Major British and American Authors Troy Maxson as an Aristotelian Tragic Hero In the play Fences, written by August Wilson, the main character, Troy Maxson, is multifaceted and is an interesting character. Troy seems to be a very hardworking man who sees his primary task as providing for his family. Troy can be seen as a classic tragic hero as described by Aristotle. He satisfies the first characteristic because even though he seems to be a good man, he also has some sides to him that are not as honorable. The tragic flaw, which is the second requirement for a tragic hero, can also be found when the reader examines Troy . The third requirement for the tragic hero is that the character must be highly renowned or prosperous. Despite being a very good baseball player at one time, during the play, Troy is not highly renowned or prosperous at all. Troy has two of the three qualities during the play, which creates the argument that Troy Maxson could be seen as a tragic hero . The first characteristic of an Aristotelian hero, to be in the moral middle, is where Troy seems to be. Troy does not show much emotional attachment to his family, especially his sons, but he does provide for them. Troy tries to instill values in Cory, through tough love, but Troy is not necessarily a virtuous person . In the first scene of the play, Bono, Troy’s friend, asks Troy whether he has been having an affair with a woman named Alberta. Troy explains that he is just polite
to the woman, but he admits to Bono in the first scene of Act II that he has been having an affair with Alberta. Later in the scene, Troy tells his wife, Rose, that he is having a baby with Alberta. This is an example in which Troy is not morally correct in his actions.
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