Antony

While there is critical consensus that Mark Antony functions as a tragic hero in the play, there is disagreement concerning exactly when he becomes tragic and what it is that transforms him. Those commentators who describe Antony as tom between his Roman values of duty and valor and his Egyptian obsession with sex and dissipation assert that he achieves tragic status when he reclaims his honor through the Roman death of suicide. Similarly, critics have suggested that as long as Antony allows himself to be treated in Egypt as "a strumpet's fool," he remains a ridiculous figure; after he is defeated at Actium, however, Antony's shame is so intense that his fate becomes tragic. Some critics regard Antony's own "weakness" as the source of his tragedy. In essence, these critics argue that Antony's tragedy is that he sacrifices everything- physical strength, honor, political power, respect- simply to...