Supertramp's Super Theory of a Super Tragedy (Final Theory)

• We realize that a person may be destroyed even while attempting to achieve happiness.
• We realize that there is a conflict between happiness and reality
• We see that even in the name of a search for happiness, a human can cause his/her own downfall (Irony)

As outlined in Into the Wild, the tragic hero is someone who is searching for some greater happiness and solitude.  Despite his positive attitude and goal, the hero is human, which is to say flawed.  The audience identifies with the essential humanity of the hero -- he is "someone like ourselves."  For this reason, we are able to feel sympathy or pity for the hero.   Within the story of a tragedy, the hero falls because he makes a mistake or error in judgment, not because he commits an evil deed or has malice.   When this happens, the audience experiences fear -- because we identify and sympathize with the hero, we fear that we could make the same mistake or incorrect judgment.

He identified 5 essential criteria:

1. A tragedy is an imitation of action (mimesis) that is complete -- it has a definite beginning, middle, and end (Freytag's pyramid is seen: exposition, rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution).  
2. A tragedy has a unified, complex plot in which all actions are connected -- every cause has an effect, yet there can be random events to further contribute to the audience’s understanding of the protagonist.
3. A tragedy possesses a certain magnitude (universal relevance or significance).
4. A tragedy arouses pity and fear in the audience.
5. A tragedy causes catharsis (purging of emotions) at the end.

Eventually the Aristotelian tragic hero dies a tragic death, having fallen from great heights and having made an irreversible mistake. The hero must courageously accept his/her death with honor.

Other Common Traits:

• Hero must suffer more than he deserves.
• Hero must be doomed from the start, but bears no responsibility for possessing his flaw.
• Hero must be noble in nature , but imperfect so that the audience can see themselves in him/her.
• Hero must have discovered his/her fate by his/her own actions, not by things happening to him/her.
• Hero must see and understand his/her doom, as well the fact that his fate was discovered by his/her own actions.
• Hero’s story should arouse fear and empathy.
• Hero must be physically or spiritually wounded by his experiences, often resulting in his/her death.
• Ideally, the hero indirectly influences those around him, so that his/her people experience his/her fall with him/her.
• Hero must be intelligent so he/she may learn from his/her mistakes.
• Hero must have a weakness; usually a pursuit of happiness.
• Hero has to be faced with a very serious decision.
• Hero must have something gone wrong in his/her current life.
• The suffering of the hero must have meaning.