Sunday, May 17, 2009

11. Tragic Hero

What is a tragic hero? Is Gatsby a tragic hero?
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6 comments:

  1. Ana CristinaJuly 9, 2009 at 3:56 PM

    A tragic hero is a person with many admirable and valuable qualities, yet he also posses a great flaw that will eventually lead to his downfall. Gatsby is a very good example of a tragic hero; he had many qualities that allow him to succeed in life, but he does have a flaw that causes his death. Gatsby was a hard working, sensitive and intelligent man. Like his father said “he was only a young man but he had a lot of brain
    power” (Fitzgerald 176). Gatsby worked his way up from nothing. He was a poor farmer’s son, and he became a wealthy and respected man. He worked for his dream and never gave up. Yet there was one thing that was holding him back; one thing that prevented him from being happy and enjoying life. That one thing was his never ending love for Daisy. His love turned into his tragic flaw that ended up killing him. Usually love is a marvelous and life improving thing. But when that love becomes an obsession, like in Gatsby’s case, it becomes problematic. Every single thing that Gatsby did was for Daisy; his whole life revolved around her. For example, “Gatsby bought that house so that Daisy would be just across the bay” (Fitzgerald 83). He thought he was in love with Daisy; in reality he was in love with the idea of Daisy. He saw a perfect charming girl when in really Daisy “smashed things and creatures and then retreated back into their money” (Fitzgerald 188). Gatsby did not see the Daisy that was capable of killing; he did not see the real Daisy. When Gatsby finally did see the real girl, the one that choose Tom, he gave up on life “he had lost the old warm world, paid a high price for leaving to long with a single dream” (Fitzgerald 169). Gatsby’s blind love for Daisy made him take the blame for the murder of Myrtle and that caused his death. Daisy destroyed his life, literality, mentally and emotionally.

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  2. UnknownJuly 16, 2009 at 10:07 AM

    I agree with Ana in that a tragic hero is a person whose character has many good qualities but possesses one flaw that leads to the tragic hero’s fall. I agree with Ana that Gatsby can be considered a tragic hero, but I do not think that Gatsby’s tragic flaw is loving Daisy. The tragic flaw that Gatsby possesses is over-determination. Gatsby is convinced that Daisy only ever loved him and still does. He is determined to get her back from Tom and tricks her into saying, “I never loved him (Tom).” (Fitzgerald 139). When Gatsby finds out that Daisy actually did love Tom and she tells Gatsby that she loved them both at the same time, he is infuriated. Gatsby never gives up Daisy until he dies. He waits by her window until four o’clock in the morning to see if “she’s going to turn the light out and on again.”(Fitzgerald 152), to show that she needs Gatsby’s help. Gatsby risks his own life to save that of Daisy, like Ana said. He takes the blame of running over Myrtle.

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  3. Eduardo M.July 26, 2009 at 3:13 PM

    I agree with both Ana and Tania on the definition of a tragic hero being someone with great characteristics but with one flaw that eventually leads to his fall. I also agree that Gatsby is the Tragic hero and their views on his flaw. i think both are right because these two flaws are connected, but one without the other would change Gatsby's fate and personality completely. In the first place, his determination was not a flaw since it helped him become a wealthy and successful man, although his lack of control over his determination, or his greed of possession both material and emotional caused his great fall. His love is what always motivated him to become successful, since Daisy was his excuse to move to a mansion and become of her same social strata. it was, again, his lack of self control and patience that caused his relationship to be hurried and eventually be discovered by Tom. So, in conclusion, Gatsby's lack of self control was his fall because, in smaller amounts, these "flaws" described by Ana and Tania are good when suppressed accordingly. Even Nick admits it in certain context: "No - Gatsby turned out alright in the end. It is what Preyed on Gatsby, What foul dust floated in the wake of his dreams that temporarily closed out my interest in the abortive sorrows and short-winded elations of men (Fitzgerald 6). this shows how Gatsby was an example and how Nick admired his dedication and "romantic readiness"(Fitzgerald 6). Just as all human being, the greatest challenge for all man is self-control and Discipline.

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  4. UnknownAugust 3, 2009 at 2:06 PM

    I agree with Ana and Tania with regards to the definition of a tragic hero. A tragic hero is someone who possesses outstanding qualities but has one flaw, an action or a mistake, that leads to his or her downfall. A characteristic of a tragic hero is that he or she must be noble in nature, but imperfect so that we can relate to the hero. Gatsby is all of this and more. Both Ana and Tania are right when they describe his flaws. Gatsby is both over-determined by his love for Daisy. Therefore, like Eduardo says, they are related. At a young age Gatsby met Daisy and fell in love. From then, like Ana says, he did whatever he could to gain the prominence and status fit for Daisy. He was overly-determined, like Tania said, to get Daisy. Gatsby is a tragic hero because he has noble intentions, admirable morals, and a flaw. Gatsby is imperfect because of his great love for Daisy, and his willingness to do anything to get her back. We can probably relate to this on many occasions. We understand how it feels to want something and to do anything to reach that goal. Gatsby’s flaw, which leads to his death, is both his great love for Daisy and his over-determination. Because he was so in love with Daisy, or so he thought, he forgot everything else. He was so determined to keep Daisy that he forgot about himself and so he died. He gave everything for Daisy. After Daisy kills Myrtle, Nick goes to speak with Gatsby. Nick asks if Daisy was driving and he says “Yes…but of course I’ll say I was.” (Fitzgerald 151) Gatsby does everything he can to protect Daisy, even if it means that he will have to suffer the consequences. Like Eduardo said, Gatsby’s flaw was his lack of self-control. Because Gatsby had noble thoughts and did not mean to harm anyone is the reason why he died.

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  5. UnknownAugust 7, 2009 at 8:01 PM

    Like everyone said, a tragic hero is a person with many great qualities; however, also possesses a great flaw, which will lead him to his downfall. I think that Gatsby is a tragic hero. He is a man to be admired at. He is intelligent, hard working, kind, honest, loyal, and many more. He was born in a peasant family, and he had to work very hard to reach his goals; unlike other aristocrats who inherited all their riches. But Gatsby's flaw was his obsession with Daisy. That is what leads to his death in the end. If he had moved on with his life leaving Daisy behind, he probably would have lived. He would have been happy with his life instead of always being thinking about a woman who you cannot get so easily. He thinks that with his money, he can impress Daisy and get her back; but he realizes that it is not enough. It seemed as if he could reach his goal so easily, as if it was right ahead of him. But at the end, he cannot. That is why he is always stuck in that situation; he desired Daisy, but that was all in the past. People moved on, but Gatsby could not. At the end, because he wanted to protect Daisy from anything, he takes the blame and dies for the cause. This would not have happened if Gatsby would have moved on with his life.

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    Replies
    1. UnknownMay 23, 2013 at 4:36 PM

      I agree with the fact that Jay Gatsby is a tragic hero, but you cannot say that he is honest.
      1. He works for Wolfsheim, a gambler, who fixed the World Series. Obviously not legally. He is also classified as being a Jew with a Jewish nose. Now don't get me wrong, but back then even from Shakespeare's times there have been stereotypes saying that Jews are dishonest greedy people who would do anything to cheat people out of their money.
      2. Gatsby opened a bunch of drug stores. These drug stores sold over the counter liquor, which was illegal at the time because of the Prohibition. Gatsby finally admits to this, or parts of this while having an argument with Tom B.

      This proves that Gatsby is a dishonest man. Not that he means to be a bad person or anything. All his intentions are good. He does everything for Daisy, but the way he does it leads t his downfall.

      By the way, thank you for helping me study for my final!

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