The American Theatre of Mr. Madoff

Tragic heroes have always captivated the mind of the play writer. From Shakespeare to Kushner, the principal and definition of a tragic hero have remained intact. A tragic hero is doomed to fail. The play’s situations and circumstances close on him like a trap, not allowing him to escape his fate. His flaws are human – it can be pride, stubbornness, ignorance or “emotional blindness” to name a few. These tragic flaws lead him to misfortune and inevitable disaster. Every tragic hero has a moment of recognition in which he becomes aware of his flaw, but it’s too late to change anything - he is walking with open eyes towards his doom.
Bernard Madoff is a tragic hero. As a former ruler of his ever expanding financial kingdom, Mr. Madoff allowed himself to take some risks on the expense of his subjects. The people shall prevail as long as their king is protected by cushions of money. Mr. Madoff and his two sons are part of the current original tragedy of Wall Street – A rich, smart, Jewish family gone bad on ponzy scheme in the midst of the financial crisis. Mr. Madoff, the father, try to hide his sons deceptive deeds by taking all the blame on himself.
The moment of recognition had not yet come to Mr. Madoff. The tragedy had not concluded. Only when he will realize his crimes he will understand his flaw – the one great flaw of the true American theatre on Wall Street – Greed.