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Jun 18, 2024 · A Shakespearean tragedy (like Hamlet, for example) is a play written by Shakespeare himself or a play written by a different author but in the style of Shakespeare. Shakespearian tragedies have their own specific features that differentiate them from other types of tragedies.
Shakespeare certainly uses fate as a theme in his tragedies, though sometimes in unexpected forms. In Macbeth, for instance, fate assumes a supernatural form in the trio of prophesying witches. Shakespeare also complicates the theme of fate by emphasizing the protagonists’ inner turmoil more than the play of external forces.
- A Tragic Hero. The tragic hero describes a male or female royal of virtuous character, who must face adversity, either caused by their flawed persona or sealed by fate.
- Good Against Evil. Good and evil was as real as it is today in the times of Shakespeare. One reason why the good vs evil theme features so often in tragedy is the ability of the duo to stir the imagination of the audience as these elements existed in society.
- Hamartia. The protagonists in these tragedies all carry a flaw, also known as hamartia, that leaves them vulnerable and eventually leads to a disastrous end.
- Tragic Waste. Looking at Shakespeare’s plays, the hero and villain ultimately die. It is this disturbing demise of good characters along with the evil ones that is known as tragic waste.
Aug 2, 2024 · Shakespeare's tragedies share certain elements: a protagonist with a fatal flaw, internal and external struggles, and a bit of the supernatural.
- Lee Jamieson
Aug 4, 2016 · Shakespearean tragedy works through the loss of any ‘given’—nature, or God, or ‘fate—that might explain human societies, histories, actions, destinies, relationships, and values.
Dec 18, 2013 · What is a Shakespearean tragedy? By Colin Burrow; Edited by Claire McEachern, University of California, Los Angeles; Book: The Cambridge Companion to Shakespearean Tragedy; Online publication: 18 December 2013; Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CCO9781139095747.003
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The plays grouped as Shakespeare tragedies follow the Aristotelian model of a noble, flawed protagonist who makes a mistake and suffers a fall from his position, before the normal order is somehow resumed.