[ Is Hamlet a tragic hero at all? The Greek philosopher Aristotle defined the tragic hero with Oedipus as the archetype a great man at the pinnacle of his power who, through a flaw in his own character, topples, taking everyone in his jurisdiction with him. Hamlet has no great power, though it is clear from Claudius’ fears and from Claudius’ assessment of Hamlet’s popularity that he might have power were he to curry it among the people. His topple results as much from external factors as from his own flaws. Nevertheless, he certainly does take everyone with him when he falls.
Perhaps, like Arthur Miller, who redefined tragedy in an essay called “Tragedy and the Common Man,” Shakespeare modified Aristotle’s definition for his own age and created a tragic hero who can appeal to a larger, more enduring segment of the population. Hamlet fulfills the Aristotelian requirement that the tragic hero invoke in us a deep sense of pity and fear, that we learn from him how not to conduct our lives. Hamlet is our hero because he is, as we are, at once both confused and enticed by endless dilemmas that come from being, after all, merely human.
In Shakespeare's play, Hamlet, the main character is a classic example of a Shakespearean tragic hero. Hamlet is considered to be a tragic hero because he has a tragic flaw that in the end, is the cause of his downfall.
The play is an example of a Shakespearean tragic play because it has all of the characteristics of the tragic play. As defined by Aristotle, a tragic play has a beginning, middle, and end; unity of time and place; a tragic hero; and the concept of catharsis.
One of the main reasons this play is considered a tragic play is because the main character is a tragic hero. Hamlet's tragic flaw is he spends too much time thinking and not enough time acting. This is the opposite of Shakespeare's play, Macbeth, in which the tragic hero spends too much time acting, and not enough time thinking. Hamlet dwells too much on whether or not to act on something, and by the time he decides to act, it is too late. When Hamlet finally decides to kill Claudius, he sees him praying and decides to wait longer. The next time he gets a chance to kill Claudius he takes it, but by then it was too late. Hamlet was killed as well. He could have prevented his downfall if it wasn't for his tragic flaw.
Another reason Hamlet is a classic example of Shakespearean tragedy is because it incorporates the idea of catharsis. Aristotle defined catharsis as the purging of the emotions of fear and pity. In the play, Claudius has the emotion of fear because he is afraid of Hamlet knowing that he killed his father. Claudius knows that Hamlet is capable of killing him. He knows that he cannot kill Hamlet to protect himself or to prevent the people from knowing who killed the king because the people love Hamlet too much. Claudius feels pity after he sees the "Mouse Trap" because he realizes what he had done was wrong now that Hamlet knows the truth behind the matter.
Hamlet is a tragic play because it has a beginning, middle, and end, and takes place in a short period of time. The play has a specific beginning, which consists of Hamlet seeing his father and considering what to do about it. The middle is one of the actions that he took, the "Mouse Trap." This set the course for the end, which was when the whole ending fencing scene takes place, when Hamlet and most of the other main characters die. The play took place in a short period of time and moved consistently without too many breaks in time.
This is a tragic play because it contains all of the characteristics of the classic tragic play. It takes place over a short period of time with a beginning, middle, and end. It has a tragic hero who possesses a flaw that causes his demise. Hamlet did get done what he wanted to get done, but because of his flaw, he ended up dying. He could have prevented his death, but because of his inaction and over analyzing, the tragic flaw, he couldn't.
