Aristotle
Rebecca Priar - Language Arts Department
The purpose of this page is to provide resources for students gathering information about Aristotle.
Outline of Aristotle's Theory of Tragedy in the POETICS
http://www.cnr.edu/home/bmcmanus/poetics.html
Definition of Tragedy: “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 its katharsis of such emotions. . . . Every Tragedy, therefore, must have six parts, which parts determine its quality—namely, Plot, Characters, Diction, Thought, Spectacle, Melody.” (translation by S. H. Butcher; click on the context links to consult the full online text)
The treatise we call the Poetics was composed at least 50 years after the death of Sophocles. Aristotle was a great admirer of Sophocles’ Oedipus the King, considering it the perfect tragedy, and not surprisingly, his analysis fits that play most perfectly. I shall therefore use this play to illustrate the following major parts of Aristotle's analysis of tragedy as a literary genre.
The Poetics by Aristotle, Part V [Comedy and Tragedy]
http://www.scholars.nus.edu.sg/resources/poetics/5.html
Comedy is, as we have said, an imitation of characters of a lower type -- not, however, in the full sense of he 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.Aristotle Tragedy Terminology
http://ancienthistory.about.com/library/bl/bl_tragedy_terminology.htm
Index of terms used by Aristotle to describe and define ancient Greek tragedy.
Modern screenplays consist of dialogues among individuals. Ancient tragedy began as a conversation between a single actor and a chorus. A second and third actor were, eventually, added. Since dialogue between individual actors was not the central feature of tragedy, it's worthwhile to look at its other features.Aristotle on Greek Tragedy
http://larryavisbrown.homestead.com/Aristotle_Tragedy.html
The word tragedy literally means "goat song," probably referring to the practice of giving a goat as a sacrifice or a prize at the religious festivals in honor of the god Dionysos. Whatever its origins, tragedy came to signify a dramatic presentation of high seriousness and noble character which examines the major questions of human existence: why are we here? how can we know the will of the gods? what meaning does life have in the face of death?Hamlet As A Tragedy
http://www.studyworld.com/newsite/ReportEssay/literature/Shakespeare%5CHamlet_As_A_Tragedy-382058.htm
One of the foremost Elizabethan tragedies in the canon of English literature is " Hamlet" by William Shakespeare and one of the earliest critics of tragedy is Aristotle. One way to measure Shakespeare's work, "Hamlet", is to appraise it using the methods of classical critics to see if it meets the criteria for a tragedy.Aristotle's Requirements
http://ancienthistory.about.com/library/bl/bl_tragedy_aristotle.htm
ClassicNote on Aristotle's Politics
http://www.gradesaver.com/ClassicNotes/Titles/politics/summ7.html
Bibliography Development
Citation Machine
http://www.landmark-project.com/citation_machine/index.php
Citation Machine is an interactive Web tool designed to assist teachers and students in producing reference citations for crediting information from other people.
York County School of Technology
Updated last - 25 October 2004