Tragedy and Authority

            Genre is a term used to help identify different types of categories.  For the purposes of this course genre refers to a “type, kind, or class of literature” that deals with the “critical act of classification” (handout).  While there are many genres, it can certainly be argued that some endure the test of time more effectively than others.  Tragedy is a prime example of this.  Tragedy is arguably the greatest literary genre because people are able to easily identify with the subjects covered in tragic works.  The notion of power and authority are known to just about everyone.  As far as political power, no one is exempt from governments and their rules.  Government and authority are real and people can easily identify with those ideas.

The idea that tragedy is most abundant when times are going well for nations helps to further illustrate the lasting quality of tragedy.  Oedipus Rex was written during the time when Athens was considered the “cradle of Western civilization”; Hamlet was written when the British empire was becoming more prominent and more powerful; Desire Under the Elms was written as America was showing itself as the main global power (handout).  In each instance, times were not tough but the tragic authors felt it necessary to deal with serious issues.  This is possibly because of the struggles and prices paid that happen on the way to obtaining top standing globally.  People do not generally want to lose that power and privilege.  However, one way for that to happen is through the misuse and abuse of that power.  Each of the aforementioned tragic works explores different forms of patriarchal power.  Oedipus is a king; Hamlet is a prince; Ephraim is a farmer.  Whether through a monarch or a controlling father and husband, these plays expose potential problems that might arise through the abuse of power.  It seems as if these particular tragic playwrights wanted to protect their fellow people from the outcomes contained within their works; each can be seen as a warning for past, present, and future generations.

            The tragic authors explore different types of authority and flesh out what can go wrong when power is misused.  In Oedipus, the political system has been disrupted.  The king has been murdered and Oedipus has taken over his power and his wife.  When the reader is first introduced to Oedipus, he is referred to as “great” and “powerful” (prologue, ln 16).  The city is experiencing a horrible plague, though, and they do not know why.  They turn to their leader to help them, just as he helped them with the Sphinx at an earlier time.  Ultimately, it is his search for the cause of the plague that leads to his tragic demise.  While it is certainly tragic that the prophecy has come true and he has indeed killed his father and married his mother, there are certain political implications mixed in with the tragedy as it unfolds. 

Oedipus, a man no one knows anything about, has come into absolute power.  Sure, he seemed noble and capable enough having defeated the riddling Sphinx, but his past actions come back to haunt not just him, but all of his subjects.  That is another distinguishing factor of tragedy.  Tragedies tend to deal with “larger social and psychological problems” that affect more than just one or two characters, as is often the case with comedies and romances.  In the complete midterm example from 2002, the author points out that “[t]he classical tragedy, Oedipus, revolves around the problems of King Oedipus.  The problems these great characters face affect all those around them.”  The individual then goes on to point out that in A Midsummer Night’s Dream the impact of the lovers’ actions is not nearly as influential and important as those of Oedipus.  Theseus, the Duke, will continue to hold absolute authority whether Hermia marries Demetrius as her father wishes or chooses either death or the nunnery.  In any instance, Theseus refers to the Athenian law as something “which by no means [they] may extenuate” (1.1.120).  The law and life will go on regardless of Hermia’s final decision.  Oedipus, on the other hand, leaves his subjects feeling not only deceived but also physically suffering for his transgressions via the plague.  The story of Oedipus can be used to warn people about the far-reaching effects of power.  Had Oedipus been running around the woods with Hermia and Helena and not a king, the tragic effect would have certainly been lost and it really would not have mattered much if he had fulfilled the prophecy.  However, because he was a king and did hold power, respect, and prestige, his actions hurt everyone around him.

Shakespeare’s Hamlet is another example of a political system disrupted.  The king has mysteriously died and Hamlet, who should be old enough to assume the throne, is prevented from doing so by his uncle marrying his mother.  Also, Claudius, who has taken the throne, actually murdered King Hamlet.  Some problems that appeared in Oedipus, such as a murdered king and a murderer on the throne, reappear over a thousand years later in Shakespeare’s play.  The issue of power and leadership is just as important in Shakespeare’s time as it was during Sophocles’s lifetime.  If anything is to be learned from the story of Oedipus, it is that misdeeds will eventually come to light and that is expressed within Hamlet: “Foul deeds will rise, / Though all the earth o’erwhelm them, to men’s eyes” (1.2.256-257).  Perhaps it is not as obvious as the plague in Thebes, but Denmark is going through political turmoil that is affecting the whole nation and Marcellus exclaims, “Something is rotten in the state of Denmark” (1.4.90).  Once again it is evident that power gone wrong leads to tragedy on a large scale.  Not only is Hamlet suffering from the death of his father, but the entire nation of Denmark is in trouble because the king is dishonest and has taken his power too far by murdering and covering it up.

Another important element of tragedy that appears in Hamlet is the appeal to a “special” audience.  Hamlet himself takes note of this fact when he recalls a speech that “pleas’d not the million; ‘twas / caviary to the general” (2.2.441-442).  Because of the serious nature of tragedy, it is not a genre that tends to get a lot of play, especially in this modern day.  Movie theatres promote movies that tend to be romances, comedies, or a mixture of the two.  That is certainly not to say that tragedies do not get produced anymore, but they are often times overshadowed by the predominance of the other two aforementioned genres.  The play within a play in A Midsummer Night’s Dream is meant to be a tragedy.  However, the actors are so unskilled and comical in their portrayal of the story that it turns into a comedy.  The audience becomes more active by making clever little remarks and the tragedy of the moment is completely lost with the absurdity of the actors.  Had the focus remained on the plot and had there been better acting involved, the seriousness of the action would have affected the audience in a much different manner.  However, Shakespeare is able to show the wider acceptance of comedy over tragedy. 

O’Neill’s Desire Under the Elms is an example of familial power.  The other two plays have focused on political power, but Desire introduces the notion of the patriarchal family unit.  Just as Oedipus and Claudius held absolute power over their subjects, Ephraim holds complete power over his family.  Interestingly, another important quality of tragedy is that it often times deals with family.  If government and power are something that people can easily identify with, how much easier it is to identify with the concept of family because it is literally closer to home than governmental authority.  Before the reader even meets Ephraim, Eben claims that he prayed his father would be dead (974).  The other sons make comments about how hard they have to work for their dad and it quickly sets Ephraim up as a complete control freak who single-handedly runs their lives.  This idea is furthered when Simeon realizes that “Fur once [they]’re free!” (979) because their father has been gone for so long.  They are so under his spell that it takes them two months to even consider the notion of leaving or having some sort of freedom outside of the farm and their father.

The tragedy of the play is brought about because Ephraim exploited his family.  Eben hates his dad for what he did to his mother, presumably driving her to an early death.  Abbie marries for the wrong reasons and develops a relationship with her stepson.  I would argue that the ending of this play is slightly different from the other tragedies discussed thus far.  The tragic heroes, Oedipus and Hamlet, are both very likeable characters.  They are noble and both take on fairly noble ends, at least in romantic terms.  Ephraim, on the other hand, I would argue is the tragic character in this play.  Sure Abbie and Eben end up in jail and losing their baby, but Ephraim is left alone with nothing and no one; he is not even very likeable.  I think he finally realizes that the power he wielded over his family was inappropriate.  This can be seen in the way he looks at freedom.  Simeon and Peter saw freedom in California, away from the farm and their father.  Ephraim claims that he would burn down the entire farm on his death bed, except he would let the cows go free (983).  And that is precisely what he does at the very end of the play.  His final choice of control is to get rid of the farm which can symbolize to him nothing more than a struggle for power that failed miserably.  He releases the cows in order to symbolically release everything that had been trapped there because of his powerful will (including Eben’s mother). 

Authority is a very touchy subject.  Nobody likes the idea of being completely controlled by anyone else.  Oedipus, Hamlet, and Desire are all tragic plays that explore various components of tragedy while simultaneously making comments upon the nature of power and authority, whether over a kingdom or over a family.  Tragedy is the greatest of all literary genres because the subjects it covers are great and important.  Because people are able to identify with the concept and threat of potential abuse of authority, these plays remain powerful and influential. [AM-V]