Hi I'm doing english literature for AS level and I'm reading king lear ans I was wondering if anyone could help me on this question (Define the principles of tragedy and acknowledge the difference between classical and renaissance and put king lear into the context of that) if anyone could help thanks a lot. :)

In a tragedy, common traits of a main character include: power, nobility, strength, likeability. During the story the protagonist's frailty will be revealed through acts of fate, nature or the gods. His inability to accomplish a goal or solve a problem is the route of the tragedy. Reniassance Tragedy employs humor, horror and complicated subplots to tell the story. Classic Tragedy is more simple. The basic formula is Unexpected Occurrence, Discovery of a Secret, Disaster Striking.

I read King Lear too long ago to remember all the details. Hopefully my info will help some.