Tr Agedy
Haley Buls
Mrs. Boness
AP Literature
3/29/15
Tragedy and the Common Man – Questions
1. Why is the common man “as apt a subject for tragedy in its highest sense as kings were”?
Tragedy once belonged to the kings and the high-bred class, because tragedy centers on the awareness of disparity between self-image and the perception the world has of you. In archaic times, only kings could retain this sense of nobility. But now nobility belongs to every man. Revolutions provide proof enough, that the common man maintains a sense of indignation in the face of having their dignity stolen, and so the common man can experience tragedy as much as the kings can.
2. What evokes “the tragic feeling” in us as viewers of a play? What is the cause of the events in a tragedy?
Miller states that the “tragic feeling” is evoked when the audience is in the presence of a character willing to sacrifice their life in the pursuit of personal dignity. The character is only willing to do so when a turn of events forces wounds the characters sense of self, eliciting the response of indignation. Indignation drives the character to their end, on the noble path towards achieving the rightful position in the world.
3. How does Miller define tragedy?
Miller defines tragedy as the consequence of “man’s total compulsion to evaluate himself justly”. In other words, a tragedy focuses on the journey of the tragic hero, who enlightened to their place in the world seeks to correct whatever distance exists between their position in life and what they deserve to be treated as.
4. How does Miller define the tragic flaw?
The tragic flaw drives the entire journey within the tragedy. Ironically, the flaw may be nothing at all. What matters is that the character perceives their flaw as a call to action. If the flaw exists only as a product of our mind, then there is no action to be taken. And if the flaw only exists in society, how is that known unless the character on their own is unrealistically pure before
Mrs. Boness
AP Literature
3/29/15
Tragedy and the Common Man – Questions
1. Why is the common man “as apt a subject for tragedy in its highest sense as kings were”?
Tragedy once belonged to the kings and the high-bred class, because tragedy centers on the awareness of disparity between self-image and the perception the world has of you. In archaic times, only kings could retain this sense of nobility. But now nobility belongs to every man. Revolutions provide proof enough, that the common man maintains a sense of indignation in the face of having their dignity stolen, and so the common man can experience tragedy as much as the kings can.
2. What evokes “the tragic feeling” in us as viewers of a play? What is the cause of the events in a tragedy?
Miller states that the “tragic feeling” is evoked when the audience is in the presence of a character willing to sacrifice their life in the pursuit of personal dignity. The character is only willing to do so when a turn of events forces wounds the characters sense of self, eliciting the response of indignation. Indignation drives the character to their end, on the noble path towards achieving the rightful position in the world.
3. How does Miller define tragedy?
Miller defines tragedy as the consequence of “man’s total compulsion to evaluate himself justly”. In other words, a tragedy focuses on the journey of the tragic hero, who enlightened to their place in the world seeks to correct whatever distance exists between their position in life and what they deserve to be treated as.
4. How does Miller define the tragic flaw?
The tragic flaw drives the entire journey within the tragedy. Ironically, the flaw may be nothing at all. What matters is that the character perceives their flaw as a call to action. If the flaw exists only as a product of our mind, then there is no action to be taken. And if the flaw only exists in society, how is that known unless the character on their own is unrealistically pure before