In comparing the play of Hamlet to the play of Agamemnon, I believe the story of hamlet to be superiorly tragic. They are both tragedies as they both fulfill Aristotle’s definition of tragedy. Each play depict the downfall of decent if flawed person, through some fatal error or misjudgment, leading to the protagonist death, and arousing pity on the part of the audience. The tragic nature of Hamlet is superior to Agamemnon in three key ways, hamlets status as the primary character compared to Agamemnon’s as mere secondary character. Hamlets siliques reveal his emotions while little is revealed of Agamemnon’s thoughts. Finally
The most important reason that Hamlet is more tragic, in my opinion, is because the protagonist, Hamlet, is an integral part of the play and his character is much more developed. In Agamemnon, the protagonist, Agamemnon, is a secondary character to his wife who, in my opinion is the main character. Hamlet is a tragic hero, as is Agamemnon, following Aristotle’s criteria for the elements of a tragic hero. For example, they both evoke the audience’s pity and fear, have a major flaw of character and are destined to fall in some way (“Tragedy in Drama”). However, because Hamlet is the main character, we see, hear and understand more of his character.
When Hamlet delivers his many dramatic soliloquies about mortality, betrayal, and the futility of life, he shows us his tortured world and the anguish, grief, and uncertainty which eventually takes over his life, leading to his death. As the reader, I felt so much sympathy for Hamlet and this made the play more tragic. On the other hand, the reader knows more about Agamemnon from the Chorus and other characters, rather than from the character himself. The reader has much less insight into his personality and feelings and I found that, as the tragic hero, he lacked the emotion of Hamlet.
One of the