How Is Othello A Tragic Hero

A tragic hero can be defined as the protagonist of a story who has a fall from grace. A tragic hero is a character who has everything going for him or her, however, they have a flaw that sparks their downfall. This is a perfect description of Othello because that is exactly what happens. Othello can be considered a tragic hero due to his greatnesses and weaknesses, nobility, and vulnerability. Othello portrays himself has a tragic hero through his greatnesses and weaknesses.
“The tragic protagonist begins the play with some kind of hubristic certainty about the world, and their view of the world, and their view of themselves”(Chouhan). Othello proves this point by having qualities of a military leader and being the general of the Venetian army, making it out to be that Othello has the perfect life. Along with the positive characteristics comes the negative ones such as his weaknesses. “He may also be the victim of one or more artful manipulators who know him better than he knows himself”(Mcalindon). As explained in this quote Othello becomes blinded by trust, he tends to trust the people around him even when
Othello is a graceful man with a courageous personality which draws people near. In Act 1, Scene 3 Shakespeare establishes Othello’s strong and noble character through the refutation of claims made against him by Brabantio, the father of his fiancée. “I have ta’en away this man’s daughter / It is most true; true I have married her. The very head and front of my offending hath this extent, no more” (Shakespeare). Here Othello states that while it is true that he and Desdemona plan to marry, this is all you can rightly accuse him of wanting to do – marry the woman he loves. He speaks plainly and respectfully to the council and through this and his obvious regard for Desdemona, his nobility and depth of character begins to become apparent. ADD MORE IN THIS