Maybe make a statement about today’s political climate… you wouldn’t have to go far for examples. If you want to create something that others talk about, consider using hubris to fuel your next manuscript. How can you create a mesmerizing tale of hubris in today’s world that results in your main character’s downfall? If so, perhaps it’s time to bring hubris back to mainstream literature. Can you think of any more recent examples of hubris leading to a character’s downfall? Final Thoughts Speaking of fatal flaws, how about The Picture of Dorian Gray? Could we agree that Dorian suffered from both vanity and hubris? Admittedly, that's dipping back into the Victorian era. In fact, of all the fatal flaws that Riordan uses, hubris seems to be the most common. Rick Riordan gives each of his characters fatal flaws, some of which suffer from excessive hubris. Other characters in the series who show hubris are Thalia Grace in The Titan’s Curse and Michael Varus in the Prophecy of Seven. For example, in The Sea of Monsters, Annabeth Chase discovers from the song of the sirens that her deadly pride will be her downfall. Several books in the series discuss the fatal flaw of hubris in main characters. Clearly full of hubris, Bateman thinks he is above the law and well above the rest of society thanks to his lavish lifestyle and his status as an investment banker. He’s fueled by cocaine, expensive food and drink, rampant consumerism, and oh yeah, murdering a few people here and there. Patrick Bateman in American Psycho lives for his decadent lifestyle. He dreams of coming back bigger and better than ever: "Okonkwo saw clearly the high esteem in which he would be held, and he saw himself taking the highest title in the land." American Psycho Even after his exile, he’s still plotting ways to rise to power again. Things Fall ApartĪnother excellent example of a modern-day Macbeth, Chinua Achebe’s Okonkwo is extremely arrogant and full of himself. He doesn’t forget his humble beginnings, yet he uses his position of power and wealth to entice Daisy into an affair, the downfall of which costs him his life. Jay Gatsby is a dichotomy of humility and hubris. Here are a few twentieth-century and current examples to mull over. Try it for free! Examples of Hubris in Literature While it’s still rampant today, has it virtually disappeared in literature?Ī grammar guru, style editor, and writing mentor in one package. If you started reading this post thinking hubris in today’s society is dead and gone, all you need do is scan the daily headlines to find a world leader who suffers from massive hubris. Who here remembers Mel Gibson’s abhorrent fall from grace? Or how about the American demi-god Tiger Woods? He tumbled much like Icarus. As Shakespeare writes, "Let not light see my black and deep desires": Macbeth knows the lay of the land, but he’ll still do anything to serve his ambitions. His over-inflated ego eventually destroys him and everyone around him. Consider Macbeth, perhaps the greatest example of an astonishing amount of hubris. A character suffering from hubris tries to cross normal human limits, and violates moral codes."
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