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Literature vocabulary · Character and Characterization

Tragic flaw

Meaning in literature, with examples

nounCommon term

In literature, tragic flaw means: A weakness or error of judgment in a tragic hero, such as pride, ambition or jealousy, that leads to his or her downfall.

In Turkish: trajik kusur, hamartia

How it is used

Based on Aristotle's term hamartia in the Poetics. Students discuss Macbeth's ambition, Othello's jealousy or Oedipus's pride (hubris) as tragic flaws. Many scholars point out that hamartia means 'error' rather than a fixed character flaw.

Example sentences

  1. Is ambition really Macbeth's tragic flaw, or is it his wife's influence?

  2. Her tragic flaw is pride: she cannot admit that she was wrong.

Common collocations

  • fatal flaw
  • the hero's tragic flaw
  • tragic hero
  • hubris
  • tragedyA serious play or story in which the main character suffers and is usually destroyed, often because of a personal flaw or a fatal mistake.
  • protagonistThe main character of a story, whose goals, problems and choices drive the plot and whom the reader follows most closely.
  • antiheroA main character who lacks traditional heroic qualities such as courage, honesty or nobility, but whom readers still follow and may sympathize with.
  • climaxThe most intense and important moment of a story, when the main conflict reaches its turning point and the outcome is decided.

More terms: Character and Characterization

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