Elements of Tragedy in King LearA work cited King Lear meets all the requirements of a tragedy as defined by Andrew Cecil Bradley. Bradley states that a Shakespearean tragedy must be the story of the hero who endures exceptional suffering and calamity. The story must also contrast the current dilemma with happier times. The play also depicts the troubled parts of the hero's life and in the end he dies instantly due to suffering and calamity. There is also a feeling of fear in the show, which makes men see how blind they are by not knowing when luck or something else would be upon them. The hero must have a high status on the chain and must also possess a tragic flaw that initiates the tragedy. The hero's fall is not only felt by him but creates a chain reaction that affects everything beneath him. There must also be the element of chance or accident that influences certain points of the show. King Lear meets all these requirements, which were established by Bradley. The main character of the play would be King Lear who, according to Bradley, would be the hero and would hold the highest position in the social chain. Lear, driven by pride and anger, banished Cordelia and divided the kingdom in half between the two older sisters, Goneril and Regan. This is Lear's tragic flaw that prevents him from seeing people's true faces because his pride and anger override his judgment. As we see in the first act, Lear does not listen to Kent's request to see more closely the true faces of his daughters. Kent hurt Lear's pride by disobeying his order to stay away from him and Cordelia when Lear had already warned him, "the bow is bent and drawn, take it from the shaft" (Ii152). Kent continues to disobey Lear and is banished. Because of this flaw, Lear initiated the tragedy by disturbing the order in the chain of being by dividing the kingdom, banishing his best servant and his daughter, and renouncing his destiny. Because of this flaw, Lear gave way to his two eldest daughters to conspire against him. Lear is eventually kicked out of his daughters' homes and left with a fool, a servant, and a beggar.