Aristotle on Tragedy. The Poetics: 4 th century B.C.

Slides:



Advertisements
Similar presentations
Aristotle’s Poetics ( B.C.E.). Background Aristotle was the pupil of Plato (who studied under Socrates)and the teacher of Alexander the Great.
Advertisements

The Elements of greek Tragedy
1 Characteristics of Greek Theatre Performed for special occasions (Festivals to worship the Gods) Competitive- 3 playwrights competed, as did actors Choral.
Tragedy Literary Terms Source: C. Hugh Holman’s
+ Oedipus and Aristotle By Kevin Esherick Why is his picture bigger than mine? I’M SMARTER THAN BOTH OF THEM!!! I’M SMARTER THAN BOTH OF THEM!!!
Tragedy. is a dramatic narrative in which serious and important actions turn out disastrously for the protagonist, who is also known as the tragic hero.
As defined in Aristotle’s Poetics…
Sophocles  Born in Colonus in 490 B.C. and lived until 406/5 B.C.  Educated in music and poetry  Wrestler and Choral Leader as a teenager  First.
Tragedy- Aristotle’s Poetics Mr Adrian Chan Hwa Chong Institution 2009.
Please copy any information in BLACK into your notes. THE TRAGIC HERO.
Aristotle on Tragedy.
Tragedy and the Tragic Hero
Tragedy and the Tragic Hero
(N. B. Written approximately 100 years after Sophocles’ Oedipus Rex)
ELEMENTS OF A TRAGEDY. How do we define a tragedy?
The Tragedy of Macbeth.
Aristotle’s Tragic Hero.
Tragedy Greek Origins Tragoidia Literally means “goat song” Refers to ancient ritual sacrifice of a goat, associated with Dionysus, ancient Greek god.
"Good Night, Good night! Parting is such sweet sorrow, that I shall say good night till it be morrow." William Shakespeare "What's in a name? That which.
Introduction Pertemuan 12 Matakuliah: G0302/Introduction to Literature Tahun: 2007.
The making of a tragic hero!. Tragedy  A serious play in which the chief character, by some peculiarity of psychology, passes through a series of misfortunes.
The Crucible American Literature Tragic Figure. Meet Aristotle Greek philosopher Wrote Poetics Influenced Shakespeare and numerous other writers through.
Aristotle. Aristotle (384 BC – 322 BC) was a Greek philosopher, a student of Plato and teacher of Alexander the Great. His writings cover many subjects,
All My Sons Questions on Act 3.
TRAGEDY—A CLASSICAL TRADITION. TRAGEDIES HAVE BEEN AROUND AWHILE Tragedy is the dark side of classical drama (comedy vs. tragedy) Comedy: hero falls in.
Aristotle’s Poetics Student Edition Prepared by: Dr. Kay Picart Associate Professor of English Courtesy Associate Professor of Law.
Aristotle’s Poetics First example of literary criticism.
1 Theatre at Epidaurus. 2 Aristotle Aristotle was the younger of the three great philosophers: Socrates, Plato and Aristotle. All three of these philosophers.
ARISTOTLE: Introduction
Aristotle’s Poetics : Tragedy.
Medea Structural and tragic conventions. Aristotle Aristotle wrote the ‘Poetics’ in the fourth century BC. He created a definition of tragedy that set.
Tragedy Othello.
Pop Quiz Clear your desks except for a writing utensil.
Tragedy. A literary tragedy presents courageous individuals who confront powerful forces within or outside themselves with a dignity that reveals the.
Tragedy: As a Literary Form. Purpose of Tragedy The purpose of tragedy is for the audience to have a cathartic experience. Why we “like” to cry at movies.
Elements of Greek Tragedy and the Tragic Hero
TRAGEDY. 2 3 Far out Sir! All you do is talk about yourself. Teach us for once. I don’t go on about the time that I was on Sunrise.
Oedipus Rex by Sophocles
Aristotle on Tragedy From his “Poetics”. Teachings – What and How Aristotle taught in what later became known as Peripatetics meaning to walk about which.
Plot Unity: a unified plot is constructed around a single action and must present it as a unified whole Not dependent merely on plot being about one man/person.
Aristotle L/O: to apply Aristote’s theories and consider their relevance (A01 and 4) to apply Aristote’s theories and consider their relevance (A01 and.
What is a Tragedy?. What do you think? What would be a tragic event for you? Can you think of tragic movies?
Aristotle and Literary Criticism. Aristotle One of the earliest attempts to explain what makes an effective or ineffective piece of literature was a book.
DEATH OF A SALESMAN By Arthur Miller. THEATRICAL CONTEXT  Realism An artistic movement which began in France in the 19 th Century It sought to accurately.
Oedipus In Review + Poetics Plot, Character, Theme, Vocab.
OUTLINE TO ARISTOTLE’S POETICS THEORY OF TRAGEDY.
What Defines Tragedy? : a medieval narrative poem or tale typically describing the downfall of a great man.
THE BASICS TRAGEDY. WHAT IS A TRAGEDY? ARISTOTELIAN DEFINITION OF TRAGEDY “A tragedy is the imitation of an action that is serious and also, as having.
Oedipus Rex. GREEK DRAMA Performed in open-air theaters where citizens got free tickets. Originally associated with the festivals of Dionysus Masks and.
The Greek Theater. Origins of Greek Tragedy A. Early 700s B.C. 1. Tragedy comes from two Greek words: TRAGOI and OIDE meaning… GOAT and SONG 2. It was.
The Elements of greek Tragedy
TRAGEDY.
Plot, Character, Theme, Vocab
“Fear is the path to the dark side. Fear leads to anger
Greek Tragedy Terms.
Aristotle’s Ideas About Tragedy
TRAGIC HEROES: BEYOND THE FLAW & DOWNFALL
Tragedy and the Tragic Hero
The Elements of greek Tragedy
The Elements of greek Tragedy
Aristotelian Tragedy.
Tragedy terms/concepts
Drama where the central character(s) suffer disaster/great misfortune
The Definition of Tragedy
Tragedy.
Tragedy and the Tragic Hero
Topic– Aristotle On poetics
Greek Tragedy.
From Aristotle’s Poetics
Presentation transcript:

Aristotle on Tragedy

The Poetics: 4 th century B.C.

The Six Elements of Tragedy

Plot: “The plot, then, is the first principle, and, as it were, the soul of a tragedy. Why?

“For Tragedy is an imitation, not of men, but of an action and of life, and life consists in action” (vs. narration) Also, "the most powerful elements of emotional interest in Tragedy – Peripeteia or Reversal of the Situation and Recognition scenes (anagnorisis) – are parts of the plot.”

The other 5 Parts: Character Diction Thought Spectacle Song

What kinds of events should a tragedy concern itself with?

Tragedy is an imitation of an action that is complete, and whole, and of a certain magnitude. By magnitude, Aristotle means “that the sequence of events, according to the law of probability or necessity, will admit of a change from bad fortune to good, or from good fortune to bad.”

Reversal of the Situation (peripeteia) is a change by which the action veers round to its opposite, subject always to our rule of probability or necessity. Thus in Oedipus, the messenger comes to cheer Oedipus and free him from his alarms about his mother, but by revealing who he is, he produces the opposite effect.

Recognition (anagnorisis), as the name indicates, is a change from ignorance to knowledge, producing love or hate between the persons destined by the poet for good or bad fortune. The best form of recognition is coincident with a Reversal of the Situation, as in Oedipus. But, of all recognitions, the best is that which arises from the incidents themselves, where the startling discovery is made by natural means (causality).

“This recognition, combined with Reversal, will produce either pity or fear” thus effecting the proper [purification] of these emotions (catharsis).”

“In his discussion of catharsis, Aristotle tries to account for the undeniable yet remarkable fact that many tragic representations of suffering and defeat leave an audience feeling not depressed, but relieved, or even exalted.” (Abrams, M.H. A Glossary of Literary Terms.)

The dramatist’s goal of producing this effect determines… Choice and moral qualities of the tragic protagonist Organization of the tragic plot

How to Construct the Perfect Tragedy…

The change of fortune presented must not be the spectacle of a virtuous man brought from prosperity to adversity: for this moves neither pity nor fear; it merely shocks us. Nor, again, that of a bad man passing from adversity to prosperity: for nothing can be more alien to the spirit of Tragedy; it possesses no single tragic quality; it neither satisfies the moral sense nor calls forth pity or fear. Nor, again, should the downfall of the utter villain be exhibited…

A plot of this kind would, doubtless, satisfy the moral sense, but it would inspire neither pity nor fear; for pity is aroused by unmerited misfortune, fear by the misfortune of a man like ourselves. Such an event, therefore, will be neither pitiful nor terrible. There remains, then, the character between these two extremes- that of a man who is not eminently good and just, yet whose misfortune is brought about not by vice or depravity, but by some error or frailty (hamartia). He must be one who is highly renowned and prosperous- a personage like Oedipus, Thyestes, or other illustrious men of such families.

The change of fortune should be not from bad to good, but, reversely, from good to bad. It should come about as the result not of vice, but of some great error or frailty, in a character either such as we have described, or better rather than worse.

So the best tragic plots develop this way… Complication→Catastrophe→ Peripeteia (Reversal)

How do Aristotle’s Poetics contribute to our understanding of Greek tragedy?