Thanos: Villain or Tragic Hero?
In Avengers: Infinity War (2018) we finally witnessed the power of Thanos and the culmination of his quest for the six Infinity Stones, after various appearances in the MCU movies since The Avengers (2012); mostly post-credit scenes and in some scenes from Guardians of the Galaxy (2014), making him an omnipresent character, a shadow that we saw coming closer and closer after each film.
After 10 years of waiting in which we tied the stories of the Marvel Cinematic Universe together, we found ourselves facing the expectation of the most feared villain, and we appreciated something far from a stereotypical villain: a tragic hero. When I saw the film for the first time, it was a very pleasant surprise for me and I knew I was witnessing one of the best antagonists in the history of cinema.
The tragic hero according to Aristotle
In Poetics, Aristotle categorized Greek literary genres into drama and epic; within the former, comedy and tragedy are found. Exposing Sophocles' Oedipus the King as the perfect example of tragedy, the philosopher presents us with the main characteristics of this form of writing.
It must set out a believable plot (in terms of the situations the characters are going through and their resolution) about a "high" or mythical character who transmits fear or pity to the public when he falls into disgrace, and fulfill a particular structure that revolves around this tragic hero and his inescapable destiny.
Thanos and destiny
This word is very important. In every Greek tragedy, fate is inevitable. The hero or other characters will try to avoid it, and their actions will lead to the inexorable outcome that they elude so much. The word "destiny" is mentioned repeatedly in Infinity War, especially by Thanos. He sees himself as that destiny from which no one can escape; he believes himself to be "the only one who knows the answer" and "the only one with the necessary will to carry it out."
We could say, then, that Thanos fulfills one of the main characteristics of the tragic hero, the arrogance, which eventually leads to the error from which the tragedy results.
The main objective of Thanos is to destroy half of the beings that inhabit the universe with the power of the six Infinity Stones. As the universal population is diminished, life will prosper, for the resources of the universe will be better utilized by the surviving half. Achieving the eradication of overpopulation with a snap of the fingers (literally).
The sacrifice
Thanos' arrogance comes from the conviction that he is doing the right thing. He neither enjoys nor rejoices in his triumph; he does what he considers necessary for the common good. This leads him to make a sacrifice very similar to that of another tragic hero, Agamemnon, in Aeschylus' The Oresteia, when he sacrifices his daughter Iphigenia.
Thanos sacrifices his daughter Gamora to achieve his goal: to obtain the Soul Stone. He does so with pain and sorrow, placing his destiny and the salvation of the universe before the one person he loves.
In the case of Agamemnon, he offers Iphigenia as a sacrifice to the gods to provide his fleet with favorable winds during their journey back to Argos from Troy.
Both Thanos and Agamemnon accomplish their task. One, gets the Soul Stone; the other, the winds he needed to return home with his men after a long war. However, the cost is too high and this always has serious consequences. In the case of the Greek hero, he paid for this with his own life in the hands of his wife Clytemnestra, who swore revenge for the death of her daughter.
After achieving the goal he had wanted to reach for so long, in the last scene of the film we see Thanos finally resting, smiling at sunrise at the sight of a "grateful universe," convinced that despite all the losses he has suffered and caused, he has done the right thing. It is a peaceful and moving scene, which contrasts with all the tension, violence and anguish we experienced throughout the film.
Will he pay for his arrogance? For the sacrifice of his beloved daughter? Will he be dominated by the areté (virtue) when he realizes his mistake? What will be Thanos' atoning sacrifice? The answers and the culmination of this tragedy will be obtained in the next Avengers film.
You make a strong case for Thanos as tragic hero. The Agamemnon myth undoubtedly inspired the story.
But Thanos is a mass murderer, jumping the shark of heroism into outright villainy. Agamemnon sacrificed one for all, the one he loved most.
Thanos is incapable of real love. He is like an evil architect, building a monstrous city on the bones of the dead.
I can't wait for him to get what's coming to him! ;)
Exactly! And it all depends on the perspective of the viewer. You can see him as a monster or as a hero who's doing the necessary to save the universe. It's a terrible thing and even you can see him from both sides (that has happened to me); that's what makes him a fantastic character and very well written.