Willam Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet
Romeo and Juliet was written by William Shakespeare, it is among his
many other tragedies such as, "Macbeth" and "Hamlet.". "Romeo and
Juliet" is one of the most tragic Shakespeare's plays. In the
prologue, Romeo and Juliet are referred to as star-crossed lovers who
are destined for death.
In Shakespeare's other tragedies, such as "Macbeth and "Hamlet",
although these characters are destined to die, the kind of tragedy is
different, Romeo and Juliet is a domestic tragedy, although the other
characters influence the outcome of the final tragedy, only a small
group of people are affected. However, in "Macbeth" and "Hamlet", the
tragedy is political; the outcome affects the entire country.
A tragic hero must be from a noble, royal or a rich family; they must
possess a flaw that will eventually be their downfall. Other people
influence the outcome of the hero and after the hero and his friend's
etc die, peace is then returned.
The play follows Romeo, the main character; he is the tragic hero of
the story, however he isn't the kind of character we expect to be a
hero Romeo, from the beginning of the play, is portrayed as an
immature character, having become depressed over Rosaline, Romeo likes
to make other people feel sympathy for him even if that other
character is trying to help him, and for example, when Benvolio is
trying to help him.
"This love that thou hast shown
Doth add more grief too much of my own."
He is self-centred and melodramatic, he wants to be pitied. He
describes love as a burden. Whilst he is in love with Rosaline, he
uses images of heaviness and darkness to...
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away to Mantua. She agreed. However, Friar Lawrence's letter couldn't
get delivered to Romeo because of an outbreak of the plague so Romeo
didn't know whether Juliet was truly dead or not. Fearing that Romeo
will do something drastic, he tries to send another letter although in
vain as Romeo had already received news of the death and was making
his way back to Verona.
Balthazar had told Romeo the news.
"Then she is well and nothing can be ill,
Her body sleeps in Capel's monument."
Romeo buys some poison but refers to it as "Cordial", he uses this
term because medicine is usually helpful and it will help him to be by
Juliet's side again in death.
"Come cordial, and not poison, go with me.
To Juliet's grave, for there I must use thee."
Romeo makes his way to Capulet's tomb to die beside Juliet.
A tragic hero is an individual who possesses a fatal flaw in their character that will bring about their own destruction or suffering. Aristotle believed that “A man doesn't become a hero until he can see the root of his own downfall. (Aristotle #1)” This Ancient Greek philosopher also believed that each tragic hero has four characteristics. The first of these characteristics is that a tragic hero is born with either wisdom or high integrity, and in some cases both.
Aristotle once said, “A man cannot become a hero until he can see the root of his own downfall.” A tragic hero is defined as a literary character who makes a judgement error that inevitably leads to his or her own destruction. In the play Antigone, King Creon was perceived as a powerful, respectable, and confident king; inadvertently his confidence and arrogance had led him to the termination of his reign. Creon was confronted with a difficult situation in which he must chose to abide the law or support his niece, Antigone. While being entangled with his pride, he had not given Antigone a chance to persuade him. He had done what he deemed appropriate as king by abolishing his own niece, unaware of the consequences that the future held for him. The interactions between Antigone and Creon in this play had exploited Creon’s flaws and had influenced his decisions which eventually
Traditionally, a tragic hero is one who is of noble or high birth. Hamlet himself is a prince while Winston Smith, in respect to the social hierarchy of Oceania, would be considered only a middle class citizen. Merely the fact that Hamlet is a prince does not mean that this title alone describes a hero, but rather a hero can describe the title. “Hamlet’s appeal derives from his youth, intelligence, charm, vulnerability, and above all, his intellectual and emotional honesty. He is a raw nerve n the Danish court, disconcertingly liable to make the instinctive rather than the conditioned response” (Wells 315). Traditionally those who are born into a world of higher class society and rebel against it tend to be the more concerned with the needs of others and sympathize with them. Those born of a lower class tend to be concerned with their own welfare and raising their standing in society.
Before you can become a tragic hero you have to be a hero. I think John Proctor definitely meets this definition. He goes to the court and risks it all to try and free the women accused of witchcraft. He does this by going straight after Abigail, the leader of the “victims” of witchcraft and the main accuser. He does this by exposing the crime he did with her, which is lechery, to show that she had a motive to
William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. In the age of Rome and Juliet’s creation, many values of society were. different from those we observe in modern day life. Women did not have equal rights, fathers had a lot more authority over their children and arranged marriages were still practiced.
A tragic hero is a person of noble birth or potentially heroic qualities. The role of a tragic hero is common in many of Shakespeare's plays such as Macbeth. The character of Macbeth is a classic example of a Shakespearean tragic hero. A tragic hero often has a noble background. This person is predominantly good, but suffers a terrible fate falling out due to glitches in their personality. The tragic hero has a monstrous downfall, brought out by their fatal flaw. Macbeth is named a tragic hero because he learns through suffering, he is isolated, and he exhibits personal courage in his acceptance of death.
Romeo and Juliet Although Romeo and Juliet become inextricably smitten with one another, they both enter into the relationship from different perspectives. Their love is strong, but each has their reasons for the intensity of their love. Romeo has just come out of another ?crush?. He has liked Rosaline for quite awhile, but things do not work out because the feelings are not mutual. Romeo sees that Juliet is a beautiful lady that he falls in love with right away, while he attends the Capulet Party. Juliet also instantly falls in love with Romeo, but it could be more of an escape for her.
two families. It was unjust of him to send Romeo away from Verona as a
of life: if something is meant to be, it will be, no matter what the
Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare is also a prime example of those who choose to end their life to escape from their reality. The Capulets and the Montagues haven been in feud for many years when a fight between their servants breaks out in the streets. Prince Escalus arrives to end the brawl and tells both sides that the next person to start a fuss will be sentenced to death.
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.
“Feather of lead, bright smoke, cold fire, sick health, still-waking sleep, that is not what this is” (Shakespeare 1.1. 179-180). A string of contradictions explain the love story of Romeo and Juliet, a contradiction. Some critics consider this story a tragedy because Shakespeare once wrote; “the fault is not in our stars but in ourselves”. While others say it does not follow the standard Aristotelian form of tragedy (Krims 1). Romeo and Juliet can not be a tragedy because no flaw causes them to fall, the lovers, could not have controlled fate, and family and friends assisted them to their deaths.
Throughout literary history, tragic heroes have been defined as a great or virtuous character in a dramatic tragedy who is destined for downfall, suffering, or defeat. However, philosophers such as Aristotle tried to find connections between tragic heroes in Greek plays. This in-depth analysis of tragic heroes lead Aristotle to create six criteria for a true tragic hero: He or she has to be a Noble figure of royalty and noble in character, has to be imperfect by design, has a flaw or error that is a choice, is punished excessively for this choice flaw, has to undergo a downfall that leads to a realization, and the story of this tragic hero has to make the audience reach a moment of catharsis or purging of emotions. A prime example of a tragic hero that fits all of these criteria is Creon from the play Antigone, written by Sophocles in 441 BC. The story of Antigone is a tragedy that describes a stubborn and proud king named Creon who refuses to allow a burial for the brother of Antigone. Creon’s excessive pride leads to a series of unfortunate events resulting in the death of Antigone, his son Haemon, and his wife Eurydice. Throughout the course of the play, Creon undergoes each standard that is required by Aristotle’s terms to be a tragic hero.
Being part of a royal family was the first qualification of being a tragic hero, according to Aristotle. Oedipus was originally born into a royal family. He was the son of Lauis and Jocasta, who were the king and queen of Thebes. After he was born, a prophet told his father that Oedipus would eventually rise up and kill his father. No wanting to take the risk of being killed, Lauis bound Oedipus’s feet with shackles and threw him out into the wilderness to either be adopted or to die. He thought that by getting rid of his son, that the prophecy would not be fulfilled. Oedipus ended up being adopted by the ki...
A tragic hero can be described as a great or virtuous character in a dramatic tragedy who is