Literary theory: all of Martin's heroes are tragic heroes

[CrypticWeirwood]

It sure feels like every single would-be hero in this saga has some sort of fatal flaw that causes their own downfall, just like in any Greek tragedy.

• Prince Rhaegar, gentle singer and hope for the future, the hero of the Harrenhal Tourney, was doomed by his own various flaws.
• King Robert Baratheon, hero of the Trident, was ultimately done in by his penchant for drink, courtesy of Lancel and the boar.
• Ser Arthur Dayne's fatal flaw was that he was too honorable to imagine someone sneaking up behind him and stabbing him dishonorably.
• Ned and Jon, the two most obvious hero figures, both had tragic flaws that led to their own tragic deaths.
• Mance seemed like a hero in many ways, but his unwillingness to bend the knee killed him.
• Ser Jaime tried to be the hero but in the end his fatal addiction to Cersei killed him.
• King Stannis was another hero figure, one who knew to win the kingdom first before trying to rule it, but he still had tragic flaws that led directly to his demise.
• Queen Dany obviously has her own tragic flaws, the one that led to snapping in anger and despair at the end, tragically destroying the very city she had long hoped to rule over.
• Tyrion tries to be a good person at times, and this may be his own fatal flaw that brings upon him his own death.

What about the apparent antagonists whom some readers would see as heroes? Robb? Catelyn? Cersei? Tywin? Jorah? Jeor? Melisandre?

No difference. We could easily run this same analysis for all of them, and the answer would be unchanged. Each made some mistake because of their own natures that caused their ruin and even deaths.

Whether you call this Greek tragedy or Shakespearian, or some mixture of both or something new, it is each character's own internal flaws that in the end inevitably bring their own ends upon them.

Nobody of importance gets out of this one scott-free.