A tragic hero is a hero that was born to be a noble. They heroic qualities since birth. The tragic part would be a supernatural force or a god-like force acting against him (cause how many heroines do you see). The hero has trouble against said forces and wins against them, making us like him. A good example would be Odysseus from the Odyssey.
I listened to grandpa, mom talking to dad, giving dad advice and the baby banging his block, over and over on the ground.
In the excerpt, the word "pungent" refers to the pickles' aroma.
Pungent is a word to describe a very strong smell, very sharp and biting. So when Untermeyer used the word pungent to refer to the pickles, he was talking about their aroma, which is a fancy way to say smell.
