8-2Tragedies

William Shakespeare has written many plays in all dramatic categories: Comedies, Tragedies, Romances and Histories. You can find each one of Shakespeare's plays in The First Folio, the first collected edition of Shakespeare's plays. The editors were some of Shakespeare's friends and fellow actors, John Hemminge and Henry Condell. They were mentioned in Shakespeare's Last Will and Testament, suggesting they were good friends of his. The First Folio was not produced until after William Shakespeare's death. William Shakespeare was an amazingly talented writer and he is known throughout the world. Shakespeare wrote ten tragedies in total: //Hamlet, King Lear, Othello, Macbeth, Romeo and Juliet, Julius Caesar, Anthony and Cleopatra, Coriolanus, Timon of Athens, and Titus Andronicus.// Some of Shakespeare's most famous Tragedies are //King Lear, Hamlet, Othello and Macbeth. King Lear// is the tragic story of an old man's pitch into insanity as his world deteriorates around him. It tells of King Lear's pride in his reputation and his blindness to the facade his daughters wear while they are around him. His three daughters always say they love him, but in truth all they want is the kingdom. The play also deals with another family, the family of the Earl of Gloucester. His devious sons rip the family apart: one son, Edmund, over the other, Edgar. The story is told with an image of a downward spiral. The Fathers make significant decisions that lead them to misery. (Allardyce Nicoll, //Studies in Shakespeare// pgs 136-137) //Hamlet// deals with a young man who is grieving over his Father's death. His Father's ghost appears to him, and tells him that Hamlet's uncle, Claudius, is involved in an evil scheme to take over the kingdom and murder him. Hamlet's mother, the former king's widow, marries Claudius. Hamlet is horrified by his mother's actions and wants to take revenge. He buys time by acting as a madman and staying away from his love, Ophelia. He decides to reveal the truth about his father's death when a group of actors come to Ellsinore. He has them act out his concept of the murder. When Claudius sees the play, the horror on his face is evidence of his guilt. Claudius, realizing his nephew knows what he has done, sends him away with orders that he be killed. Hamlet finds a way to escape his death, comes back to Denmark, and finds his love dead. It seems Ophelia has killed herself. Ophelia's brother is angered, and believes she is dead because of Hamlet. The two prepare for a duel, and to make sure Hamlet dies, Ophelia's brother poisons the tip of his sword. Claudius poisons Hamlet's cup hoping he will drink from it after the duel, but during the fight, Hamlet's mother takes a sip, and collapses. The swords of the men dueling were switched and they are both mortally wounded. Before Hamlet dies, however, he stabs Claudius and forces him to drink the same poison that was meant for him. (Allardyce Nicoll, //Studies in Shakespeare// pgs. 34-36)
 * __Tragedies__**

//Macbeth// is about a noble warrior who gets overwhelmed by his need for power. Macbeth demonstrated bravery and loyalty when he led King Duncan's armies to victory and defeated the enemy. Macbeth really wants to become king, but he must kill King Duncan in order to do so. The calling of his loyalty to the throne, and his want for power tears him in two directions. He fears that the one murder will lead to many more. His wife is just as greedy for power but more cruel, and it is she who gives him the last push to make up his mind. She devises a whole plan for him to kill the King and blame it on the guards. Macbeth decides to murder Duncan, but this one decision stains him forever. He quickly becomes overridden with guilt, causing him to become paranoid. This causes him to become insane, which rapidly turns him into a tyrant. He soon starts to kill anyone he sees as a threat. He kills his best friend Banquo and a whole family of one noble. He is plunged deep in a blood bath. At a banquet, Macbeth talks about the things he has done to the ghost of Banquo who has appeared to him, and only him. Lady Macbeth goes absolutely insane. She eventually commits suicide. Macbeth finally realizes he is losing everything. An army comes to overrule Macbeth, and Macbeth is killed and his head is severed. Scotland returns to peace after Macbeth's bloody rule. (Allardyce Nicoll, //Studies in Shakespeare// pgs. 110-111)

//Othello// is a Moor serving as general in Venice's military. He is Black, which makes Othello very different from the other men of Venice. He is in love with Desdemona, a daughter of a statesman. Othello has promoted Michael Cassio to the new rank of lieutenant. A manipulative character, Iago, wants revenge on Othello and Cassio, the reason being that Othello promoted Cassio to a job Iago had been eagerly waiting to receive. The night after a battle that never took place, Othello orders Cassio to not to drink and to stay on guard. Iago, however, has a different idea. He invites Cassio to a festivity where he gets him drunk. Othello is enraged and strips Cassio of his title humiliating him. Desdemona, who trusts in Othello's good nature, steps in and confronts Othello with her opinion. She does not believe Cassio's punishment was proper to the "crime" he committed. Iago suggests to Othello that Desdemona is having an affair with Cassio. With further prodding from Iago, Othello demands Desdemona to show him the handkerchief, which he gave her as her first gift. Iago has placed the handkerchief in Cassio's bedroom. Iago says it is "evidence" of the affair. Othello, blinded by his fury, which is fueled by Iago's play on Othello's jealousy, decides Desdemona must die. He wakes her up and accuses her of cheating on him. She denies it but he doesn't believe her, so, he suffocates her. Emilia, Iago's wife and Desdemona's lady-in-waiting, comes in and defends Desdemona. It's too late though. When Emilia is telling the crowd it was her husband who caused all this havoc, Iago stabs her in the back preventing her from ever speaking again. Othello kills himself pleading to be remembered as one who "loved not wisely, but too well." This tragedy is a little different from the rest because the villain doesn't die at the end. Instead Iago was sent off to be tortured for the rest of his life. (Allardyce Nicoll, //Studies in Shakespeare// pgs. 80-83) The most common tragedy by William Shakespeare is //Romeo and Juliet.// It is interesting that, although the most popular, it is not considered to be among his most significant. According to Frank Kermode's introduction to //Romeo and Juliet// in the collection of Shakespeare's works called **The Riverside Shakespeare,** //Romeo and Juliet// "has been admired for its pathetic rather than tragic power". He suggests, "Romeo is not a tragic hero, because chance, rather than a fatal flaw, causes his downfall." All the characters in Shakespeare's plays are tragic heroes. A tragic hero is an honorable protagonist with a tragic flaw, also known as fatal flaw, which eventually leads to his demise. In //Hamlet,// the hero Hamlet is overwhelmed by his desire for revenge while in //King Lear,// Lear is blinded by his own pride. In //Macbeth//, his is controlled by his insane need for power while in //Othello// , the main character allows his own jealousy to ruin his marriage, his reputation and eventually causes him to commit suicide. All of these characters are noble, and respected at the beginning of the story but then one negligent decision, their tragic flaw, leads to more poor choices, eventually causing their downfall.

__Works Cited__ **

Elliot, Andrea and Mavash Ghandi. "Shakespeare's Tragedies." Elizabethan England Web. 5 Apr 2009. 

"First Folio." William Shakespeare Info. 2005. 4 Apr 2009 .

Frank, Kermode. The Riverside Shakespeare. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1974. Print.

Gray, Terry. "Reviews." Google Shakespeare. 2 Feb 2009. 14 Apr 2009 

Halsall, Paul. "Ancient History Sourcebook: William Shakespeare: from Julius Ceasar:Act 3, Scene 2 Anthony's Speech." Ancient History Sourcebook. June 1998 .16 Mar 2009 http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/ancient/shak-juliuscaesar.html.

Lloyd Evans, Gareth, and Barbara. The Shakespeare Companion. New York, NY: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1978. Print.

Nicoll, Allardyce. Studies in Shakespeare. London, England: The Hogarth Press,1927. Print. **