Hamartia: Difference between revisions
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The tragic [[protagonist]]’s flaw that precipitates his/her [[peripeteia | fall]] from a position of good fortune to bad fortune, often associated with his/her overweening [[hubris]], and integral to [[tragedy]]. <i>Hamartia</i> is a term taken from archery, meaning “falling short of the mark,” but it also suggests “sin,” “trespass,” “fault,” “mistake,” “error,” etc. The term derives from the word,<i>hamartanein</i>, which is Greek for "fail, failure, guilt or to fail one's purpose." | The tragic [[protagonist]]’s flaw that precipitates his/her [[peripeteia | fall]] from a position of good fortune to bad fortune, often associated with his/her overweening [[hubris]], and integral to [[tragedy]]. <i>Hamartia</i> is a term taken from archery, meaning “falling short of the mark,” but it also suggests “sin,” “trespass,” “fault,” “mistake,” “error,” etc. The term derives from the word, <i>hamartanein</i>, which is Greek for "fail, failure, guilt or to fail one's purpose." | ||
Hamlet’s ''hamartia'' may be said, then, to be his uncertainty in the face of action; Oedipus’ is his arrogance and faith in his reasoning that blinds him to obvious facts; and Medea’s is her pride as a foreign princess vis-a-vis her position as an outcast in Corinth. Therefore, ''hamartia'' has much to do with the character’s disposition, or nature, when approaching his/her dilemma — a nature that he/she cannot overcome, and thus leads to the tragic outcome. | Hamlet’s ''hamartia'' may be said, then, to be his uncertainty in the face of action; Oedipus’ is his arrogance and faith in his reasoning that blinds him to obvious facts; and Medea’s is her pride as a foreign princess vis-a-vis her position as an outcast in Corinth. Therefore, ''hamartia'' has much to do with the character’s disposition, or nature, when approaching his/her dilemma — a nature that he/she cannot overcome, and thus leads to the tragic outcome. | ||
Revision as of 20:55, 6 April 2014
The tragic protagonist’s flaw that precipitates his/her fall from a position of good fortune to bad fortune, often associated with his/her overweening hubris, and integral to tragedy. Hamartia is a term taken from archery, meaning “falling short of the mark,” but it also suggests “sin,” “trespass,” “fault,” “mistake,” “error,” etc. The term derives from the word, hamartanein, which is Greek for "fail, failure, guilt or to fail one's purpose." Hamlet’s hamartia may be said, then, to be his uncertainty in the face of action; Oedipus’ is his arrogance and faith in his reasoning that blinds him to obvious facts; and Medea’s is her pride as a foreign princess vis-a-vis her position as an outcast in Corinth. Therefore, hamartia has much to do with the character’s disposition, or nature, when approaching his/her dilemma — a nature that he/she cannot overcome, and thus leads to the tragic outcome.