Anguish and Angels
Who is the protagonist of Angels in America? Why? How does or does not this individual (or individuals) fit into the Aristotelian concept of a protagonist?
Angels in America by Tony Kushner is a classic case of finding one’s identity through truth and lies, that’s coupled with the stigma of disease and sexual orientation. The play features two couples, Louis and Prior, and Joe and Harper who’s fates all seem to come together after each of them undergoes troubling experiences. Prior is diagnosed with HIV, Harper is addicted to valium and suffers episodes of anxiety attacks, Louis can’t take care of Prior and turns to Joe for relations, and Joe has difficulties facing his own sexual orientation. Interesting enough, this drama …show more content…
Louis is extremely troubled when Prior is diagnosed with HIV and tries to stay with him and care for him, but ends up leaving him. Which is exactly where his flaw makes a genesis. Louis exhibits characteristics of a protagonist because he truly is a good man but he certainly is “tragically” flawed and he experiences a “fall” due to his actions. It’s easy to tag Louis as a heartless man lacking in morals, but during the play we see him show incredible signs of guilt, and constant speculation of his actions, after he leaves Prior. We see this through his crying in the bathroom and when he consults a rabbi about his guilt. That being said, over the course of the play, Louis makes significant strides from exhibiting strong signs of self-pity to taking responsibility for the actions he made and realizing the impact he had on Prior. This leads perfectly into the ideal that Aristotle …show more content…
Although Joe seems to travel a path that is exactly opposite of Prior’s heroic path to heaven, he still has protagonist qualities of his own. Joe begins the story struggling with his urges of being homosexual, even though he was raised believing it was a terrible thing, he still can’t help but feel the way he does, as he ends up leaving Harper and getting with Louis. All things considered, his journey can be viewed as a positive one. Joe’s strong demeanor at the beginning is a fake persona put on by a struggling man, who eventually accepts who he is and makes progress by being true to himself. Recognition is a huge part of what Aristotle considered a dramatic
Who is the protagonist of Angels in America? Why? How does or does not this individual (or individuals) fit into the Aristotelian concept of a protagonist?
Angels in America by Tony Kushner is a classic case of finding one’s identity through truth and lies, that’s coupled with the stigma of disease and sexual orientation. The play features two couples, Louis and Prior, and Joe and Harper who’s fates all seem to come together after each of them undergoes troubling experiences. Prior is diagnosed with HIV, Harper is addicted to valium and suffers episodes of anxiety attacks, Louis can’t take care of Prior and turns to Joe for relations, and Joe has difficulties facing his own sexual orientation. Interesting enough, this drama …show more content…
Louis is extremely troubled when Prior is diagnosed with HIV and tries to stay with him and care for him, but ends up leaving him. Which is exactly where his flaw makes a genesis. Louis exhibits characteristics of a protagonist because he truly is a good man but he certainly is “tragically” flawed and he experiences a “fall” due to his actions. It’s easy to tag Louis as a heartless man lacking in morals, but during the play we see him show incredible signs of guilt, and constant speculation of his actions, after he leaves Prior. We see this through his crying in the bathroom and when he consults a rabbi about his guilt. That being said, over the course of the play, Louis makes significant strides from exhibiting strong signs of self-pity to taking responsibility for the actions he made and realizing the impact he had on Prior. This leads perfectly into the ideal that Aristotle …show more content…
Although Joe seems to travel a path that is exactly opposite of Prior’s heroic path to heaven, he still has protagonist qualities of his own. Joe begins the story struggling with his urges of being homosexual, even though he was raised believing it was a terrible thing, he still can’t help but feel the way he does, as he ends up leaving Harper and getting with Louis. All things considered, his journey can be viewed as a positive one. Joe’s strong demeanor at the beginning is a fake persona put on by a struggling man, who eventually accepts who he is and makes progress by being true to himself. Recognition is a huge part of what Aristotle considered a dramatic