In the novel The Brief and Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Diaz, the main protagonist, Oscar de Leon, is presented to the reader as a despicable and rather unpleasant individual. . He is characterized as an overweight nerd who is often avoided by the people, and particularly the woman, around him. However, Oscar's tragic life proves that he can be considered an Aristotelian tragic hero. Oscar de Leon, in Junot Diaz's The Brief and Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao, is a tragic hero because he is naturally virtuous, possesses tragic flaws, and faces undeserved misfortune. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay Oscar considers himself a hero and, by nature, is a virtuous individual despite some of his callous behavior. Throughout the novel, Oscar often visualizes himself through these fictional heroic characters, showing that he desires to be a hero. For example, just before his death, Oscar gives this speech: "He told them that it was only because of his love that he was able to do what he did, what they could no longer stop, their said if they killed him they probably wouldn't feel anything and their kids probably wouldn't feel anything either, until they were old and weak or about to be hit by a car then they would feel it waiting for them on the other side and there, he would not be a fat boy, an idiot or a child that no girl would ever have loved; there he would be a hero, an avenger because anything you can dream of (he raised his hands), you can be” (Diaz 321). In his speech, Oscar considers himself a hero who will avenge his own death in the afterlife. In addition to Oscar's heroic inner vision, he also demonstrates the heroic traits described by Aristotle. Accordingly, Aristotle says that the tragic hero will more effectively evoke both our pity and our terror if he is neither completely good nor completely evil but a mixture of the two…” (Abrams and Harpham 386). The first example of Oscar's kindness is seen when he meets Ana Obregon. Oscar listens to Ana talk about her life and even tries to protect her from Manny, Ana's abusive boyfriend. Another example of Oscar's thoughtfulness is Lola's escape. Oscar was clearly worried about Lola because he asks about her on the phone and starts crying. Finally, while Oscar is teaching at Don Bosco, he sympathizes and tries to care for the students who have been bullied. These examples show that Oscar possessed good morals and prove that his was naturally virtuous. Oscar's tragic flaw was his desperate search for love and his inability to accept responsibility. Aristotle's tragic hero must have a flaw or error of judgment which is, unknowingly, the reason for his demise (386). Not only did Oscar attempt suicide because of his blind pursuit of love, but it was what ultimately killed him. However, Oscar was unaware that he was looking for the wrong thing all along. “But wasn’t what really got him the bam-bam-bam of sex?” they were the little intimacies he had never imagined in his entire life…” (Diaz 334). Oscar was truly seeking the compassion his mother had never given him when he was a child; Yunior realizes this lack of affection in his story: “A heart like mine, which never received any kind of affection growing up, is terrible above all things” (185). Additionally, Oscar is disillusioned by the stigma of Dominican masculinity. Born into a Dominican family, Oscar has the burden of waiting on all women. Maybe if Oscar had made these 194)..