Aristotle

1
Aristotle

• Tragedy and the Tragic Hero

2
Aristotles Life

• Student of the philosopher Plato
• Teacher to Alexander the Great
• Divided philosophical thought into ethics,
  physics, and logic

3
A General Definition of Tragedy

• Any serious and dignified drama that describes a
  conflict between the hero(protagonist) and a
  superior force(antagonist), and reaches a
  sorrowful conclusion that arouses pity or fear in
  the audience(catharsis).

4
Aristotles Definition of Tragedy

• Tragedy 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
Aristotles Poetics Basic Concepts

• Complex plots are better than simple ones
• Suffering is to be included in a tragic plot
  which should end unhappily.
• The pity and fear from which the tragedy evokes,
  should come from the events, not from the mere
  sight of something on stage.

6
Recognition and Reversal

• Recognition is a change from ignorance to
  knowledge.
• The new knowledge often identifies an unknown
  relative or dear one whom the hero should cherish
  but was about to harm or has just harmed.

• Reversal is a change of a situation to its
  opposite.

7
Characteristics of the Tragic Hero. The
Character

• Is not all good or bad
• Is of the noble class or highly renowned and
  prosperous
• Has a tragic flaw
• Recognizes his error and accepts the consequences
• Arouses the audiences pity and fear