The two best known of the basic plots outlined by Christopher Booker are comedy and tragedy. These two basic plot types make up the two halves of the drama masks that represent classic theatre, and you can categorize most of Shakespeare's plays into one of the two. Today we look at tragedy story structure and examples.
This post is part of our series exploring Christopher Booker’s theory of plot types in The Seven Basic Plots: Why We Write Stories. See our overview, overcoming the monster plot, the rags to riches plot, the quest plot, the voyage and return plot, the rebirth plot, tragedy, and comedy.
Today's basic plot: the tragedy.
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What Is Tragedy?
In sixth-grade English, when I was first exposed to Shakespeare, I was taught essentially that a tragedy is a play where everyone dies in the end. Clearly there's more depth than that, but you have to start small with eleven-year-olds.
The definition of tragedy: tragedy focuses on the suffering and downfall of a main character, often called a tragic hero. This hero typically has a tragic flaw or makes a serious mistake that leads to their demise or a very sad ending.
The story evokes the emotional response of catharsis, feelings of pity and fear, as the audience witnesses the character's struggles and ultimate failure. The point of many classic tragedies was to warn the watching public against the dangers of overweening desire, pride, or other excess.
In Ancient Greek tragedy (some of the earliest tragedies recorded), the dramatic structure is exemplified in Sophocles' “Oedipus Rex,” which begins with an introduction that establishes Oedipus as a noble king faced with a dire prophecy.
The rising action unfolds as he stubbornly seeks to uncover the truth about his origins, leading to a climactic revelation of his own identity and actions. It culminates in his tragic downfall.
For the Greeks, the tragic downfall is caused by hamartia, which is a miscalculation or grave error (not necessarily a character flaw) usually related to some excess.
In Shakespearean tragedies, we see a similar dramatic structure where a hero of high standing brings about his own spectacular fall again due to a grave error (and not always due to a tragic flaw or fatal flaw as some argue).
Booker's 5 Stages of Tragedy
In Christopher Booker's breakdown of true tragedy, he focuses on a hero tempted, and the reader sees them delve further into darkness (and even evil sometimes) before their ultimate death or destruction. Part of what drives the hero in tragedy is a refusal to accept the status quo, and that desire becomes a goal that is out of reach, utterly frustrating for the hero.
Booker's prime example is that of King Lear, in which the title character recognizes his error, but it's too late to repent by the time he figures it out, and he dies.
Here are the stages of a Tragedy plot according to Christopher Booker:
Anticipation Stage
The tragic hero gets it into his or her head that something is missing, and they want it. This might be power, fame, a specific love interest, or something else, but the protagonist has their motivation for the disaster dominoes that are about to fall. We call that object of desire a Macguffin.
Dream Stage
The tragic hero sets out on their path to obtain their MacGuffin. Something occurs that tells the reader that this is a no-turning-back situation (Booker cites Faust's deal with the devil), and things start to go strangely well for the protagonist. He might be well on his way down the path of evil, but no one is calling him out on it, or no one can stop him, so he proceeds further into the depths.
Frustration Stage
Right about here is where the tragic hero hits his first roadblock. They might be small annoyances, but in dealing with them, the protagonist commits additional dark acts that seal his fate and alert the reader that the only way this can end is badly.
Nightmare Stage
The tragic hero's plan is unraveling, and he can sense that an opposing force or fate is closing in. He's increasingly paranoid and living in fear of what's to come.
Destruction or Death Wish Stage
Our protagonist breathes his last, whether at the hands of his enemies or due to some final act of violence. Either way, his death isn't mourned much, and the darkness that surrounded him dissipates, and there is much rejoicing.
Example of tragedy plot structure: King Lear
Here’s a breakdown of the plot of King Lear using Booker's five stages of tragedy:
1. Anticipation Stage
In this stage, King Lear feels a sense of discontent or incompleteness in his life as he approaches old age. He decides that he wants to divide his kingdom among his three daughters: Goneril, Regan, and Cordelia, based on who can express their love for him most convincingly. This desire for affirmation and the relinquishing of power is his motivation for the tragic events that will unfold.
2. Dream Stage
Lear's plan seems to work initially as the two elder daughters, Goneril and Regan, flatter him with grand declarations of love, which leads him to disown Cordelia when she refuses to engage in such empty praise. This moment signifies a point of no return for Lear, as he has foolishly chosen to believe the deceptive words of Goneril and Regan. This decision sets the stage for the ensuing chaos and tragedy, as he believes he has secured a peaceful, carefree retirement.
3. Frustration Stage
As the play progresses, Lear begins to realize his grave mistake. Goneril and Regan's true natures come to light, and they quickly strip him of his authority and dignity, treating him with contempt. Lear's frustration grows as he faces betrayal and the harsh realities of his daughters' ambition. The storm outside parallels his internal turmoil, and he finds himself increasingly isolated and powerless, wandering in the wilderness as he grapples with his loss of authority.
4. Nightmare Stage
This stage sees the full unfolding of tragedy as Lear's mental state deteriorates. He descends into madness, reflecting on his past decisions and suffering the consequences of his actions. The catastrophic events culminate with the deaths of key characters—Cordelia is captured and ultimately executed, and Lear dies from grief after holding her lifeless body. The once-mighty King Lear is left broken and despondent, having lost everything he held dear.
5. Destruction Stage
In the final moments of the play, Lear recognizes his flaws and the futility of his earlier actions too late. He realizes the depth of his love for Cordelia and his folly in believing Goneril and Regan's falsehoods. However, this recognition comes when it is already tragically too late to seek redemption or repair the damage done. His tragic journey concludes with his death, marking the ultimate destruction of both himself and the familial bonds that could have saved him.
In summary, King Lear encapsulates the essence of tragedy through the gradual unraveling of Lear’s life, driven by his initial desires and culminating in devastating loss and recognition of his misjudgments.
The Tragic Lesson
The central elements of tragedy, both old and new, stay true to that original vision of Greek tragedies: through grave error or excess, we can each cause our own downfall.
In a way, Tragedy is a much more cynical version of the Rebirth, or the flip side of the Overcoming the Monster story, since most monsters follow this trajectory. Classic examples are Macbeth and Hamlet, and a lot of films about organized crime also follow this trajectory (Goodfellas, Scarface, The Departed).
It may be that tragedy is one of the types of plot that helps us as humans explore what happens when we make poor choices, when we reject all caution and prudence. Hopefully, it helps us take more measured risks.
What are your favorite tragedies? Do you see a different pattern? Share in the comments.
Need more plot help? After you practice this plot type in the exercise below, check out my new book The Write Structure which helps writers make their plot better and write books readers love. Low price for a limited time!
PRACTICE
Pick one of the stages of the Tragedy and write a scene from that stage.
Set the timer for 15 minutes. When you're finished, share your story in the The Write Practice Pro workshops for feedback from the community. And if you share, please be sure to comment on a few stories by other writers.
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Happy writing!
Liz Bureman has a more-than-healthy interest in proper grammatical structure, accurate spelling, and the underappreciated semicolon. When she's not diagramming sentences and reading blogs about how terribly written the Twilight series is, she edits for the Write Practice, causes trouble in Denver, and plays guitar very slowly and poorly. You can follow her on Twitter (@epbure), where she tweets more about music of the mid-90s than writing.
Sue Weems is a writer, teacher, and traveler with an advanced degree in (mostly fictional) revenge. When she’s not rationalizing her love for parentheses (and dramatic asides), she follows a sailor around the globe with their four children, two dogs, and an impossibly tall stack of books to read. You can read more of her writing tips on her website.
