Michael English
The Ol' Time Tragic Hero
Qualities of a Tragic Hero
- Of Noble Birth
- Flawed
- Flaw leads to ultimate downfall
- Misfortune not completely deserved
- Self Discovery
- Audience not left in a state of depression
Why was Michael English a tragic hero?
1. Greatness: Though Michael English was not born into wealth or under a money tree, he possessed a beautiful singing voice as did his family members. Before the world found out about the great secret that Michael English hid well, his song "In Christ Alone" crept up to the top of the Christian music boards. Within these few years, Michael tried to juggle both the lead singer in the Gaither Vocal Band and a solo career before taking his career completely (at the time) solo.
2. Tragic Flaw: Michael's hard childhood and his exploding career (in a good way) started to take hold of Michael's life. Though he made it to the top of the music charts, nothing was easy for him. Finally making it above the poor mark, Michael felt pressured to pursue more and more career opportunities. All of this stress led him toward the path to do something that would label him as a hypocrite for the longest time.
3. Downfall: Michael, a married man, had an affair with one of his backup singers named Marabeth, a married woman. This affair did not happen only once and resulted in a child, failed marriages, heartbreak, Michael's career plummeting, drugs, addiction, multiple rounds of rehab, and the loss of an octave in his vocal range.
4. The Hero's Fall is Not Pure Loss: Michael's horrible low, as some people would say, "brought him back to reality." Michael knows what trials he brought to anyone he knew or loved. He since made amends with his first wife Lisa, shows his love for his eldest daughter (Megan), and does anything and everything that is humanly possible for his wife (Marcie) and his youngest daughter named Isabella.
5. The Tragedy Does Not Leave the Audience in a State of Depression: Bill Gaither, of the Gaithers, accepted Michael back with open and loving arms. At first, people did not accept Michael the way that Bill did but slowly started to look past the faults of this Southern Gospel/Christian singer and look at the beautiful testimony that he is still able to share now days. He has since written a book to share the story of his failure and God's story of redemption. Now days, staggeringly, he travels with the Gaithers and does solo work as a singer.
Michael English- "I've come back home."