Hamartia

The title page of Aristotle's Poetics

The term hamartia derives from the Greek ἁμαρτία, from ἁμαρτάνειν hamartánein, which means "to miss the mark" or "to err".[1][2] It is most often associated with Greek tragedy, although it is also used in Christian theology.[3] The term is often said to depict the flaws or defects of a character and portraying these as the reason of a potential downfall.[4][5] However, other critics point to the term's derivation and say that it refers only to a tragic but random accident or mistake, with devastating consequences but with no judgment implied as to the character.

  1. ^ "Hamartia". Merriam-Webster.com. Merriam-Webster, n.d. Web. 28 September 2014.
  2. ^ Hamartia: (Ancient Greek: ἁμαρτία) Error of Judgement or Tragic Flaw. "Hamartia". Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 2014. Web. 28 September 2014.
  3. ^ Cooper, Eugene J. (1973). "Sarx and Sin in Pauline Theology". Laval théologique et philosophique. 29 (3): 243–255. doi:10.7202/1020369ar.
  4. ^ "Hamartia - Definition of Hamartia and Literary Examples". Literary Devices. 2020-12-29. Retrieved 2021-04-19.
  5. ^ "Aristotle's Definition of Tragedy". tragedy.ucsc.edu. Retrieved 2021-04-19.