...era and the theatres were always crowded during a play. Shakespeare wrote mainly tragedies by the end of the 16th century, including Hamlet, Othello and Macbeth. Aristotle's definition of a tragedy is that a tragedy is an imitation (mimesis) of an action that is morally admirable. Aristotle is a philosopher who wrote about poetry, poetry being epic, drama, and lyric for Aristotle, in his work “Poetics”. He said in his work that a tragedy should be composed by an introduction, a middle part and an ending. According to Aristotle the fable (mythos) is more important than the characters in the play. It is so because the purpose with the tragedy, according to Aristotle, is to make the audience feel pity (eleos) and fear (fobos) and as a result achieve an emotional cleansing(Catharsis). In order to bring those feelings to the audience the tragedy must be complex. The tragedy must involve a peripeteia, meaning that a great person experiences a turning point, a reversal of fortune. This turning point must be caused by a mistake, the tragic hero's mistake (hamartia). This reversal of fortune cannot be prevented but it is an unforeseen result of the mistake the tragic hero makes. The tragic hero must during the play achieve a revelation(anagnorisis) that means that the hero will go from not knowing to knowing, and that could be about anything. All these elements are what makes a tragedy a good tragedy according to Aristotle. In 1963 Gustav Freytag, a...
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...The story opens in ancient Britain, where the elderly King Lear is deciding to give up his power and divide his realm amongst his three daughters, Cordelia, Regan, and Goneril. Lear's plan is to give the largest piece of his kingdom to the child who professes to love him the most, certain that his favorite daughter, Cordelia, will win the challenge. Goneril and Regan, corrupt and deceitful, lie to their father with sappy and excessive declarations of affection. Cordelia, however, refuses to engage in Lear's game, and replies simply that she loves him as a daughter should. Her lackluster retort, despite its sincerity, enrages Lear, and he disowns Cordelia completely. When Lear's dear friend, the Earl of Kent, tries to speak on Cordelia's behalf, Lear banishes him from the kingdom. Meanwhile, the King of France, present at court and overwhelmed by Cordelia's honesty and virtue, asks for her hand in marriage, despite her loss of a sizable dowry. Cordelia accepts the King of France's proposal, and reluctantly leaves Lear with her two cunning sisters. Kent, although banished by Lear, remains to try to protect the unwitting King from the evils of his two remaining children. He disguises himself and takes a job as Lear's servant. Now that Lear has turned over all his wealth and land to Regan and Goneril, their true natures surface at once. Lear and his few companions, including some knights, a fool, and the disguised Kent, go to live with Goneril, but she reveals that she plans...
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...main idea of the book is the chapter “Facing Up to Tragedy.” I chose this chapter because Solomon really shows how people deal with tragedy in a more spiritual individual level rather than the traditional religious level which ties into his overall theme of the book. Solomon describes tragedy as being meaningful because we as humans know that life is not fair and we accept and “adopt the tragic sense of life is nothing less than accepting reality.” (page 5 of 16 in the Chapter. I’m using a PDF ebook) I feel as though it is meaningful because it actually shapes our outlooks on life. A person that experiences more tragedy in their lifetime than someone who has not probably has a more realistic perspective on life and arguably a more pessimistic outlook in some cases. Solomon’s idea that we adopt the tragic sense of life and accepting it as a reality really relates to his overall theme of the book because in the process of life it seems to be a natural spiritual step that most people seem to reach at some point in our lives especially after witnesses multiple tragedies first hand. Solomon references how people deal with tragedy by saying “shit happens.” (Solomon, page 16 of ebook) This really made me think because people do sometimes try to numb themselves of the unfortunate circumstances that happen in life by shrugging it off and and just saying “eh, shit happens. Right?” Solomon goes on to say that we deny tragedy as well by trying to blame 2 someone for it. He...
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...In the epic poem “Beowulf” the protagonist, Beowulf, portrays a tragic hero in a variety of ways. Although Beowulf was not a perfect being, he embraces many characteristics of a tragic hero. Beowulf’s ego put him into many difficult situations. For example the battles he fought against Grendel, Grendels Mother, and the dragon. Other then his enormous ego along with his cockiness that put him into bad situations, he also embraced the characteristics of a great leader that many looked up to. In many parts of the poem Beowulf performs many courageous tasks that no one else would even try, making him one that should be idolized. To start off, Beowulf plans out his battle with Grendel. In the very beginning Beowulf tells his people and Hrothgar that he wants to battle and kill Grendel with his owns hands. This part shows his over confident ego because he thinks he is so mighty and strong. While Grendel made his way to attack Herot, Beowulf pretended that he was asleep just as Grendel would see. As it says in lines (739-746) Grendel snatched at the first Geat… (Line745) He then stepped to another still body, clutched at Beowulf with his claws. Beowulf suddenly leaned up against Grendel’s arm attempting to get back at him. Grendel was very fearful and at that very moment he didn’t even want to kill, he wanted to get away. Grendel struggled until he was free, but he ran free without his arm. Beowulf ego once again ties into this because he claims that it was “fate” that he got away...
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...English 132 April 8, 2012 Creon’s Tragic Fall: A Look at Sophocles’ Antigone A tragic hero is defined by Aristotle’s Poetics as the protagonist in the story to whom something happens that elicits pity from the audience. For the most part, a tragic hero is a “virtuous” person whose life changes from being prosperous to being a life full of misfortune (Aristotle, Poetics). In other words, the tragic hero is someone of great social standing who begins the story at a very high point, but suffers their downfall because of a tragic flaw. In Sophocles’ Antigone the central theme of this play is the struggle between Antigone and her uncle Creon. The issue of burying Antigone’s brother Polynices is based on the ancient Greek philosophy of death, where any unburied body condemns its soul to torment. Basically, it was the duty of the family to bury their dead. Yet, this issue extended beyond family loyalty to a decree of piety by the gods. However, in the play, Creon goes against this celestial decree because he sees Polynices as a traitor for warring against him as a member of another army. As a means to set an example about the repercussions of disloyalty, Creon issues an edict to leave him unburied. As a man who starts the drama in as the respected king of Thebes, he gradually loses his family, his objectivity, and his power to his stubbornness and hubris that ultimately results in his downfall. Hence, Creon is a tragic hero in the Sophocles’ Antigone because his unbending pride...
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...Antigone And The Position Of Women The play “Antigone” is a Greek tragedy written by the author Sophocles. In the play there are many important themes displayed throughout the plot. One important theme is that of the position of woman in 442 BC. During the time that “Antigone” was written women were looked at as the weaker sex. Antigone however believed that she was as strong as the men that ruled in her society which led to her downfall. Ultimately women in this period were treated as unimportant and weaker than the men that lived in that time. Men had ruled the towns and cities that occupied the land and the women had performed the duties that men had assigned to them. In 442 BC women believed that they were the inferior sex when compared to the men that lived during that time because men had power and influence over the people and cities. Ismene says “You ought to realize we are only women, not meant in nature to fight against men, and that we are ruled, by those who are stronger” (lines 70-73). These words said my Ismene prove that women looked at themselves as a weaker sex than the men. Ismene believes that as women, both her and her sister Antigone should not and cannot disobey Creon’s orders by burying their own brother. In this time period women feared the men that ruled over them although Antigone had the strength mentally to rebel. The ruling class of the men thought of themselves in much higher standing and importance than that of women. Creon, the king of the...
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...29.09.2012 ‘Tragedy is an imitation of an action’ is what Aristotle said about the theater genre, tragedy. I have been curious about the ‘imitation of an action’ part and asked myself question such as what could the’ imitation of an action’ as a phrase in this context of tragedy mean so, under the light of the emphasis our instructor put on the chapter ‘the definiton of tragedy’ in ‘Aristotle’s Poetics’ reading that we were assigned to read and since I wanted my question to be cleared and I also wanted to understand the foundation of tragedy and prepare myself, base knowledge wise, for readings that were to come, I started my reading with that particular chapter. Through the chapter I partially understood, through my own reading without anyone’s help, the combination of artistic beauty of changing the places of the words, harmonious rhythms of songs that provide an emballishment to the ongoing play on the stage and the crucial components such as ‘the soul of tragedy’ and another component as important as the plot that I am not too confident about whether I absorbed its meaning and relation with other parts of a tragedy, that element is thought. I think through the chapter I found an answer to my question of what is imitation of an action, let me expand my question for beter understanding and my own answer through the information I gained through my reading . I think my question of what imitation of an action is pretty straightforward to understand, in literal base I know...
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...How could tragedy be staged to show the ways in which fate and responsibility affect individuals and societies? In your answer, refer to your study and experience of TWO texts set for study. The Aristotelian definition of a Tragedy is a man of high estate who falls from grace in his attempts to defy a predetermined fate, and avoid their destiny/responsibility in order to maintain their hubristic lives. In the attempts to avoid his or her fates and responsibilities the protagonist plunges deeper into tragedy which eventually ends in the loss of himself and those around him, a sufferance he seemingly deserves from having tried to avoid his fate. Through the use dramatic techniques such as setting, chorus, lighting and movement this definition has manifested itself into my own personal adaptations of Tony Kushner’s Angels in America and Sophocles’ Oedipus Tyrannus in order to portray the way fate and responsibility affect individuals and societies. Oedipus Tyrannus by Sophocles is a classic Aristotelian Tragedy about a man who sets out to find the killer of his father in order to set the people of Thebes free from famine and pain. Throughout the play Oedipus is given signs that it is he who has sinned against the gods, but he ignores these prophecies and tries to write his own fate which ultimately leads to his own demise. In order to stage this avoidance of fate I have chosen to use tiny LED lights embedded in the ceiling of the stage to represent the fact that Oedipus’s...
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...The Open Destiny of Life In the short story “A Conversation with My Father,” written by Grace Paley, there are two stories intertwined. The main story is about a visit between a middle-aged woman and her elderly, bedridden father. It is during this visit that the two of them discuss fiction and give their opinion towards tragedy in literature and in life. The second is a story that the daughter creates for her father at his request. She proceeds to tell him a story about a mother who, in order to be closer to her drug-addicted son, decides to experiment with the same drug and becomes a drug-addict herself, only to be deserted by the son when he rises above his dependency. Building on her relationship with her own father, Paley artfully uses intertwined narratives and character relationships to present the themes of experience and opportunity. The central conflict between the father and daughter lies within their different life experiences due to a vast generation gap, leaving them with different views not only in life but also in literature. He is an eighty-six year old man, bedridden due to heart disease and, despite his health problems, fully alert. A physician by profession and an artist in retirement, he is still very particular with details and requires that of her as well. In comparison, the daughter, who is also the narrator, has a completely different view on life. Young, comfortable with herself and with changes necessitated by a changing world, she rejects her...
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...The remains of a Greek amphitheater Greek Theater: Stage Configurations Introduction: Greek theater was booming from about 550 to 220 B.C, with Athens being the center of the Greek empire. Theater was relatively new at this time in the world, so people were naturally drawn towards its original and exciting structure. But what made Greek theater so amazing that historians today are still marveling at the accomplishments? The structure of the amphitheaters and how amazing the acoustics were has left historians speechless since the discovery of these theaters. Thespis’ creation of Greek tragedy was the beginning of something wonderful, but it would have never started without the great amphitheaters. Greek theater would have disappeared without the innovative and breathtaking amphitheaters. A. Greek Amphitheaters Structure and Location As seen in the picture at the top of the page, the Greek theaters were very large, open-air structures. Most of the theaters built were huge, seating up to 14,000 people. The location of the theaters was very important for two reasons. First, the Greek architects used the natural slope of hillsides to provide terraced seating for the viewers. The natural slopes of hillsides made it easy for the seats to be made.. Also, the actual location of the theater was important because it needed to be near a sanctuary. Drama had close ties with religion, so it was vital that the theaters be near or in a sanctuary. In...
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...father gave my mother." (Othello, V.II. 221-224) Once Othello says this, Emilia knows that Iago is the person who set up Desdemona and Othello isn't the one to blame. Emilia keeps repeating the words, “My husband?” (Othello, V. II. 145, 152, 156) as she makes an incomprehensibly swift journey from knowing absolutely that Iago, her dear husband, is honest and totally trustworthy, to realizing that in fact he is a quintessential villain. The most powerful and heart-rending of these moments comes near the end of Othello, when Emilia, Desdemona’s friend and ally, realizes that her beloved husband Iago is the cause of all the misery and misfortune that is killing them all. Furthermore, she realizes that she has played an unintentional part in the tragedy by following Iago’s request to steal Desdemona’s handkerchief. It has all been a plot by Iago to destroy Othello and this is finally revealed to everyone, including Emilia. (Othello, V. II. 179-182, 187-189) Seeing Emila come to full awareness is to see first the emotional earthquake caused by such a revelation, and then to see a tsunami begin to build, as she shows heartbreak, guilt, awareness of betrayal, recognition of supreme cruelty on the part of someone she has trusted with her life. She finally bursts forth with the words,...
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...Elements of Drama by: Christina Sheryl L. Sianghio Character Most simply a character is one of the persons who appears in the play, one of the dramatis personae (literally, the persons of the play). In another sense of the term, the treatment of the character is the basic part of the playwright's work. Conventions of the period and the author's personal vision will affect the treatment of character. Most plays contain major characters and minor characters. The delineation and development of major characters is essential to the play; the conflict between Hamlet and Claudius depends upon the character of each. A minor character like Marcellus serves a specific function, to inform Hamlet of the appearance of his father's ghost. Once, that is done, he can depart in peace, for we need not know what sort of person he is or what happens to him. The distinction between major and minor characters is one of degree, as the character of Horatio might illustrate. The distinction between heroes (or heroines) and villains, between good guys and bad guys, between virtue and vice is useful in dealing with certain types of plays, but in many modern plays (and some not so modern) it is difficult to make. Is Gregers Werle in The Wild Duck, for example, a hero or a villain? Another common term in drama is protagonist. Etymologically, it means the first contestant. In the Greek drama, where the term arose, all the parts were played by one, two, or three actors (the more actors, the later the...
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...Who Has the Better Tragedy? What is a “Goat Song”? According to Aristotle it’s a form of describing a true tragedy. Tragedy is something in which many writers and authors try to accomplish, but the two most famous writers would have to be Sophocles and Shakespeare. There have been many arguments to who has mastered the art of writing a tragedy, but when comparing these to there is no better choice than Sophocles because in his story Oedipus the King. It deals with the major essence of a tragedy destiny, Suffering, and an Epiphany. Unlike Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar, Sophocles includes destiny in Oedipus the King which plays a major role in the story. By trying to escape his destiny or more likely trying to challenge his fate, Oedipus turns out to discover everything that he was proclaimed to do he ended up doing. No matter what he did his destiny would sooner or later take its course. Unlike that in Julius Caesar, in which Brutus does everything out of free will. Sophocles also describes and makes the audience feel the pain that Oedipus feels when he discovers his truth and not only that but when he sees his wife/mother that has hung herself because she couldn’t deal with the suffering he has caused her. He explains the only way to minimize his pain would be for him to not see his children and all the wrong he has done. As for Julius Caesar, the only suffering in which is talked about is the one for a dear friend which can’t compare with that of a husband/son/father. ...
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...Something tragic happens in everyone’s life. In some cases, it is predetermined what their fate will be, and in others, tragedy ensues as a product of their environment. In the case of Oedipus, his tragedy could not be stopped because it was predetermined what was going to happen to him before his birth. But in the case of Bartleby, his tragedy ensued because he was a mere product of his environment. An oracle told Laios and Iokaste, Oedipus’s parents, that their first born son would kill his father and marry his mother. Terrified that the oracle was right, when Iokaste had Oedipus, she sent him away to be murdered. But fate played a major part in their lives and Oedipus’s life was spared. He ended up killing a man where three roads meet, which later on he found out to be his birth father, Laios. Oedipus also saved Thebes from the wrath of a sphinx, and therefore became king and wed the widow Iokaste, who he later found out is his birth mother. As the result of finding out that the oracle could not be changed and that fate can not be beaten, Iokaste hanged herself, and upon hearing all this horrible news, Oedipus scratched himself blind with broaches and banished himself from Thebes. In the case of Bartleby, time and situations molded him into a very sad and monotonous man. Working as a Scrivener in a Law Copyist office, Bartleby seemed like he was the perfect worker. Even though he kept to himself, there were no major apparent flaws within him. Things started to change...
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...Megan Chevalier DRAM 1103 Dr. Truscott The Three Sisters Various conflicts arise in the drama The Three Sisters. The setting of the drama is in a provincial town. The three sisters, Olga, Masha, and Irina lost their father who commanded the local army post. The sisters lives then became lonely and purposeless. The sisters are very well educated, which is a very good thing. The author basically focuses on alienation and aloneness. The play is centered around the main characters, and what they think of their home. The three sisters figured they would have a better life if they lived in Moscow. The sisters want to leave their home for a better life. The play was meant to show sensitivity and the girls refusal to gain a happier life. The author portrays a finding a security by their brother. But the brother leaves his lonely sisters by marrying a greedy woman by the name of Natasha. After many nights and days of gambling, Andrei realizes his sisters stick together even though they have falling relationships or marriages, and jobs. In this drama the author basically shows how dreams are shattered, and how life can be so tragic. Chekhov focuses on the women unable to be happy, and the brothers experience of the rejection of promises. He also uses humor to play along with the characters of the play. Chekhov tries to base his characters with reality. Although he did lack story write and dramatic conflicts. He didn’t want his characters to be idle, more like...
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