LIT 200/ Fall 2017
ARISTOTLE THE POETICS
THE POETICS IN BRIEF
Aristotle's Poetics seeks to
address the different kinds
of poetry, the structure and
components of a poem. He
defines poetry as a 'medium
of imitation' that seeks to
represent or duplicate life
through character, emotion,
or action. Poetry includes
tragedy, comedy, and even
some kinds of music.
TRAGEDY & COMEDY
According to Aristotle, tragedy came from the
efforts of poets to present men as 'nobler,' or
'better' than they are in real life. Comedy, on the
other hand, shows a 'lower type' of person, and
reveals humans to be worse than they are in
average.
STRUCTURE OF THE PLOT
The plot must have a BEGINNING, a MIDDLE
and an END; it follows LINEAR structure.
 The plot must maintain a UNITY OF ACTION.
 The plot must comprise elements of:
REVERSAL, RECOGNITION and SUFFERING;
these 3 elements lead to CATHARISIS.
 CATHARISIS causes the feeling of PITY and
FEAR in the audience.
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TERMS
Anagnorisis: recognition by the tragic hero of
some truth about his or her identity or actions
that accompanies the reversal of the situation in
the plot.
 Hamartia: the hero's tragic 'flaw' or 'frailty' that
leads to his demise
 Pathos: the pity and fear that a poet uses to
create catharsis, the purgation of emotions, in
an audience for a tragedy
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THE UNITY OF TIME
The ideal time which the fable of a tragedy
encompasses is one period of the sun, or time
that can allow the transition from prosperous
to adverse, or from adverse to prosperous
fortune.
THE UNITY OF PLACE
Unity of place means that a drama should not
occupy more space than what can realistically
be arranged on a stage. This third unity,
though, is not present in Aristotle's Poetics, but
invented in the 16thcentury by Lodovico
Castelvetro, the Italian translator of The
Poetics, and by the French dramatist Jean de la
Taille.
WHO IS THE TRAGIC HERO?
Typically, a tragic hero is a figure of high
stature, often of noble background.
 This person is predominantly good, but suffers
a self-inflicted falling out due to flaws in his/her
personality.
 The tragic hero has a tremendous downfall,
brought about by his/her 'hamartia'.

WHO IS THE TRAGIC HERO?
The tragic hero reaches an anagnorisis, a
critical discovery that completely alters the
predicament he/she is in, often after he/she is
already trapped in the situation.
 Finally, a tragic hero will lose his/her life in the
end of the play.
 Thus, the message of what is good in the play
can be re-established.

HOW IS SHAKESPEARE DIFFERENT FROM THE
ARISTOTLE?
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Aristotle
Few characters
Either higher or lower
class characters
Either tragic or comic
elements
The tragedy is a single
plot
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Shakespeare
A number of characters
Both higher and lower
class characters
A mixture of tragic and
comic elements (to
relieve the audience)
The tragedy include
several plots
HOW IS SHAKESPEARE DIFFERENT FROM THE
ARISTOTLE?
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Aristotle
The tragic hero is a
renowned character
whose fortune is
reversed.
The tragedy includes
the chorus.
Keeping the unity of
time
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Shakespeare
The tragic hero is a
human being
The comic scenes
replace the chorus
In many works violating
the unity of time (the
action takes place in
more than 24 hours)
COMMON GROUNDS BETWEEN THE TWO
The tragic hero possesses a noble nature.
 He suffers from a character flaw (Hamartia).
 His acts result in feelings of pity and fear
(Pathos leading to Catharsis).
 His fortune is reversed (Peripeteia).

IS MACBETH A TRAGIC HERO?
Macbeth is established as being of great
stature.
 He is of great political importance, and is
moving up in the ranks of Scottish nobility.
 However, he suffers from a tragic flaw. He has
multiple flaws in character, the most prominent
is his vaulting ambition.

IS MACBETH A TRAGIC HERO?
Macbeth’s tragic flaws lead him to become a
tyrant, who is quickly removed from power by
the Scottish people. With the bloody path he
had made for himself, his fall from power was
inevitable.
 His true anagnorisis came during his battle with
Macduff when he was enlightened about his
vulnerability.

IS MACBETH A TRAGIC HERO?
The audience learns the dangers of overriding
ambition, and good is reestablished.
 Macbeth fits every characteristic of a Greek and
Shakespearean tragic hero. The audience gets to
see the full cycle of a rise to power, followed by a
great demise. His ambition leads to his
degeneration as a character which resulted in his
ultimate downfall, death. Macbeth displays all the
characteristics of a tragic hero, making him an
infamous character in Shakespeare’s time as well
as present day.
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