Does King Lear Play The Tragic :: essays research papers

Does King Lear Play the Tragic Hero, or the Autocrat? It is quite possible to make an argument in favour of either answer, an argument that would prove to be quite a debate, although one answer would weigh in favour of the other. To prove this, certain elements would have to be analysed thoroughly, all aspects taken into context and sufficient research done into the matter. This is the only method in which a fair debate of the argument can be taken into consideration. We can only find the answer to this question if we know what the two arguments mean; this will provide a solid base onto which the rest of the debate can rest, a foundation of fact. Aristotle, a great founder of the definition of tragedy used the word catharsis to describe the effects of true tragedy on the spectator. Aristotle stated that the purpose of tragedy was to invoke pity and terror, and thereby effect the catharsis of these emotions. Other critics see tragedy as a moral lesson in which fear and pity are excited by the tragic hero’s fate serve to warn the spectator not to similarly tempt providence. This interpretation is generally accepted that through experiencing fear vicariously in a controlled situation, the spectators own anxieties are directed outward, and, through sympathetic identification was the protagonist, his insight and outlook are enlarged. Also, as importantly and significantly, Aristotle introduced the term hamartia, the tragic flaw, or an inherent defect or shortcoming in the hero of a tragedy. Aristotle casually described the tragic hero as a man of noble rank and nature whose misfortune is not brought upon him by villainy or corruption, but by some error of judgement. This imperfection later became known, or interpreted as a moral flaw, although most great tragedies defy such a simple distinction of the term. We could say that in many cases of tragedy the hero is never passive, but struggles to resolve his tragic difficulty with an obsessive dedication, that he is guilty of presuming that he is godlike, attempting to surpass his own human limitations. The need, or lack of order in a society, could be a reason why the tragedy came to be, and is known in Greek terms as hubris. This ethical and religious thought portrays the resulting implications of impious disregard of the limits governing human action in an orderly universe. It is the sin to which the great and the gifted are most susceptible, and in Greek tragedy is usually the hero’s tragic flaw.