How does Miller portray Eddie Carbone as a tragic hero?

A tragic hero is a protagonist who has a tragic flaw (culminating in their ultimate downfall). Their downfall often brings the audience to feel pity or fear. Often, the actions of a tragic hero affects the whole community. Eddies downfall is due to his hubris and his love for atherine. !n "ree# tragedies, tragic heroes have a sense of nobility. $illers %A &iew from the 'ridge is regarded as a tragedy by some critics but others regard it as a melodrama. Eddie does not fit the role of a tragic hero as he is a normal longshoreman, which is fairly ordinary in the town of (ed )oo#. Eddie, *wor#ed on the piers when there was wor#, he brought home his pay, and he lived.+ )e does not have a high status position and in "ree# tragedies tragic heroes have a sense of nobility. )owever, he can still be considered as a tragic hero because he has a tragic flaw and an inevitable downfall. !n the start of the play, he is also respected, ,ust li#e a tragic hero. !n the -./0s $iller spent two years wor#ing with !talians in the shipyards of 'roo#lyn and was thus able to study the social bac#ground of the lives of the longshoremen in that area. !t was during this time that the playwright heard the story of a longshoreman who had betrayed two of his relatives to the !mmigration authorities because he was not happy about the relationship between one of the immigrants and his niece. Also, in his autobiography %Time 'ends he described how a friend told him about a dream he had about an attraction he felt for his cousin. 1hen $iller interpreted the dream as an indication that the man might have wanted an incestuous relationship with his ward he was horrified (li#e Eddie) and refused to accept that there might be any truth in what $iller was saying. Eddies tragic flaw is his love for atherine. )is fate is unavoidable due to the tragic flaw in his personality. )is unnatural love for atherine made him ,ealous of (odolpho. This also is a device used in "ree# tragedy, and can be described as a wea#ness of the tragic hero. This is a feature that all tragic heroes have. At the start, the tragic hero will be a well2li#ed and good person. !n the play, $iller portrayed Eddie in the beginning of the play as a loving and caring man. )e loves atherine a lot3 he said, *! want you to be in a nice office.+ This shows that he cares a lot for atherine and her future. At this stage, the audience views Eddie as a respectable man. Eddie is unable to recognise his feeling for atherine as he has fabricated a fictional world where he can suppress his impulses. This suppression is what caused Eddies demise. The fact he has no orifice for his emotions3 he transfers his vigour into an abhorrence of $arco and (odolpho, which causes him to act senselessly. Eddie4s necessity to reclaim his name from $arco depicts Eddie4s failure to protect atherine from $arco. 'y reclaiming his name from $arco, Eddie believes he will redeem himself in the community. Eddie4s tragic flaw is the bubble, the fabricated world in which he e5ists, but is incapable of escaping or recognising it. )onour adds to arbones demise, despite the fact arbone is shown to have a strong sense of honour at the beginning of the play. Eddie tells the tale of &inny 'ol6ano at the start of the play to set the tone. 7The family had an uncle that they were hidin4 in the house, and he snitched to the !mmigration.7 learly, in the eyes of Eddie and 'eatrice, &inny had committed an outrageous crime and was ,ustly punished. Eddie is clear that &inny will never

be seen in the neighbourhood again out of shame8 7a guy do a thing li#e that9 )ow4s he gonna show his face97 :amily is shown to be of the highest importance. To betray one4s family is a crime and should be punished 2 &inny does not deserve sympathy despite the in,uries inflicted upon him8 it was seen that he got what he deserved. !t is ironic that Eddie does ,ust the same thing as &inny 2 4snitch to !mmigration4 2 to $arco and (odolpho at the end of the play. )onour is shown to be very important, especially to the male characters. !t means far more to them than the law, as honour means respect. Thus $arco and Eddie are so #een to protect their names and get a 4,ust4 conclusion. odes of honour bind families and the whole neighbourhood with a sense of community. Everyone should loo# out for one another, to betray someone is the most dishonourable action imaginable. The notion of fate sets up the idea that arbone is a tragic idea, through the use of the chorus. Alfieri is the chorus in the play. A tragedy should have a narrator ; %The horus ; which introduces us to the characters and situations in the play3 the chorus often foreshadows events in the play. The horus moves the story on by filling in any gaps or by telling us that time has passed. The horus usually ends the play by giving us some final thoughts on what we have seen. Alfieri brea#s the fourth wall ; which id direct address3 he is spea#ing directly to the audience. This is portrayed in the line *<at there as powerless as !, and watched it run its bloody course+ which shows that he is the passive narrator and that the play would end in violence. Although he does play some part in the action, it is clear that he was %powerless and that nothing he could have done would have altered the %bloody course. )e tells us right from the start what is going to happen8 dramatic interest is maintained because we want to find out how. )e reminds us at various intervals during the play that the ending is inevitable, such as near the end of Act -8 7! could see every step coming, step after step, li#e a dar# figure wal#ing down a hall towards a certain door.7 !n conclusion, $iller portrays Eddie arbone as a tragic hero (even though he is not noble) as he has a tragic flaw and was respected at the beginning. Also, the ideas of honour and hubris are shown to add to arbones demise as well as the idea of fate