Assignment of  tragic hero according to Aristotle
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 Name: Makwana  Daksha  D.
Course : MA
Semester : 1
Batch : 2017-2019
Roll no : 4
Enrollment  no : 2069108420180034
Paper no : 3  The  literary theory and criticism
Topic : The tragic hero according to Aristotle
Email id : makwanadaksha9@gmail.com
Submitted to : Smt.S.B.Gardi Dept.of  English MKBU
                                                                                                                                                                Introduction:
Aristotle as a writer of ‘poetics “ gave a definition of tragic hero and tragedy .In his work he wrote six part of tragedy and his function with objection  of plato. He brought new term as ‘catharsis ‘ and ‘hamartia ‘,with reference of  othello, hamlet  and  oedipus .   A tragic hero is the protagonist  of a tragedy in drama .Aristotle in his poetics , records the descriptions of the tragic hero to the playwright  and strictly defines the place that the tragic hero must play and the kind of man  he must be.Aristotle  based his observation on previous dramas written by Shakespeare and other Elizabethan  writers and many of the most famous  instances of tragic hero appear in greek literature .Aristotle in his poetics  puts forward a  number of  characteristics for the ideal tragic hero.Acccording  to Aristotle ,the hero confronts his downfall whether due to fate ,or by his own mistake ,or any social reason.

“ Aristotle ‘s tragic hero ,in his poetics ,he suggests that a hero of a tragedy must evoke in the audience a sense of pity and fear ,saying “ the change of fortune  presented not be the spectacle of a virtuous man brought from prosperity to adversity.”
                                     

Aristotle   disqualifies  two  types of character 1) purely virtuous  and  2) thoroughly bad . there  remains but one kind of character ,who can best satisfy this requirements –“ A man who is not eminently good and just  yet whose misfortune is not brought by vice and depravity but by some  error of frailty”. His misfortune  excites pity because it is   out of all proportion to his error of  judgement ,and his over all  goodness excites fear from his doom.

Tragic hero should be a man of mixed character ,neither blameless and nor absolutety  depraved .His misfortune  should follow from some error or flaw of character ,short of moral traint .He must fall from height of prosperity and glory.The protagonist  should be renowned and prosperous ,so his change of  fortune can be from good to bed .The fall of such a man of eminence  affects entire situation.This change “ should come about as a result ,not of vice but of some great error or frailty in a character.”Such a plot  is most likely to  generate pity and fear in the audience .“ Pity is aroused by unmerited  misfortune ,fear by the misfortune of a man like ourselves .”

Characteristics of a tragic hero : 
Aristotle say that  the ideal tragic hero must be of a man like ourselves .he must be an intermediate kind of person ,a man not who highly virtuous and just yet whose misfortune is brought by some error of judjement ,not by vice .Aristotle used the word “ Hamartia”

Hamartia:   This term translated as a “ Tragic flow “ .Hamartia means ‘ An error which is  derived from ignorance  of  some material fact or  circumstance.In the Aristotelian term  is a mistake  or error of judjgement  . In the ideal tragedy ,claims aristotle , the protagonist  will mistakenly  bring about his own downfall – not because he is  sinful  and  morally weak .but because  he does not know enough. Tha role of  the hamartia in tragedy comes out  from its moral status but from the  inevitability of  its   consequences.
This  error of  judgement  may arise from :
1)      Ignorance (Oedipus )
2)      Hasty and careless  view ( Othello )
3)      Decision  taken  voluntarily  but not delibretely  ( hamlet )

Butcher: “Oedipus the king – includes all three meanings (moral frailty, ignorance, error of  judgment) of hamartia, which in English cannot be termed by a single term…. Othello is the  modern example, Oedipus in the ancient, are the two most conspicuous examples of ruin wrought  by characters, noble, indeed, but not without  defects, acting in the dark and, as it seemed, for the best.”

 Modern plays: Hamartia is practically removed from the hero and he becomes a victim of circumstance – a mere puppet. The villain in Greek plays was destiny, now its circumstances. The hero was powerful, he struggled but at the end of the day, death is inevitable. Modern heroes, dies several deaths – passive – not the doer of the action but receiver. The concept of heroic figures in tragedy has now become  practically out of date. It was appropriate to the  ages when men of noble birth and eminent  positions were viewed as the representative  figures of society.Today, common men is  representative of society and life.
Hamlet ‘s hamartia is his in decisiveness . he can not make up his minds abour the dillemas  he confronts.His dialogue “ To be or not  To be .” His  in decisiveness  led  death of many innocent  people.
Hamartia imparts   the sense of pity and fear in readers .They feel pity for the revesal of fortune thet he undergoes. And also moralize that fear of same fate if they indulge similar kinds of action.

1. A good man – coming to bad end. (Its shocking  and disturbs faith)                                             
2. A bad man – coming to good end. (neither  moving, nor moral)                                                     
3. A bad man – coming to bad end. (moral, but not moving)                                                             
4. A rather good man – coming to bad end. (an ideal  situation)
                                               
Goodness: Although we can relate to the tragic hero through his innate humanity, there are some aspects of his character that should be somewhat foreign to us. Aristotle claims that he must be a 'good' man, which to the Ancient Greeks meant much more than it might today. For them, this meant that the hero would be well-known, perhaps even of high stature (i.e. Romeo or Wayne's famous families), but not overly virtuous or morally upright. Aside from money or titles, he may also possess extraordinary abilities (i.e. Hercules' strength). All of these things, of course, make the inevitable decline all the more tragic as the hero's transition from good fortune to bad.

 These are "reversal" (peripeteia), where the opposite of what was planned or hoped for by the protagonist takes place, as when Oedipus' investigation of the murder of Laius leads to a catastrophic and unexpected conclusion; and "recognition" (anagnorisis), the point when the protagonist recognizes the truth of a situation, discovers another character's identity, or comes to a realization about himself

The purpose of a tragic hero is to evoke sad emotions, such as pity and fear, which makes the audience experience catharsis, relieving them of their pent up emotions. The tragic flaw of the hero leads to his demise or downfall that in turn brings tragic end. This gives wisdom to the audience to avoid such things in their everyday lives. The sufferings and fall of a hero, arousing feelings of pity and fear through catharsis, purges the audiences of those emotions, to transform them into good human beings and good citizens

The heroes of tragedies must belong to renowned families. The materials for tragedies have been supplied by the distinguished families. The men of common birth are unfit for tragedies. That is why; the heroes of tragedies must belong to the distinguished families such as the families of Oedipus, Orestes, Melenger, Thystes etc. A man of eminence always claims our special attention, for when a king or any great man falls a nation is affected.

Initially, the tragic hero should be neither better or worse morally than normal people, in order to allow the audience to identify with them. This also introduces pity, which is crucial in tragedy, as if the hero was perfect we would be outraged with their fate or not care especially because of their ideological superiority. If the hero was imperfect or evil, then the audience would feel that he had gotten what he deserved. It is important to strike a balance in the hero's character.

Suffer a reversal of fortune: The character should suffer a terrible reversal of fortune, from good to bad. Such a reversal does not merely mean a loss of money or status. It means that the work should end with the character dead or in immense suffering, and to a degree that o  utweighs what it seems like the character deserved.
Catharsis :  Catharsis can be translated as ‘ purification’ , ‘correction or refinement ‘,Catharsis suggested means that our pity and fear are purified in the theatre by becoming disinterested ,It is good to pity Othello or to be fear for Hamlet.our selfish emotion has been sublimated .there is strong evidence that catharsis means ,not ‘purification ‘ but ‘purgation’..” A medical metaphor.’ Purgation has assumed different meaning.so it would be better to to translate  catharsis as “ moderating or tempering of the passions .”catharsis leaves wholesome effect in the minds of spectators.pity alone would be sentimently and  fear alone would make us cowards ,but both constitute the tragic feeling or tragic beauty.

 Hubris : This quality  of protegonist   lead him to his tragic  doom.This word describes  quality of extreme of foolish pride or dangerous overconfidence .In greek tragedies hero challenges the God ,which brings out the downfall ,or  nemesis of the perpetrator of hubris. Hubris often indicates a loss of contact with reality or one’s  capabilities.

 Example of  tragic hero :  
                      
Macbeth: In this play of Shakespeare the ambition of Macbeth  is tragic flow or hamartia .macbeth suffers for his ambition.,He gets ambitious by the words of the witches who predict that he will become the king of  Scotland. His ambition  leads him  to kill innocent people and consequently he also  get killed by macduff.

 Oedipus : according to Aristotle ,Oedipus is a perfect example of  a tragic hero,as he has hubris  such that he is blind to the truth .He  refuses  to listen  to wise man . He is tragic  because he struggles  against  the forces of of his fate ,and ptiable for  his weakness, which arouse fear in  the audience .Thus ,Oedipus is a  ideal example of the tragic hero ,which caused his own downfall.

 Hamlet :.Hamlet is the prince of Denmark, a man of high social status and noble by birth. He is almost driven to madness by his father’s tortured ghost, who convinces him that Claudius is responsible for his father’s death, and that he has committed treachery. Hamlet then makes a plan to take revenge on his father’s killer, but he is blinded by his hamartia, neglecting his relations with other loved ones – Gertrude. Hamlet’s hamartia is his constant contemplation and brooding, which causes him to delay, which ultimately results in his destruction. By the end, Hamlet also falls in a bloodbath, touching the hearts of the audience by highlighting the most primal fear, death. . His indecisiveness ,hamartia , neglects his Ophelia and his mother other  personal relationships. Hamlet become responsible  for many innocent deaths and also meet tragic end .
                                            

 Othello :  Othello  is tragic  hero ,that his hamartia causes his tragic death and his beloved .many innocent murder happened in the play because of hamartia.

 Doctor Faustus :  Dr.faustus resembles most of Aristotele ‘s  idea of a hero, his hamartia caused his downfall.Faustus is a regular man and has high intentions.In lust for  power and knowledge ,sells his soul to become  powerfull.His  hamartia led him to tragic end. Which lead to catharsis.

Conclusion :  
  Tragic hero  is a person  fated by the Gods or by some supernatural force to doom and destruction or at least to great suffering.Because the tragic hero simply cannot accept a diminished view of the self and because of some personality flaw, the hero fails in this epic struggle against fate. This tragic drama involves choices (free will) and results in a paradox --- Is it Fate or Free Will which is primarily responsible for the suffering in the hero's life , Though fated the hero makes choices which bring about his destruction. In addition, tragic drama usually reveals the hero's true identity. Oedipus --- instead of being the proud savior of Thebes --- discovers that he is the cause of the city's plague, the killer of his father and the husband of his mother.                                                                                                                                                        
Work cited :
 https://literarydevices.net/tragic-hero/
study.com/academy/lesson/tragic-hero-definition-characteristics-examples.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tragic_hero
www.josbd.com/aristotles-definition-of-tragedy-and-tragic-hero-in-poetics/
https://www.litcharts.com/literary-devices-and-terms/tragic-hero