Can you name a tragic play in which the main characters are neither royalty or nobility?

Answer 1

Oh, heaps. Some others off the top of my head: "Long Day's Journey Into Night" by Eugene O'Neill, "Dancing at Lughnasa" by Brian Friel, and "A Raisin in the Sun," by Lorraine Hansberry.

We do seem to have this stereotype that tragedy only refers to classics from times/cultures that HAD nobles and royals, like Shakespeare and the Greeks. As Shkspr above points out, it's debateable whether your everyman-protagonist can truly achieve the status of tragic hero. Part of what makes Oedipus and Macbeth and the rest so very tragic is that they have so much farther to fall than your average Joe character.

But, O'Neill and Miller (in particular, though by no means exclusively) were great at showing us that most men (in the words of Thoreau) "lead lives of quiet desperation." To me, that can feel even more tragic than all those problems the kings face, simply because it's more universal. The struggles of the Lomans and the Tyrones may not be as grand--but they are struggles that many of us can relate to.

Answer 2

Your first respondent is on the mark. Miller always regarded "Death of a Salesman" as an American tragedy. The question (best left to critics and theatre historians) is whether Willy's lack of social standing prevents the play from attaining the true status of a tragedy. I'm not sure where I come out on that one, but I've seen a few splendid productions of this play, and it packs an emotional wallop that few plays -- classical or contemporary -- can manage.

Answer 3

How about Othello ?

Neither Othello nor Desdemona are royalty or nobility I think.

Answer 4

A Shayna Maidel.

Answer 5

Everything ever written by Arthur Miller.