While it would seem that she did not love her husband, but it really seems like Gertrude marries Claudius so quickly because she knows it is the only way to preserve her status and position in the kingdom, otherwise she will lose power, rank, and privilege. She needs a man to protect her, and she uses Claudius to save herself, just as Claudius uses her to ensure he can take over the kingdom.
It seems by the end of the play that Hamlet is truly insane. He talks to dead skulls, he reacts irrationally (such as when he stabs Polonius even though he cannot even see it is really him through a curtain), and he plots revenge on his uncle, but cannot bring himself to carry it out until his own mother dies. He seems extremely depressed and cynical, and he just seems mad. He is not acting, there would…...

3.47-51). hile Ophelia clearly is intelligent enough to take care of herself as well as offer her own rebuttals against the male characters' altogether creepy insistence on controlling her sexual life, she suppresses this intelligence and ability out of deference for her father. Thus, her eventual fall is inevitable and largely her own fault, because by allowing her relationship to her father to overshadow everything else, including her own thoughts and desires (revealed explicitly when she says "I do not know, my lord, what to think"), she sets herself up to be utterly devastated following her father's death (and abandonment by Hamlet) (1.3.104).
The circumstances surrounding Ophelia's death are somewhat murky, as they are only related second-hand via the Queen, and the reasons for Ophelia's madness are only ever truly "explained" by the king. Although Ophelia does state that she "cannot choose but weep" at the thought that her father will…...

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Work Cited

Shakespeare, William. "Hamlet." Shakespeare Navigators. Web. 4 Aug 2011.

.

Willy suffers from the consequences of the internal and external conflicts in his life. One of the antagonists in this story is the false promise of the American Dream, not another person per se. Willy is unable to become rich and show his family his own worth through material possessions, despite his hard work and perseverance, which is a conflict to him because he believed that would happen. He believes that the company he has been employed by for decades will promote him, but instead he is fired. He has worked hard and struggled to provide for his family, yet his sons reject him. Willy learns that the truths he has believed in life are actually false promises. These conflicts are all caused by the antagonist of the play, and losing his job and income and therefore perceiving himself to have let everyone, including himself, down are his external conflicts.…...

This explains the indecisiveness of Hamlet to remove Claudius and a strong barrier between Gertrude and Hamlet is made by him so as he will never express his true emotions for her. Hamlet feelings for Gertrude will be disguised by the ones for Ophelia which aren't real as long as Claudius stayed in the way. His original indecisiveness about revenge ultimately grew and he tried to defy his order after a while. hen his mother is killed, then the reason for not killing Claudius disappears and he makes the decision to kill his him and avenge his father. His indecisiveness does cost him his life and that of his mother who was the one reason for his living (Utter 137).
The tragic flaw is of Hamlet is evident in his indecisiveness to take revenge for the death of his father. Hamlet brings up several excuses for not taking action yet…...

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Works Cited

Burch, R. "I knew Hamlet." Mississippi Review. 29.3 (2001): 43-47

27 April. 2010. < http://www.jstor.org/stable/20132124>

Halliday, F.A Shakespeare Companion 1564 -- 1964. Baltimore: Penguin, 1969

"Hamlet: Themes." The lit Chart Library. 3 Sept. 2008. 27 April. 2010.

Oedipus Exemplifies or Refutes Aristotle's Definition of a Tragic Hero
Aristotle's, the Greek philosopher definition of a tragic hero and tragedy has been influential since he set these definitions down in The Poetics. These definitions were viewed as important during the Renaissance, when scores of writers shaped their writings on the works of the ancient Rome and Greece. Aristotle asserted that tragedies follow the descent of a tragic hero or a central character, from a noble and high position to a low one. A tragic hero posse some tragic flaws, which cause his, fall from fortune, or turnaround of fortune, and to some point, the tragic hero realizes that his own mistakes have caused the turnaround of his fortune. Aristotle also noted that the tragic fall of a hero or a central character in a play stirs up fear to the audience or the reader given that the audience sympathizes…...

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Work Cited

Bloom, Harold. Oedipus Rex. Texas: Infobase Publishing, 2007.

Grene David. Sophocles. Oedipus the king. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2010

Kahan Jeffrey . King Lear: New critical essays. New York: Routledge, 2008.

Madden Frank. Exploring literature: Writing and arguing about fiction, poetry, drama and the essay. Pearson Education Canada, 2008

He continued to repeat the same behavior without at least trying to do something different. His dream probably kept him alive a little longer than he might have lived otherwise. As pathetic as his dream was, he owned it and believed he could reach it on some level. illy's tragic flaw begins with a delusion. He chooses to foster that delusion instead of moving in another direction. He takes the lazy way out of the situation because anything else would take him out of his comfort zone and he might actually develop into something successful. illy lies to himself and to those around him because that is easy as well. illy is a fictional character but he is far more real than many would like to admit. His humanity makes him worth studying because many people live in this kind of complacent, unfulfilled state. illy is his own obstacle…...

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Works Cited

Ardolino, Frank. "I'm not a dime a dozen! I am Willy Loman!': The Significance of Names and Numbers in Death of a Salesman." Journal of Evolutionary Psychology. (2002) 174.11.

Phelps, H.C. "Miller's Death of a Salesman." Explicator. 53.4. (1995) p239-41.

Miller, Arthur. Death of a Salesman. An Introduction to Literature. Sylvan Barnet, ed. Boston:

Little, Brown and Company. 1985. 1030-1114.

Irony in "Soldier's Home" -- Irony is a device used by writers to let the audience know something that the characters in the story do not know. There is usually a descrepancyt between how things appear and the reality of the situation. Often the characters do not seem aware of any conflict between appearances and the reality, but the audience or reader is aware of the conflict because the writer has used irony in the story. Whatever the emotion of the story is, irony heightens it.
There is a strong element of irony in Ernest Hemingway's painful story "Soldier's Home." Harold, who served in the Army in World War I on the bloodiest battlefields, comes home too late to be welcomed as a hero. We know he needed to be treated as a hero (because he makes up lies about himself) but the townsfolk and his parents do not. While Harold…...

Tragedy and the Common Man," he contemplates the idea that only the wealthy, noble characters can fully understand tragedy, and therefore appreciate it. That thought is not a reflection of his own opinion, as Miller argues the case of tragedy and the common, working class man - for tragedy knows no income boundaries, but rather that this person would "lay down his life...to secure one thing - his sense of personal dignity." To that end, Willy Loman epitomizes what Miller is speaking about.
Willy Loman is most certainly a tragic hero, according to the modern-day, Arthur Miller type definitions. Loman is hardworking and relentless in his pursuit of his American dream. His tragic flaw is that he cannot recognize how desperately his family wants to love him, yet Willy loves his family deeply enough to sacrifice self in order to give Biff the American dream that he could not obtain…...

Shakespeare Never Read Aristotle?
Or, the dynamic forms of catharsis and tragic flaws in Shakespeare's plays

Shakespeare's most beloved plays are his tragedies. If one were to list his best and most popular plays: Othello, Romeo & Juliet, Hamlet, King Lear, and so forth, one would find the list comprised almost entirely of tragedies. So it would not be amiss to say that much of the modern literary conception of theatrical tragedy is shaped and influenced by Shakespeare. At the same time, the definitions of the tragic form as understood at the roots of theatrical history (in Greco-Roman times) continue to be part and parcel of the official comprehension of tragedy. Many critics have sought to fore Shakespeare into the mold of tragedy defined in Aristotle's Poetica, and many others have rightfully protested that he was not cast from that mold, and that in fact he owes little to it. Speaking…...

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Bibliography

Aristotle. Poetica. Trans. W.H. Fyfe. http://www.noncontradiction.com/ac_works_b38.asp

Charlton, H.B. "Humanism and Mystery" Shakespeare The Tragedies. Ed. Alfred

Harbage. Englewood Cliffs: Prentice-Hall, Inc., 1964. 10-18.

Harbage, Alfred. "Introduction" Shakespeare The Tragedies. Ed. Alfred Harbage.

Oedipus the King by Sophocles. Specifically, it will explain how the suffering brought upon others by Oedipus contributes to the tragic vision of the work as a whole. Oedipus is the classic tragic hero, as he not only adversely affects his own life, he is the instrument of suffering for many of the other characters surrounding him in the play. His tragic flaw, or hamartia, is a fatal mistake that flows from a hero's character, and this tragic flaw continually affects those around him, and ultimately leads to his downfall, and the tragic ending of this play. Tragedy surrounds everything that Oedipus does, and ultimately no one in the play can survive when Oedipus touches their lives.
Oedipus' tragic flaw is his rashness. He does not think things through before he acts on his rash impetuousness, and this continually affects those around him. From the moment he slays the traveler…...

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References

Sophocles. Oedipus the King. Trans. Robert Bagg. Amherst: University of Massachusetts Press, 1982.

Iago notices this flaw at once and plots to exploit it almost immediately. This is evident when he tells Roderigo:
The Moor is of a free and open nature,

That thinks men honest that but seem to be so,

And will as tenderly be led by th' nose

As asses are. (Shakespeare I.iii.393-6)

Here we see that Iago intends on using Othello's open nature against him by allowing him to believe that Desdemona is cheating. Othello has a tendency to be slightly gullible - especially when he believes he is interacting with a confidant. R. B Heilman notes that it is the villain in Othello that defines the tragic hero. hen Iago describes Othello as one "loving his own pride and purposes" (I.i.12), he is describing Othello's "tragic role" (Heilman 21) a.C. Bradley observes, "Othello's mind, for all its poetry, is very simple. He is not observant. His nature tends outward. He is quite…...

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Works Cited

Aristotle. "Poetics." S.H. Butcher, Trans. MIT Internet Classics Archive. Information Retrieved March 01, 2009.  http://classics.mit.edu/Aristotle/poetics.html 

Bradley, a.C. Shakespearean Tragedy. Victoria: Penguin Books. 1991.

Shakespeare, William. Othello. Kenneth Muir, ed. New York: Penguin Books. 1968.

Heilman, R.B. "Modes of Irony in Othello." Shakespeare's Tragedies. Baltimore: Penguin Books. 1966.

searching for an example that follows Aristotle's principles for creating the perfect tragedy, we need look no further than illiam Shakespeare's play, Othello. According to Aristotle, a tragedy must possess certain characteristics. These include a plot that is easily remembered and structured to arouse pity and fear within the audience. Additionally, Aristotle writes, "Such an effect is best produced when the events come on us by surprise; and the effect is heightened when, at the same time, they follows as cause and effect" (Aristotle VIIII). A great deal of importance is also placed on the action of the plot. According to Aristotle, "A Complex action is one in which the change is accompanied by such Reversal, or by Recognition, or by both" (Aristotle X). These events must "turn upon surprises" (Aristotle XI) in order to fulfill the requirements of a tragedy. Suffering is also essential for a tragic hero…...

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Works Cited

Aristotle, Poetics. Trans S.H. Butcher. MIT Internet Classics Archive.   Site Accessed March 01, 2004.http://classics.mit.edu/Aristotle/poetics.html .

Bradley A.C. "Shakespearean Tragedy: Lectures on 'Hamlet,' 'Othello,' 'King Lear,' 'Macbeth.' 1904. Site Accessed October 23, 2003.  http://www.infotrac.com 

Cantor, Paul A. Othello. "Southwest Review." 1990. Site Accessed October 23, 2003.  http://search.epnet.com/direct.asp?an=9608042302&db=aph 

Muir, Kenneth. Othello: Introduction. New York: Penguin Books. 1968.

He kills his father as he flees his home and marries his mother after solving the riddle of the Sphinx. His end is inevitable, but Sophocles clearly shows the role negative character traits play in Oedipus' tragedy, while Hamlet's supposedly negative traits of doubt are not necessarily evil.
Thus Hamlet could be classified as a kind of nascent anti-hero, a man who mourns "the time is out of joint/oh cursed spite/that ever I was born to put it right," and never succeeds in 'putting it right' because society offers him only one, ineffective mechanism for pursuing a brutal type of justice (1.5). The failure of heroism to 'put things right' is manifested starkly in Waiting for Godot, where the heroes famously wait for the final 'solution' of the arrival of the presumably heroic Godot, who never comes. These characters are not so much heroes or even anti-heroes -- rather they…...

Bradley describes this by saying that "Othello's nature is all of one piece... Love, if he loves, must be to him the heaven where either he must leave or bear no life. If such a passion as jealousy seizes him, it will swell into a well-night incontrollable flood" (Bradley 188). This shows how Othello goes to the extremes, especially relating to his emotions. Bradley also says that "He is quite free from introspection, and is not given to reflection. Emotion excites his imagination, but it confuses and dulls his intellect" (Bradley 188). This shows that like Hamlet, Othello is not able to consider the source of his emotions. This occurs as a natural part of Othello's character, while for Hamlet it is specifically linked to the particular situation and the particular emotion. However, the end result is the same with both characters unable to consider their emotions and rationalize…...

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Works Cited

Bradley, A.C. Shakespearean Tragedy. New York: Penguin, 1991.

Eliot, T.S. "Hamlet and his Problems." The Sacred Wood: Essays on Poetry and Criticism. 1922. Bartelby.com. Retrieved October 29, 2005. URL:  http://www.bartleby.com/200/sw9.html 

Shakespeare, W. Hamlet. New York: Penguin, 1987.

Shakespeare, W. Othello. New York: Penguin, 1984.

Hero
One of the most pervasive archetypes in literature is the hero. The Greeks presented a complex and very human type of hero, often referred to as the tragic hero. eaders can relate especially to tragic heroes because tragic heroes have flaws. Their flaws make tragic heroes more human, and are effective protagonists even when their plans fail. The hero who is semi-divine or divine is a less compelling story, given that few if any human beings can relate to a figure who is flawless, immortal, and possessing of unlimited strength. Graphic novels present complex characters including some that fit the definition of tragic hero. Modern literature teems with examples of heroes who are just like us: they have good intentions, they are far from perfect, and they sometimes fail. Yet embedded in the definition of hero is the imperative that the individual must be able to put aside egotism, and…...

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References

Franklin, J.H. (n.d.). The train from hate. Retrieved online:  http://www2.selu.edu/Academics/Faculty/scraig/Franklin.htm 

Knight, E. (n.d.). Hard Rock Returns to Prison from the Hospital for the Criminal Insane. Retrieved online:  http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/15411 

Quinonez, E. (2000). Bodega Dreams. Vintage.

1. The Role of Mythology in Chaucer's Canterbury Tales
2. The Influence of Classical Mythology on Chaucer's Characters
3. The Importance of Mythological Allusions in Chaucer's Works
4. Comparing and Contrasting Chaucer's Use of Mythology with Other Medieval Writers
5. The Symbolism of Mythological Creatures in Chaucer's Tales
6. The Concept of Fate and Destiny in Chaucer's Mythological References
7. The Role of Gods and Goddesses in Chaucer's Narrative Structure
8. Exploring the Theme of Love and Desire Through Mythological Figures in Chaucer's Writing
9. The Mythological Roots of Chaucer's Moral and Ethical Themes
10. The Evolution of Mythological Themes in Chaucer's Literary Career.
11. A Comparative Analysis of Chaucer's....

Literary Analysis

Hamlet's Tragic Flaw: An Exploration of Indecisiveness and Self-Doubt
The Role of Ambition in Macbeth: A Study in Power and Corruption
The Tragic Heroine in King Lear: A Comparison of Cordelia and Goneril
Romeo and Juliet as a Tragedy of Fate or Free Will
The Meaning of Love in Twelfth Night: A Romantic Comedy with a Twist

Character Analysis

The Complexity of Hamlet: Madness, Melancholy, and the Search for Truth
Macbeth: A Tragic Hero or a Villain?
Ophelia in Hamlet: A Study of Fragility and Female Agency
The Character of Falstaff in Henry IV and Henry V: Humor, Loyalty,....

Hamlet: A Tapestry of Intriguing Themes and Literary Devices

1. The Complexity of Hamlet's Character

Explore Hamlet's introspective nature, existential contemplations, and indecisiveness.
Discuss how external pressures and internal conflicts shape his behavior.
Analyze the role of madness as a defense mechanism and vehicle for truth-telling.

2. The Question of Vengeance and Justice

Examine the themes of revenge and retribution, and their consequences on Hamlet and others.
Discuss the complexities of the moral dilemmas Hamlet faces.
Explore the tension between justice and mercy, and how it influences Hamlet's actions.

3. The Role of Fate and Free Will

Analyze the interplay between fate and....

Literary Analysis and Criticism

The Power of Symbolism in The Scarlet Letter: Explore the significance of the scarlet letter as a potent symbol of sin, shame, and redemption. Analyze how Hawthorne uses it to develop the characters' struggles and the novel's themes.
The Complexity of Hamlet's Character: Delve into the enigmatic character of Hamlet, examining his introspective nature, indecisiveness, and tragic flaw. Discuss his motivations and actions in light of Shakespeare's play.
The Feminist Critique of Jane Eyre: Examine the novel through a feminist lens, analyzing the portrayal of gender roles, female empowerment, and domesticity. Discuss the significance of Jane's....