1. Aristotle and Tragedy Liscinsky 3/1/2012

2. Drama Two Types: Comedy Starts at a low point, but ends on a high point. Tragedy Starts at a high point and ends on a low point.

3. Paths of Comedy and Tragedy Bad Better Best Comedy Tragedy

4. Tragedy According to Aristotle “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; with incidents arousing pity and fear, wherewith to accomplish the proper catharsis of such emotions.”

5. “...an imitation of an actions...” Greek: mimesis “The attempt to capture the essence of reality in artificial form” In other words: Trying to take real life (reality) events and emotions and put them into a play (artificial) Stop and think: What real life events and emotions do you see in Hamlet?

6. “...through pity and fear” Greek: eleos The feeling of pain one experiences when watching another suffer In other words: The sadness or problems faces by another person make you feel bad as well Stop and think: What pain or suffering do the characters in Hamlet experience?

7. “...through pity and fear...” Greek: phobos Translates much like the English “fear,” the sense of panic or loss of self in terror In other words: Fear that these events in some capacity could happen in your life Stop and think: What fear is expressed in Hamlet?

8. “...to accomplish the proper catharsis (purgation)... Purgation or catharsis (gk) Purification to remove trace elements from metal so that only one remains For tragedy this means: tragedy “purifies” fear and pity so that we feel only those two emotions. Purging or cleansing something harmful is forcefully removed For tragedy this means: harmful emotions like pity are removed from the body Distillation when alcohol is distilled it is made stronger For tragedy this means: fear and pity are purified to make them even more intense for the audience. Stop and think: How does the reader progress through these different stages in Hamlet?