A tragic play involves a character that falls from grace due to his or her own fatal flaw. A tragedy always elevates the character involved. A satirical play ridicules political figures and causes the audience to laugh at them for being so obtuse. Unlike tragedy, which elevates characters, satire undermines them. Therefore, tragedy and satire are somewhat opposing forms and are very rarely used together in plays. So which form does Shakespeare use? As stated in the title of the play, tragedy seems to be Shakespeare's main aim but there are elements of satire detected in the play.   

Shakespeare wrote his plays in order for them to be performed on stage. This means that the best way to determine which form has been used is to watch a performance. Although, it...