gives her one day to leave. Medea later acts peculiarly as a subservient woman to Jason who is oblivious to the evil that will be unleashed and lets the children remain in Corinth.