Othello Tragic Hero Essay

Aristotle considered a tragic hero as a good man of high status who displays a tragic flaw and experiences a dramatic reversal along with an intense moment of recognition. In the play The Tragedy of Othello: The Moor of Venice written by William Shakespeare the main character, Othello, is portrayed as a tragic hero. Throughout the play he displays each characteristic of Aristotle’s definition of a tragic hero. Othello was often considered as a good man of high status in the play. Many people treated him as one and spoke very highly of him. Those who knew him well and those who did not would deem him a good man of high status for his personality and all of his accomplishments. “The Moor, howbeit that I endure him not, / Is of a constant, loving, noble nature, / And I dare think he’ll prove to Desdemona / A most dear husband” (II, i, 65). Iago stated this during the play expressing how he believed Othello would be an outstanding husband and bring Desdemona much joy. The Duke of …show more content…
“Ay let her rot, and perish, and be damned / tonight; for she shall not live. No, my heart is turned to stone; I strike it, and it hurts my hand” (IV, i, 124). Once Iago began telling Othello of Desdemona’s supposed interactions with Cassio, Othello was angry at Cassio and was in astonishment that Desdemona, who cared for him so much, would do such a thing. However, he soon became so irritated that he changed his whole opinion of his wife and decided to kill her. As many people considered him, Othello was a good man and would have never tried to hurt a woman especially not his loving wife. But due to his anger and jealousy, he struck her across the face. Desdemona and Lodovico were in disbelief, as his attitude and actions towards her had greatly altered. Othello had transformed from the good man who everyone loved, to a frightful enemy determined to get