One of the distinguished literary theory 's brought forth by Aristotle is the theory of the tragic hero. A comprehensive definition of this theory is a character whether in film or book who makes a judgment error that leads to the character’s own destruction. For this question I will be looking at Joe Paterno and why I consider him to be an excellent example of a tragic hero. I will break down his story as a tragic hero in parts as illustrated in the class notes.
Tragic Hero Part 1: The first part of the tragic hero theory is that the character is of noble stature and has greatness. This noble stature/greatness is clearly evident for Joe Paterno. He is considered one of the best college football coaches in history being the most victorious …show more content…
In the case of Joe Paterno, we can look at his humble beginnings. Joe was not born into a football family; he was born in Brooklyn and came from a modest family where his dad was a law clerk and his mom was a homemaker. He even joined the military for a year before his attended college where his tuition was paid for by an outside party. He also started off as an assistant head coach and wasn’t given the head job until a number of years passed. This humble beginning for Joe permits the viewer to relate by perceiving him as a man who worked hard in order to become one of the greatest coaches …show more content…
In other terms, this can be viewed as the punishments exceeding the crime. In the case of Joe Paterno his punishment included being fired as the head coach of the football team, and various other fines/punishments including stripping Joes last 111 wins which dropped him from the first to twelfth all-time winning coach. To me, this can be viewed as unjust or exceeding because Joe Paterno did not actually commit the crime. The lash back was stemming from the opinion of the public and NCAA that Joe did not do enough. The FBI and the Chief Deputy Attorney General of Pennsylvania conclude that Joe did not do anything illegal nor participated in the alleged cover-up. Prosecutors additionally conclude that Joe fulfilled his requirements and responsibilities as a state employee when reporting the cover up. When taking all these facts into account it can be viewed that the punishments handed out by the NCAA and by the University can be considered extreme or unjust when looking at what Joe Paterno actually
Tragic Hero Part 1: The first part of the tragic hero theory is that the character is of noble stature and has greatness. This noble stature/greatness is clearly evident for Joe Paterno. He is considered one of the best college football coaches in history being the most victorious …show more content…
In the case of Joe Paterno, we can look at his humble beginnings. Joe was not born into a football family; he was born in Brooklyn and came from a modest family where his dad was a law clerk and his mom was a homemaker. He even joined the military for a year before his attended college where his tuition was paid for by an outside party. He also started off as an assistant head coach and wasn’t given the head job until a number of years passed. This humble beginning for Joe permits the viewer to relate by perceiving him as a man who worked hard in order to become one of the greatest coaches …show more content…
In other terms, this can be viewed as the punishments exceeding the crime. In the case of Joe Paterno his punishment included being fired as the head coach of the football team, and various other fines/punishments including stripping Joes last 111 wins which dropped him from the first to twelfth all-time winning coach. To me, this can be viewed as unjust or exceeding because Joe Paterno did not actually commit the crime. The lash back was stemming from the opinion of the public and NCAA that Joe did not do enough. The FBI and the Chief Deputy Attorney General of Pennsylvania conclude that Joe did not do anything illegal nor participated in the alleged cover-up. Prosecutors additionally conclude that Joe fulfilled his requirements and responsibilities as a state employee when reporting the cover up. When taking all these facts into account it can be viewed that the punishments handed out by the NCAA and by the University can be considered extreme or unjust when looking at what Joe Paterno actually