Shakespeare: Mark Antony as tragic hero

 Antony and Cleopatra by Paul Avril

Shakespearean scholar W. J. Rolfe  quotes Paul Stapfer in defining Shakespeare's character Antony as "a noble nature destitute of moral sense." Weak Antony succumbs to Cleopatra's feminine and political wiles, neglects and eventually loses his position as triumvir in the Roman empire, and commits suicide after suffering humiliating military defeats. However,

...Shakespeare adds many happy and delicate touches which render him, if not altogether lovable, at least an interesting and well nigh a beautiful character. [Shakespeare], if not completely true to history, cannot be charged with being actually false to it. As Trench has remarked, the fact that the play starts from a late period of Antony's career 'enables Shakespeare to leave wholly out of sight, and this with no violation of historic truth, much in the life of the triumvir which was wickedest and worst.' 

Despite Shakespeare's "happy and delicate touches," the casual glimpses we get of Antony still

...unite to illustrate the tricky man's utter lack of principle. He is a profligate turned demagogue, just as later we find him a demagogue turned profligate again. He plays upon the Roman plebeians as upon a pipe by the subtlety and sophistry of his oratory; but he himself becomes a pipe on which the Egyptian siren plays what tune she will. 

In a preface to Shakespeare's Tragedy of Antony and Cleopatra,  Rolfe quotes Plutarch telling the following story about Antony:

On a time he went to angle for fish, and, when he could take none, he was as angry as could be, because Cleopatra stood by. Wherefore he secretly commanded the fishermen that, when he cast in his line, they should straight dive under the water, and put a fish on his hook which they had taken before: and so snatched up his angling-rod, and brought up a fish twice or thrice. Cleopatra [detected] it straight, yet she seemed not to see it, but wondered at his excellent fishing; but, when she was alone by herself among her own people, she told them how it was, and bade them the next morning to be on the water to see the fishing. A number of people came to the haven, and got into the fisher-boats to see this fishing. Antonius then threw in his line, and Cleopatra straight commanded one of her men to dive under water before Antonius's men, and to put some old salt fish upon his bait, like unto those that are brought out of the country of Pont. When he had hung the fish on his hook, Antonius thinking he had taken a fish indeed, snatched up his line presently. Then they all fell a-laughing.Cleopatra laughing also, said unto him: 'Leave us, my lord, Egyptians (which dwell in the country of Pharus and Canobus) your angling-rod: this is not thy profession, thou must hunt after conquering of realms and countries.'