Othello: A Tragic Hero

A tragic hero is a person who initially is well-respected and holds a high esteem within society. They are of high moral worth and are highly ambitious in what they set out to achieve. A single mistake or character flaw can, however, bring them to ruin, with a loss of everything that they possess. 

In the discussion of whether Othello fits the role of a tragic hero, the following concepts need to be considered. Firstly, as befitting a tragic hero, Othello holds an important role. He is well-respected and admired by all. Othello is a noble hero; he is held in high regard by Venetian society. 

Secondly, through a character flaw and the added complication of external forces working against him, he suffers a dramatic fall from grace. He loses all that he held dear- his wife, his status, his position, and the respect held by others of him.

Finally, despite his actions, there is a lesson to be learnt and the audience is compelled to maintain some feeling of sympathy towards him. 

The senators value him and hear what he says when he speaks. This is shown here by one of the senators. "Here comes Barbantio and the valiant Moor", (Act I scene 3, 47). The Duke also tells Brabantio “If virtue no delighted beauty lack / Your son-in-law is far more fair than black.”(Act I Scene 3)

These are some examples of the many comments which shows Othello's character and personality as a person and an officer. They say he is one of the great leaders. 

Othello is the husband of Desdemona whom he murders because he has been misled by the villainous Iago. Othello comes to see love through Iago's eyes and not through Desdemona's--these two characters represent internalized features of Othello's character. He rejects his loving and generous self (Desdemona)--that aspect of humanity which makes society possible--in favor of the dark passions of his self-centered ego (Iago). 

In the end, the forces of love and trust regain their strength as Othello finally recognizes the goodness of Desdemona. Iago is finally condemned as the villain he is, but in the meantime the action of the play has demonstrated the power of evil. 

Othello is a "tragic hero" due to his self-centered nature and his gullibility--he allows himself to be manipulated by Iago instead of trusting his heart. He does redeem himself, but it is too little, too late.

Othello can also be called a domestic tragedy because a husband commits the murder of his wife under the mistaken impression that she is playing false to him and she is unchaste. In the opinion of D.J.Donovan, “ In Othello, Shakespeare comes nearest to writing domestic tragedy, a type of drama popular on the Elizabethan stage, and that was capable of yielding powerful effect as in Arden of Feversham and Heywood’s A Women Killed with Kindness”.

The tragedy of Othello and Desdemona appears to be quite like a domestic tragedy which has been brought by the full working of the marital jealousy. 

However the tragedy of Othello does not appear to be a tragedy of a private man. The heroic character of Othello makes the play a great tragedy rather than a mere domestic tragedy.it is a tragedy of intrigue brought about by a deceitful villain.