The most important aspect of a tragedy is the hero. Tragic heroes often suffer an undeserving downfall due to their purpose or ambitions. In Oedipus the King, Oedipus is a tragic hero who tries to save his kingdom by finding the murderer of the previous king. In A View from the Bridge, Eddie Carbone is a tragic hero who tries to take care of his niece and his family. Although from different walks of life and from different eras, Eddie Carbone and Oedipus share the elements of a tragic hero. Both Eddie and Oedipus are great men who suffer from their own free will and fate. The choices of Eddie and Oedipus ultimately cause their downfall, but the reasons for making these choices were different. Tragic heroes Oedipus and Eddie Carbone are essentially similar characters because of the many instances of tragedy in their stories. Everyone has free will. This includes tragic heroes, who often make the wrong choices. In Oedipus the King, Oedipus chose to leave his family in Corinth to avoid the prophecy that said he would kill his father and sleep with his mother. Unfortunately for Oedipus, he also decided to kill a random stranger and marry a woman old enough to be his mother. These choices caused the downfall of Oedipus. Eddie Carbone made the choice to take in his niece when her parents died and to house his wife's cousins. Once the cousins arrived, however, Eddie's path to downfall officially began. Although the choices of both Oedipus and Eddie caused their own downfalls, the reasons for these choices were different. Oedipus had altruistic reasons to find the murderer; he wanted to save his kingdom. Eddie had selfish reasons to protect his daughter from Rudolpho; he wanted her for himself. The fates of Eddie and Oedipus are both very similar. Oedipus made the choice to call the shepherd to discover the truth about the child he was given by Jocasta. Jocasta warned him not to do this, but Oedipus learned that he was Jocasta's child. Afte