To What Extent are ‘Othello’ and Oedipus Rex Perfect...

‘Othello’ was written between 1601 and 1603. It was first performed in the Elizabethan courts during the Christmas season. The idea of a ‘perfect’ tragedy is the idea that the tragedy is faultless; it does what is expected; so makes the audience feel empathy and sympathy for the characters who suffer. There are two different types of tragedy: classical tragedy and Shakespearean tragedy. The tragic hero in this play is the main character, Othello. Othellos misfortune comes about because of his jealousy, trust, and his pride. This essay aims to look at, and compare, how Shakespeare wrote his tragedy, and how other tragedies are written. I will mainly compare ‘Othello’, for Shakespearean tragedy, and ‘Oedipus Rex’, by Sophocles, for†¦show more content†¦Unlike the other Shakespeare tragedies, which follow the common ideas for Shakespearean tragedy, ‘Othello’ includes some of the ideas from classical tragedie s. Some of these include the downfall from high position – Othello goes from being the general, to being convicted of being a murderer. Innocent characters also suffer, like Desdemona. Othello accused her of being unfaithful, when she never was. He ends up killing her out of jealousy; when she does not deserve it. As it was stated earlier, one of the features of a classical tragedy is that an innocent character suffers. However, it seems that this also appears in ‘Othello’, as Desdemona’s suffering is very prominent. In act 4, scene 3, Desdemona is talking to Emilia about all that she is worried about, and thinking about. One of the most emotional things that Desdemona talks about was her â€Å"mother had a maid called Barbary: / She was in love, and he she loved proved mad / And did forsake her† (4.3.25-27). She then has a premonition of death and requests Emilia, if she should die, to wrap her body in one of her wedding sheets, which are now on the bed, â€Å"If I do die before thee, prithee shroud me / In one of those same sheets† (4.3.23-24). Desdemona sings the â€Å"Willow Song,† and, in this indirect way, she faces the real possibility that Othello is going mad and willShow MoreRelatedEssay about Universal truth (Shakespeare)1860 Words    |  8 Pages In both â€Å"Othello† and â€Å"Oedipus Rex† to a great extent, the emotions provoked by familiar human experiences are acceptable to all people of all times. It is a fact that â€Å"Human nature remains the same (Kiernan Ryan 1989).† Both plays explore issues surrounding emotions like love, envy, jealousy and pride provoked by life experiences such as racism, fate, rifts between parent and child, a quest for position through deception or for justice or an intoxicating sense of being all powerful which transcendRead MoreEssay Death of a Salesman, Tragic Hero. Willy Loman.1503 Words   |  7 PagesTo what extent can Willy Loman be considered a tragic hero according to Aristotle’s rules? Arthur Miller presents his play ‘Death of a Salesman’ in the ancient form of a tragedy. Aristotle has defined his idea of the ‘perfect’ tragedy in his text, ‘Poetics’ (350 BC).Here he suggests that the protagonist must fall from an elevated social standing as a result of a â€Å"fatal flaw† within the character; the fall from the main character creates resolution to the play which is seen as just; finally, Aristotle