It’s All Your Fault

A tragic hero is defined as “a literary character who makes a judgment error that inevitably leads to his/her own destruction.” In Maggie: A Girl of the Streets, the main character Maggie had her share of struggles. She came from a poor, dysfunctional and abusive family. In spite of her lack of support and good role models, she remained a sweet, innocent girl until she met Pete. This is when her life changed. She traveled down a dark path with Pete. She loved Pete, maybe a little too much. She became obsessed over him and begged for his love, unfortunately, this love would not be returned. Overtime, her need for love steers her to prostitution and this causes her own downfall. She is a tragic hero. If she did not get obsessed and crazy about Pete, she would still be her same, sweet self. Instead, she got attached and it cost her life. Maggie is a tragic hero and caused her own downfall because she tried to be someone she was not.

At the beginning, Maggie is a sweet innocent girl She is referred to as “ the girl Maggie, blossomed in a mud puddle”. This means in spite of her poverty and humble means, she became a beautiful woman. When she first meets Pete, they are in love. She thinks he could be “the one”. The Narrator says “Maggie perceived that here was the beau ideal of a man. Her dim thoughts were often searching for far away lands where, as God says, the little hills sing together in the morning. Under the trees of her dream-gardens there had always walked a lover” (Crane, 19). She is imagining her life together with Pete, how they will be living in their utopia. Unfortunately, this sweet scene would soon fade away.

Maggie’s personality and actions started to change for Pete. The Narrator says “As to the present she perceived only vague reasons to be miserable. Her life was Pete’s and she considered him worthy of the charge. She would be disturbed by no particular apprehensions, so long as Pete adored her as he did now said he did. She did not feel like a bad woman. To her knowledge she had never seen any better” (Crane, 39). Maggie is saying how she notices she is changing, but it is for Pete and it will be worth it. She becomes very self conscious about herself and does not think she is good enough for Pete. She works in a factory, which she feels is a low class job. She also questions everything she wears and is no longer herself. However, this is what causes her downfall. She tries to become someone she is not for Pete, and he ends up leaving. The Narrator also says  “Maggie was pale. From her eyes had been plucked all look of self-reliance. She leaned with a dependent air toward her companion. She was timid, as if fearing his anger or displeasure. She seemed to beseech tenderness of him” (Crane, 57). Maggie had started to feel Pete may not love her anymore. As a result, she becomes very needy. This causes Pete to not love her and pull away, as Maggie becomes more desperate and needy. She eventually tries too hard to keep him and causes her own downfall. She is not the only one who noticed these changes.

Other people have also picked up on Maggie’s changes. Her Mother says “Yeh’ve gone teh deh devil, Mag Johnson, yehs knows yehs have gone teh deh devil. Yer a disgrace teh yer people, damn yeh. An’ now, git out an’ go ahn wid dat doe-faced jude [Pete] of yours. Go teh hell wid him, damn yeh, an’ a good riddance. Go teh hell an’ see how yeh likes it” (Crane, 30). Maggie’s mother, Mary is telling her daughter how she has ‘gone teh deh devil’, she is not herself and something is not right. Mary also says “Why don’ yeh come home earlier? Been loafin’ ’round d’ streets. Yer getting’ t’ be a regular devil” (Crane 144). Mary is saying how she believes Maggie has ‘Been loafin’ ’round d’ streets.’ She assumes she has been in the bad areas making poor decisions with her life, and she was correct.

By the end of the novel, Maggie has become a prostitute. She is described “A girl of the painted cohorts of the city”. Prostitutes would wear face paint to cover the diseases they have gotten over the years to try to still look attractive. The Narrator also says “a drunken man, reeling in her pathway, began to roar at her “I ain’ ga no money, dammit,” he shouted” (Crane, 80). She is walking and a drunk man is trying to get with her but he does not have any money. She is a prostitute and everyone knows it.

Maggie is a tragic hero and caused her own downfall. When she realized Pete may not love her, she should have confronted him to find out why. Her neediness and dependency did not help her situation. Instead, this leads her to a life of prostitute, searching for something she will never have. She cost herself her life because she changed who she was for someone else. Always be your true self, no matter what anyone says or does.