User:Laurier Rochon/readingnotes/aristotle poetics

Aristotle > Poetics

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Aristotle's Poetics (Greek: Περὶ ποιητικῆς, c. 335 BCE[1]) is the earliest-surviving work of dramatic theory and the first extant philosophical treatise to focus on literary theory.[2] In it, Aristotle offers an account of what he calls "poetry" (a term which in Greek literally means "making" and in this context includes drama—comedy, tragedy, and the satyr play—as well as lyric poetry, epic poetry, and the dithyramb). He examines its "first principles" and identifies its genres and basic elements; his analysis of tragedy constitutes the core of the discussion.

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The philosopher Aristotle said in his work Poetics that tragedy is characterized by seriousness and dignity and involving a great person who experiences a reversal of fortune (Peripeteia). Aristotle's definition can include a change of fortune from bad to good as in the Eumenides, but he says that the change from good to bad as in Oedipus Rex is preferable because this effects pity and fear within the spectators. Tragedy results in a catharsis (emotional cleansing) or healing for the audience through their experience of these emotions in response to the suffering of the characters in the drama.

According to Aristotle, "the structure of the best tragedy should be not simple but complex and one that represents incidents arousing fear and pity--for that is peculiar to this form of art." This reversal of fortune must be caused by the tragic hero's hamartia, which is often mistranslated as a character flaw, but is more correctly translated as a mistake (since the original Greek etymology traces back to hamartanein, a sporting term that refers to an archer or spear-thrower missing his target).According to Aristotle, "The change to bad fortune which he undergoes is not due to any moral defect or flaw, but a mistake of some kind."The reversal is the inevitable but unforeseen result of some action taken by the hero. It is also a misconception that this reversal can be brought about by a higher power (e.g. the law, the gods, fate, or society), but if a character’s downfall is brought about by an external cause, Aristotle describes this as a misadventure and not a tragedy

Notes from the text :

• 1 Poetry, tragedy and comedy are all imitations - they differ in their medium, objects and manner of imitation
• 2 Medium : this can be by writing, singing, dancing, etc. These arts employ strategies such as rhythm, tune and meter to achieve these 'imitations'
• 2 Objects : men in action - these imitations therefore exist always to represent ourselves
• 2 "Since the objects of imitation are men in action, and these men must be either of a higher or a lower type (for moral character mainly answers to these divisions, goodness and badness being the distinguishing marks of moral differences), it follows that we must represent men either as better than in real life, or as worse, or as they are."
• 2 "The same distinction marks off Tragedy from Comedy; for Comedy aims at representing men as worse, Tragedy as better than in actual life."
• 2 The third separation is the 'manner', which seems to be a rather subjective take on 'how' it is done
• 3 "Objects which in themselves we view with pain, we delight to contemplate when reproduced with minute fidelity: such as the forms of the most ignoble animals and of dead bodies. The cause of this again is, that to learn gives the liveliest pleasure, not only to philosophers but to men in general; whose capacity, however, of learning is more limited. Thus the reason why men enjoy seeing a likeness is, that in contemplating it they find themselves learning or inferring, and saying perhaps, 'Ah, that is he.' For if you happen not to have seen the original, the pleasure will be due not to the imitation as such, but to the execution, the coloring, or some such other cause."
• 3 "Imitation, then, is one instinct of our nature"
• 4 "Tragedy advanced by slow degrees" : good example of very strict structure
• 4 "Comedy is, as we have said, an imitation of characters of a lower type- not, however, in the full sense of the word bad, the ludicrous being merely a subdivision of the ugly. It consists in some defect or ugliness which is not painful or destructive. To take an obvious example, the comic mask is ugly and distorted, but does not imply pain." - Very interesting how the comedy/tragedy is separated : in essence comedy is not good because it does not incorporate pain - which is vital in both bringing us pleasure and knowledge (see page 3)
• 4. Epic poetry 'agrees' with Tragedy (note the T) as they are both imitations in verse of characters of a higher type. The main difference is in length (poetry is rather infinite, Tragedy lasts for the time of a 'single revolution of the sun')
• 5 "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 "Every Tragedy, therefore, must have six parts, which parts determine its quality- namely, Plot, Character, Diction, Thought, Spectacle, Song. Two of the parts constitute the medium of imitation, one the manner, and three the objects of imitation."
• 5 The plot if the most important part of the tragedy : it is its soul. "Character holds the second place. Third is thought. Then Diction. etc."
• 6 Structure - beginning, middle, end : "A well constructed plot, therefore, must neither begin nor end at haphazard, but conform to these principles. "
• 6 "As, therefore, in he case of animate bodies and organisms a certain magnitude is necessary, and a magnitude which may be easily embraced in one view; so in the plot, a certain length is necessary, and a length which can be easily embraced by the memory."
• 7 Poetry VS history "The true difference is that one relates what has happened, the other what may happen. Poetry, therefore, is a more philosophical and a higher thing than history: for poetry tends to express the universal, history the particular."
• 8 "The tragic wonder will then be greater than if they happened of themselves or by accident; for even coincidences are most striking when they have an air of design. We may instance the statue of Mitys at Argos, which fell upon his murderer while he was a spectator at a festival, and killed him. Such events seem not to be due to mere chance. Plots, therefore, constructed on these principles are necessarily the best."
• 9 Reversal, recognition (they both turn upon surprises) and suffering. "The Scene of Suffering is a destructive or painful action, such as death on the stage, bodily agony, wounds, and the like."
• 9 More rigid structure "We now come to the quantitative parts- the separate parts into which Tragedy is divided- namely, Prologue, Episode, Exode, Choric song; this last being divided into Parode and Stasimon."
• 9 A perfect tragedy should 1)be arranged on the complex plan 2)imitate actions which excite pity and fear - pity is aroused by unmerited misfortune
• 10 The change of fortune has always to be from good to bad and come about some great error or frailty
• 10 A tragedy, then, to be perfect according to the rules of art should be of this construction.
• 10 "Fear and pity may be aroused by spectacular means; but they may also result from the inner structure of the piece, which is the better way, and indicates a superior poet. [...] Actions capable of this effect must happen between persons who are either friends or enemies or indifferent to one another."
• 11 "Skillful handling" ; how to get people to kill other people in the most dramatic fashion (i.e. someone killing someone without knowing that they are related - friends or family - and then discovering after the deed)
• 11 In respect to character, 4 things : 1) it must be good 2) aim at propriety 3) true to life 4) consistent
• 12 The complication must arouse from the plot itself, and not the Deus Ex Machina
• 13 The recognition : how the light is shed on the mystery of the unknown - the are 5 ways, the best being "that which arises from the incidents themselves, where the startling discovery is made by natural means."
• 14 Tragedy always falls into 2 parts ; complication and unraveling
• 15 Thought and diction
• 16-17 Basic structure of language (words, sentences, syllables, nouns, verbs, etc.)
• 20 Epic Poetry has one great advantage over the tragedy : it can carry mnay actions at once, which is not possible on the stage of a tragedy : "Epic poetry has, however, a great- a special- capacity for enlarging its dimensions, and we can see the reason. In Tragedy we cannot imitate several lines of actions carried on at one and the same time; we must confine ourselves to the action on the stage and the part taken by the players. But in Epic poetry, owing to the narrative form, many events simultaneously transacted can be presented; and these, if relevant to the subject, add mass and dignity to the poem. The Epic has here an advantage, and one that conduces to grandeur of effect, to diverting the mind of the hearer, and relieving the story with varying episodes."
• 21 "The element of thw wonderful is required in Tragedy"
• 21 "Everything irrational should, if possible, be excluded"
• 21 "The poet being an imitator, like a painter or any other artist, must of necessity imitate one of three objects- things as they were or are, things as they are said or thought to be, or things as they ought to be. The vehicle of expression is language- either current terms or, it may be, rare words or metaphors."