1. Elements of Tragedy: from the Greeks to Shakespeare
Tragedy depicts the downfall of a basically good person through same fatal error or misjudgment, producing suffering & insight on the part of the protagonist and arousing pity & fear on the part of the audience.
Ask students: What defines tragedy?

2. Roots of Tragedy
Aristotle’s Poetics (350 B.C.) laid the groundwork for the study of Greek tragedy.
The Poetics drew from Greek tragedians such as Aeschylus, Euripides, and Sophocles, and poets such as Homer.
Roman statesman, philosopher, and dramatist Seneca (4 B.C.-65 A.D.) developed the five-act form that became standard during the Renaissance. He also popularized the use of asides and soliloquies.
In the Middle Ages, tragedy was associated with the downfall of eminent people through the turning of Fortune's wheel; their fall shows the caprice of Fortune and the folly of placing trust in worldly goods rather than God's will.

3. Roots of tragedy
Renaissance tragedy, such as Marlowe's Tamburlaine, drew on Seneca. These in turn gave rise to Marlowe's Dr. Faustus; Shakespeare’s Othello, Macbeth, Hamlet and King Lear. All of these plays dramatize the conflicts of kings, conquerors, and geniuses.
Renaissance tragedy in England was much more flexible than Greek tragedy, often adding comic elements, and in the attributes of the tragic hero. English dramatists and their audiences were fascinated by sympathetic or admirable villains (contrary to Aristotelian principles of tragedy).

4. Poetics Aristotle viewed drama as an imitative art (mimesis).
He believed that imitation was an instinctual tendency in human beings, and allowed us to recognize facets of our world.
“Tragedy, then, is an imitation of an action that is serious, complete, and of a certain magnitude; in language embellished with each kind of artistic ornament, the several kinds being found in separate parts of the play; in the form of action, not of narrative; through pity and fear effecting the proper purgation of these emotions.”

5. Poetics
Plot is the most important aspect of tragedy: “But most important of all is the structure of the incidents. For Tragedy is an imitation, not of men, but of an action and of life”.
Tragedy should elicit “fear and pity”.
“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.”

6. The Tragic Hero
A tragic hero meets his or her downfall through a combination of hubris, tragic flaw, fate, and the will of the gods.
Hubris, in modern terms, is exaggerated self pride or self-confidence, often resulting in fatal retribution.
Tragic flaw (“hamartia“) includes accidents and mistakes, wrongdoing, error, or sin.
The tragic hero should be of noble birth—a ranking politician, military figure, prince, king, etc. This produces the feeling of fear; if it can happen to someone of noble birth, it can happen to us.
The hero should not be morally better than an average person. This produces "fear" because the hero is imperfect like us, and we can identify with him. It also produces "pity" because if the hero were perfect or totally good, we would be outraged by his fate.  If he were completely evil, we would feel like he had gotten what he deserved.

7. Aristotle's Six Elements of Tragedy
Plot (the incidents or story line)
2. Character (physical, social, psychological, moral--people represented in the play)
3. Thought/Theme (insights into humanity and life
4. Music (all sound)
5. Spectacle (scenery and other visual elements)
6. Diction/language (the dialogue and poetry)

8. Specific Structure/Plot
The noble goals of the tragic hero are blocked by his or her human nature, fate, the gods, society, or nature.
Reversal of fortunes, usually good to bad, though sometimes bad to good. Aristotle believed that the reversal from good to bad was of a “higher” and more artistic nature. Without the reversal of fortunes, the audience cannot experience true pathos.
Recognition—Through his or her experiences, the tragic hero often learns something about what it means to be human.
Catharsis, or purging, of the emotions of fear and pity. Things return to a state of balance.

9. Shakespearean Tragedy
Whether or not he was aware of Aristotle, Shakespeare’s tragedies generally adhere to the philosopher’s mold for good tragedy.
Free will is important in Shakespearean tragedy. Characters have the ability to choose their path but make errors in choices due to their flawed nature. They are usually more directly responsible for the downfall than an Aristotelian hero would be.

10. Critical Views on Shakespearean Tragedy
In Shakespearean Tragedy (1904), the Victorian critic A. C. Bradley divided tragedy into;
1) Exposition of the situation
2) Beginning and growth of the conflict
3) Catastrophe or tragic outcome
The hero’s tragic flaw is a mistake in action or omission. This error, along with other causes, brings the hero’s ruin. Shakespeare's characters bring their fates upon themselves and, in a sense, deserve what they get. Some of Shakespeare's plays (e.g. King Lear) are tragic simply because the hero suffers more than he or she should due to his or her actions.

11. Critical Views on Shakespearean tragedy
In The Anatomy of Criticism (1957) Northrop Frye noted five stages of action in tragedy:
1) Encroachment
2) Complication:
3) Reversal
4) Catastrophe
5) Recognition
Encroachment. Protagonist takes on too much, makes a mistake that causes his/her "fall." This is often an act blindly done, through over-confidence in one's ability to control the world or through insensitivity to others, but still violates the rules of human conduct.
2) Complication. The building up of opposing forces that will lead to the tragic conclusion.
3) Reversal. The hero’s fate will be the opposite of what he or she had hoped. The classic example is Oedipus, who seeks the knowledge that proves him guilty of murdering his father and marrying his mother.
4) Catastrophe. The catastrophe exposes the limits of the hero's power and dramatizes the destruction of his life.
5) Recognition. The audience (and sometimes the hero) sees the larger pattern. From this new perspective he can see the irony of his actions, adding to the tragic nature of the events.

12. Additional Aspects of Shakespearean Tragedy
Like Aristotle, Shakespeare felt that men of rank (“higher” individuals) held the potential for the greatest tragedies.
Abnormal conditions—war, mutiny, feuds, etc.
Supernatural elements—ghosts, omens, witches, soothsayers, prophecies, etc.
Chance—often linked to the character’s tragic flaw (i.e., allows the flaw to affect the situation and cause the downfall).

13. Terms To Know
You should be able to define the following terms and be able to identify examples in the literature that we read this semester. Keep the terms and their definitions close as you read and later discuss in class.

14. Anagnorsis Tragic recognition or insight
According to Aristotle, a moment of clairvoyant insight or understanding in the mind of the tragic hero as he suddenly comprehends the web of fate that he has entangled himself in.

15. Anagnorisis
Example from Macbeth -- his Tomorrow and Tomorrow soliloquy after he hears of the death of Lady Macbeth, or after MacDuff reveals that he was untimely ripped from his mother’s womb.
Example from Hamlet -- right before the sword fight when Hamlet tells Horatio that there is a divinity that shapes our end…”the readiness is all.”

16. Hamartia
Tragic Error
A fatal error or simple mistake on the part of the protagonist that eventually leads to the final catastrophe.
A metaphor from archery– a shot that misses the mark
Example from Macbeth-
Example from Hamlet-

17. Hubris Violent transgression The sin of the tragic hero
Usually translated as pride.
Hubris is probably best understood as insolent daring or overstepping of boundaries
Example from Macbeth-
Example for Hamlet

18. nemesis
Retribution
The inevitable punishment or cosmic payback for acts of hubris
Example from Macbeth– The wrath of MacDuff whose family is slaughtered by Macbeth
Example from Hamlet- Laertes vengenance

19. Peripateia Role reversal
A pivotal or crucial action on the part of the protagonist that changes his situation from secure to vulnerable.
Example from Macbeth
Example from Hamlet

20. catastrophe
The final action that completes the unraveling of the plot in the play
The circumstances overcome the central motive and introduces the conclusion
Exposes the limits of the hero’s power & dramatizes his/ her destruction
Synonym of denouement