A Raisin in The Sun - Essay Example

Karuna Shanker Mishra writes, “A hero deserves admiration due to his inherent goodness. If he succumbs to unmerited suffering he becomes a tragic hero” (Mishra 1). And, if one throws light to the Aristotle’s definition of tragic hero, one can understand the perception the great philosopher provided when he quoted the definition of a tragic hero as “a person of exalted position who, on account of some error or flaw, suffers a total reversal of fortune, arousing a feeling of pity and fear” (Mishra 1).

Thus, the character of Walter Lee fits into the parameters set by Aristotle for his tragic hero. Walter Lee has evolved as a product of socio-economic deconstruction in modern era without any tinge of nobility which can be depicted as a subject of exposition. THESIS STATEMENT Loraine Hansberry’s ‘A Raisin in the Sun’ does provide a character portrayal of Walter Lee as a tragic hero crafted under the modern light which does not fit exactly into the parameters of Aristotle’s definition of a tragic hero. . He is very mundane but yes he does make some extraordinary decisions throughout the play.

From the beginning of the play to the very truest sense of the term, hero Walter Lee does not execute any actions like a hero. Spec of nobility is very much missing in him. He is shown fighting with his wife and sister during the first half of the play. This de-classicism of a hero which is the first pre-requisite of becoming a tragic hero was executed by Loraine Hansberry in her play deliberately. Yet, like a true hero, Walter Lee shows conviction when he teaches his son to cling to his community and race despite myriad contradictions faced by the world.

He also decides not to sale off the house in spite of dire financial crisis as the house was made by his father through his lifelong effort and hard work. It is very quintessential at this point to mention that the classical tragic hero does stimulate the interest of the readers by arousing a sense of pathos in their minds. However, Walter Lee as a modern hero does not arise any pathos because Oedipus falls from a position where he was highly esteemed by the audience and his foreboding fate all aggressive towards his actions push him to fall down at a stature from where the rise and revival as a hero is almost next to impossible.

And, the predicament of the heroes like Oedipus does evoke a sense of fear, foreboding and immense pity for the character. Walter Lee on the other hand is not at all noble. He is prey in the hands of socio-economic structure of modern society where the concept American dream seems a bit hollow. There are very limited scope for Walter Lee to show the nobility of his character under a situation where he thinks; “This morning I was lookin’ in the mirror