While I was reading Aristotle, I came across his explanation, why a hero must have some weakness, which he referred to as a ‘tragic flaw’. Tragic flaw is the defect in the hero which leads to his down fall. When I related this explanation to the character of Wonder Woman, I found out why she is not portrayed as perfection incarnated. Sometimes we do feel that there should be a Utopia.

But, we must come back to the reality that nothing can be perfect, not even Wonder Woman.She can’t always be the winner, she can’t be unconquerable. From the literary point of view, if there is no conflict, if there is no problem, there can’t be a story. Same is true in the real life as well. Most of the creative writers I know agree to the statement that they can write better when they are sad. There must be some catastrophe, some lamentation and it is weakness that leads to it. If Wonder Woman has no weakness, there won’t be any threats, and the story won’t generate any interest. She needs to be put in trouble and then saved by some other superhero, or by her own abilities. This is a trick to grab attention, hold it and create affinity.

Apart from this, when we see such characters like Wonder Woman or other heroes suffering, our human mind actually feels good. We console ourselves saying, if so powerful a person like this can have troubles and sufferings, our adversities are nothing compared to them.Wonder Woman, though blessed with many powers and weapons, does have some weaknesses.

She can’t break her Lasso of Truth and if she is bound by it, she can’t free herself. She can’t remove her bracelets of victory otherwise she goes mad. If a man binds her bracelets she loses her powers. Though she is immune to blunt attacks and injuries, her skin can surely be cut by sharp weapons. And sometimes she is not as powerful as Superman. Superman, when enraged can very much punch her and break her bones. Though she can deflect bullets with her bracelets, if she misses, a bullet can very much pierce her skin. And I like her having these weaknesses because; they make the character more realistic and identifiable.