Aristotle once stated that a tragic hero is “capable of transcendent greatness and abject defeat”. A tragic hero often a great man who has a flaw that causes the downfall of the character. Tragic heroes in dramas often have a capability to move and inspire its readers and undergo catharsis. As a tragic hero attempts to overcome the obstacles in his or her path, readers often see versions of themselves in the hero. These characters affect readers by connecting with the readers’ emotions, flaws, and experiences in life to similar situations in dramas. In Ayad Ahktar’s Disgraced, the play is set in modern America where American society places tensions on minority beliefs, assimilation, and individuality. The characters of Disgraced come from different religious and cultural backgrounds yet most are minorities in modern American society that have to assimilate to succeed in America. In Playmakers production of the Disgraced, Amir’s struggle is similar to the generational differences in Hmong people. Hmong is an ethnic tribe that originated from southeast China only to become refugees in Laos and Thailand as a result of the Vietnam War. Today, many Hmong reside in the United States. The Hmong living in America often find their children assimilating to American society by renouncing their faith and heritage. As a Hmong, I have observed and endured through the many stages of creating a Hmong identity in America without losing my roots.
