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Whilst the tragedies of Greek theatre derived their pathos from the inevitablity of the fate of the main character (since mortals were mere playthings of the Gods), those of Shakespeare arguably surpassed this - the tragedy came from a flaw in the personality of the main character. In this way important questions were raised about the free will of the character - could, for example, Macbeth have chosen to be content with his position, rather than submit to his 'overvaulting' ambition?

Whilst the tragedies of Greek theatre derived their pathos from the inevitablity of the fate of the main character (since mortals were mere playthings of the Gods), those of Shakespeare arguably surpassed this - the tragedy came from a flaw in the personality of the main character. In this way important questions were raised about the free will of the character - could, for example, Macbeth have chosen to be content with his position, rather than submit to his 'overvaulting' ambition?

A subvariation of tragedy is tragi-comedy - this can be used to describe people with limited intelligence and no self-awareness who embark on doomed endeavours based upon a ludicrously simplistic view of the world, for example  [[Don Quixote]].

A subvariation of tragedy is tragi-comedy - this can be used to describe people with limited intelligence and no self-awareness who embark on doomed endeavours based upon a ludicrously simplistic view of the world, for example  [[Don Quixote]]. [[Ricky Gervais]] in particular can be considered a master of contemporary tragi-comedy.