Introduction
It is possible to say that William Shakespeare is one of those writers whose literary works have portrayed heroes, with some, such as Othello, falling due to their human weaknesses. Literature is a rich source that enables individuals to learn from real or fictional characters, and conventional writings play a critical role in analyzing our societies (Sneha and Saha 69). Lear explains that Aristotle’s viewpoint reveals that a tragic hero represents a man with tragic flaws that make him experience destiny reversals (63). Personal shortcomings of temper, jealousy, and ignorance are the most targeted weaknesses that depict a tragic hero. In literature, the tragic hero concept is a literary device that Shakespeare utilizes to evoke the audience’s feelings of fear, sympathy, or even pity. A close analysis of the play’s text allows stating that Othello is a tragic hero because he has a noble character, a high social position, and a loving heart. However, he cannot overcome his own weaknesses, which leads him to make a silly mistake and lose everything, which are the key requirements for a tragic hero.
Othello’s Noble Character and High Social Status
In Aristotle’s description of a tragic hero, the philosopher explains that such a person must have a noble character. To be more precise, the tragic hero must have admirably excellent traits worth emulating and a high social class rank. People should understand that societies are divided into different cadres of people based on the economic, social, and political influence they have (Crosby 17). Othello has an African origin, which does not stop him from rising to the ranks of a General in the Venetian Army, commanding substantial reverence from certain army quarters. For one to ascend to army general, bravery and other positive characteristics are among the qualifying requirements. According to Bratchell, the people of Venice uphold Othello with high respect due to the strength and confidence he gained from his military command success (196). Othello’s elevated respect is shown when he enters a senate discussion room, and one senator refers to him with the title the Valiant Moor (Shakespeare 37). Such a remark emphasizes the respect and honors the leaders of Venice accord Othello.
Despite the situations Othello faces as an African in Venice, his bravery and confidence portray him as a person endowed with a noble character. In one scene, Barbantio alleges that Othello engaged in witchcraft, and such a grave accusation shakes most people with foreign origins living in Venice (Shakespeare 36). In such a dramatic and dangerous turn of events, Othello maintains his dignity and replies with the confidence of a hero and a leader, stating he was never involved in witchcraft and that the allegations could not be true. Leaders appreciate Othello’s bravery and the strength of his character throughout the region; for example, the governor of Cyprus identified this trait in Othello (Hamamra 31). Othello demonstrates his bravery and mastery when he successfully overcomes a strong sea storm and sails to the land (Shakespeare 61). Bringing his crew to anchor at the docks makes him earn the title ‘captain’ and proves his noble character. As a consequence, these positive and outstanding traits of Othello are highlighted numerously in the play.
Othello’s Genuine Heart
Another characteristic of a tragic hero is that he always has a genuine and loving heart, which is also present in Othello. The true spirit embodies an absolute passion for achieving success with uncompromised dedication (Lear 62). This trait makes the tragic hero simultaneously focus on love and also beating all odds to become a respected individual, as represented in the play. Intrinsically, Othello has an undoubtedly loving heart that crowns his nature of nobility. The way he speaks about his wife, Desdemona, reveals his gentle character, and his love makes him a socially respected man (Bratchell 204). Even his antagonist Iago acknowledges Othello’s constant love for Desdemona.
Obsession, Jealousy, and Self-Uncertainty as Othello’s Weaknesses
Despite his genuine and loving nature, the play reveals some instances when Othello becomes violent, jealous, or insecure, and these weaknesses lead the man to his tragic failure. Aristotle outlines that a tragic hero must undergo Heartier, a miserable weakness-motivated failure. In literature pieces, this minor error develops into a fatal outcome, and the protagonist has a very narrow window to salvage the situation. A tragic hero’s actions during this period of experiencing the power of weakness become the basis for a tragic loss of reverence and respect.
First of all, one may notice that the sequence of tragic events begins with Othello’s self-doubts and uncertainty. Thus, the play represents Othello as a foreign individual in Venice and the only black character who is different in almost all aspects. Desdemona, a native Venetian, develops affection for Othello and marries him despite all these differences, but the reality of being different brings numerous insecurities to Othello’s life. Othello is made to believe that he has insufficiencies that disqualify him from having Desdemona; thus, he is ready to gullibly accept all misinformation about his wife.
Second, one may say that it is essential for individuals to differentiate between love and obsession since the two are distinct, with the latter capable of leading them to commit tragic actions against the people they love. The most extraordinary flaw of the protagonist is his obsession with Desdemona (Hamamra 33). Not being able to control himself and not allow his love to turn into violent obsession and be guided by his jealousy, Othello, again, is blinded and ready to believe Iago. Probably if not for his own self-uncertainty, Othello would be able to control his jealousy and listen to Desdemona. Nevertheless, all these weaknesses are noticed by Iago, who realizes that some characteristics like gullibility and jealousy that Othello possesses are exploitable. As a consequence, Iago utilizes them to front his grievous fault, planting doubts in Othello regarding the insincerity of his wife.
All of Iago’s sentiments are manipulative, and none is true, but since the antagonist has noticed the hero’s flaw, he capitalizes on it to ensure his sounding downfall. As a result, Othello’s noble character begins to fade, and the actions taint his perception of his engagement with Desdemona out of the hideous acts of Iago (Crosby 23). This is where the third fatal element of his character, violence, plays its role by bringing the man down and making him fit the Aristotelian criteria of the tragic hero. To summarize, the noble Othello used to treat his wife with love, but out of Iago’s ill intentions and falsehood, he changes into a disrespectful and hate-filled husband. Shakespeare dramatizes this through figurative writing and literature styles to attain a tragic hero scenario, one of the rarest things most authors strive to achieve. As a consequence of lies, Othello assumes a contradictory violent nature different from his highly regarded personality at the start of the play.
Peripeteia and Recognition
Finally, peripeteia is another trait of a tragic hero’s path. In this sudden turn of events, Othello finds himself deceived by Iago, and the Aristotelian concept explains that once the main character or the hero understands their tragic weakness, they undergo recognition, which is when both the tragic hero learns the truth. As mentioned earlier, insecurity based on being different makes Othello blinded by Iago’s lies; he cannot trust his friend Emilia who provides insight that his wife’s insolence is a fabricated story to achieve Iago’s plot for his failure (Sneha and Saha 72). The actual consciousness, or recognition, comes with Emilia’s narration on how Iago got hold of Desdemona’s handkerchief, thereby orchestrating the downfall of Othello. At this point, Othello recognizes the flaws inspired by his jealousy and realizes that his fate is overturned because of his unreliable reason. It is too late to change anything because he has already murdered his innocent wife, Desdemona. Othello consequentially blames himself for the foolishness that made him vulnerable to lies, and eventually, guilt haunts and makes him commit suicide.
Othello’s Mistakes
In literature, real tragedies essentially recognize that the protagonist’s death results from an error committed by the hero. Othello’s demise is due to his mistake of allowing deceit to control his actions gullibly. The antagonist, Iago, plays a central role in supporting the tragic hero theme in Othello, depriving the man of his ability to make rational decisions independent of outside influence and have a total mandate over his life. The play’s protagonist was responsible for tackling rumors concerning his wife without letting jealousy control him and impair his judgment (Sneha and Saha 75). Unfortunately, Othello becomes a tragic hero because he overly concentrates on his weaknesses and fails to examine the authenticity of Iago’s information concerning his wife. As a military officer, Othello could have done better than believing Iago’s one-sided narrative. People expected him to have investigated to prove the allegations that Desdemona was having a sexual affair with Casio. If Othello had searched for evidence, he would have found out the truth that his wife’s handkerchief had been planted on Casio and that nothing was going on between the two. However, this is never the case for a tragic hero who has to pay for his fatal mistakes.
Conclusion
To draw a conclusion, one may say that Othello is indeed a tragic hero because he meets all the criteria outlined by Aristotle. First of all, he has a noble character, and Othello’s morale, bravery, and other positive traits are recognized by other characters throughout the play. Further, the man manages to achieve a high social position even though he is black, and such opportunities were rarely available for this racial minority at those times. Then, Othello has a gentle and loving heart, which could have been used by him to avoid the tragic end. However, his weaknesses and flaws, like jealousy, self-doubting, violence, and obsession, allow Iago to take advantage of Othello’s instability and ruin his happiness with Desdemona. Othello is unable to correct his mistakes, and after experiencing peripeteia and recognition, he dies. All these features allow stating that Othello is a tragic hero.
Works Cited
Bratchell, Dennis Frank. Shakespearean Tragedy. Routledge, 1990. Taylor & Francis Group.
Crosby, Cassidy. “Tragedy and Resolution: Domestic Violence in Othello and the Taming of the Shrew.” Criterion: A Journal of Literary Criticism, vol. 14, no. 1, 2021, pp. 45-56.
Hamamra, Bilal Tawfiq. “Shakespeare’s Othello and the Romance of Antar: The Politics of Racism and Self-Fashioning.” Comparative Literature: East & West, vol. 3, no. 1, 2019, pp. 28-37.
Lear, Jonathan. “Testing the Limits: The Place of Tragedy in Aristotle’s Ethics.” Aristotle and Moral Realism, edited by Robert Heineman, Routledge, 2018, pp. 61-98.
Shakespeare, William. The Tragedy of Othello, The Moor of Venice. Folger Shakespeare Library.
Sneha, Chakraborty, and Saha Oly. “The Moor of Venice: Critically Analyzing Othello Based on Race, Colour, Gender as the Social Constructor, and the Facilitator to Kill Desdemona.” Litinfinite, vol. 3, no. 1, 2021, pp. 69-79.