Lakhasly

Rhetoric' In Rhetoric, Aristotle observes and analyzes public speaking with scientific rigor in order to teach readers how to be more effective speakers.The meaning of the Greek word is closer to "mistake" than to "flaw," and I believe it is best interpreted in the context of what Aristotle has to say about plot and "the law or probability or necessity." In the ideal tragedy, claims Aristotle, the protagonist will mistakenly bring about his own downfall--not because he is sinful or morally weak, but because he does not know enough. The role of the hamartia in tragedy comes not from its moral status but from the inevitability of its consequences. Hence the peripeteia is really one or more self-destructive actions taken in blindness, leading to results diametrically opposed to those that were intended (often termed tragic irony), and the anagnorisis is the gaining of the essential knowledge that was previously lacking. Application to Oedipus the King. (Aristotle, Poetics, Book V)Tragedy is drama - not narrative; it shows rather than tells. Tragedy deals with the fundamental order of the universe; it creates a cause-and- effect chain that clearly reveals what may happen at any time. Tragedy arouses not only pity but also fear, because the audience can envision themselves within this cause-and-effect chain. The plot must be "a whole," with a beginning, middle, and end.'Prior Analytics' In Prior Analytics, Aristotle explains the syllogism as "a discourse in which, certain things having been supposed, something different from the things supposed results of necessity because these things are so." Aristotle defined the main components of reasoning in terms of inclusive and exclusive relationships. These sorts of relationships were visually grafted in the future through the use of Venn diagrams. Other Works on Logic Besides Prior Analytics, Aristotle's other major writings on logic include Categories, On Interpretation and Posterior Analytics. In these works, Aristotle discusses his system for reasoning and for developing sound arguments. Works on Science Aristotle composed works on astronomy, including On the Heavens, and earth sciences, including Meteorology. By meteorology,

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Aristotle didn't simply mean the study of weather. His more expansive definition of meteorology included "all the affectations we may call common to air and water, and the kinds and parts of the earth and the affectations of its parts."The plot must be "of a certain magnitude," both quantitatively (length, complexity) and qualitatively ("seriousness" and universal significance). Aristotle argues that plots should not be too brief; the more incidents and themes that the playwright can bring together in an organic unity, the greater the artistic value and richness of the play. Also, the more universal and significant the meaning of the play, the more the playwright can catch and hold the emotions of the audience, the better the play will be. The plot may be either simple or complex, although complex is better. Simple plots have only a "change of fortune" (catastrophe).- 39 -

Aristotle's Theory of Tragedy in the Poetics: 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."According to Aristotle, tragedy is higher and more philosophical than history because history simply relates what has happened while tragedy dramatizes what may happen, "what is possible according to the law of probability or necessity." History thus deals with the particular, and tragedy with the universal. Events that have happened may be due to accident or coincidence; they may be particular to a specific situation and not be part of a clear cause-and-effect chain. Therefore they have little relevance for others. Tragedy, however, is rooted in the fundamental order of the universe; it creates a cause-and effect chain that clearly reveals what may happen at any time or place because that is the way the world operates. Tragedy therefore arouses not

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only pity but also fear, because the audience can envision themselves within this cause-and-effect chain. Plot is the "first principle," the most important feature of tragedy.The plot must be "complete," having "unity of action." By this Aristotle means that the plot must be structurally self- contained, with the incidents bound together by internal necessity, each action leading inevitably to the next with no outside intervention, no deusex machine. Playwrights should exclude coincidences from their plots; if some coincidence is required, it should "have an air of design," i.e., seem to have a fated connection to the events of the play.1.- 45 -

Rhetoric'
In Rhetoric, Aristotle observes and analyzes public speaking with scientific rigor in order to teach readers how to be more effective speakers. Aristotle believed rhetoric was essential in politics and law and helped defend truth and justice. Good rhetoric, Aristotle believed, could educate people and encourage them to consider both sides of a debate. Aristotle’s work explored how to construct an argument and maximize its effect, as well as fallacious reasoning to avoid (like generalizing from a single example).
'Prior Analytics'
In Prior Analytics, Aristotle explains the syllogism as “a discourse in which, certain things having been supposed, something different from the things supposed results of necessity because these things are so.” Aristotle defined the main components of reasoning in terms of inclusive and exclusive relationships. These sorts of relationships were visually grafted in the future through the use of Venn diagrams.
Other Works on Logic
Besides Prior Analytics, Aristotle’s other major writings on logic include Categories, On Interpretation and Posterior Analytics. In these works, Aristotle discusses his system for reasoning and for developing sound arguments.
Works on Science
Aristotle composed works on astronomy, including On the Heavens, and earth sciences, including Meteorology. By meteorology,

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Aristotle didn’t simply mean the study of weather. His more expansive definition of meteorology included “all the affectations we may call common to air and water, and the kinds and parts of the earth and the affectations of its parts.” In Meteorology, Aristotle identified the water cycle and discussed topics ranging from natural disasters to astrological events. Although many of his views on the Earth were controversial at the time, they were re-adopted and popularized during the late Middle Ages.
Philosophy
Aristotle’s work on philosophy influenced ideas from late antiquity all the way through the Renaissance. One of the main focuses of Aristotle’s philosophy was his systematic concept of logic. Aristotle’s objective was to come up with a universal process of reasoning that would allow man to learn every conceivable thing about reality. The initial process involved describing objects based on their characteristics, states of being and actions.
In his philosophical treatises, Aristotle also discussed how man might next obtain information about objects through deduction and inference. To Aristotle, a deduction was a reasonable argument in which “when certain things are laid down, something else follows out of necessity in virtue of their being so.” His theory of deduction is the basis of what philosophers now call a syllogism, a logical argument where the conclusion is inferred from two or more other premises of a certain form.

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Aristotle’s Theory of Tragedy in the Poetics: 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.” 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. Tragedy is the “imitation of an action” (mimesis) according to “the law of probability or necessity.” Aristotle indicates that the medium of tragedy is drama, not narrative; tragedy “shows” rather than “tells.” According to Aristotle, tragedy is higher and more philosophical than history because history simply relates what has happened while tragedy dramatizes what may happen, “what is possible according to the law of probability or necessity.” History thus deals with the particular, and tragedy with the universal. Events that have happened may be due to accident or coincidence; they may be particular to a specific situation and not be part of a clear cause-and-effect chain. Therefore they have little relevance for others. Tragedy, however, is rooted in the fundamental order of the universe; it creates a cause-and effect chain that clearly reveals what may happen at any time or place because that is the way the world operates. Tragedy therefore arouses not

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only pity but also fear, because the audience can envision themselves within this cause-and-effect chain. Plot is the “first principle,” the most important feature of tragedy. Aristotle defines plot as “the arrangement of the incidents”: i.e., not the story itself but the way the incidents are presented to the audience, the structure of the play.
According to Aristotle, tragedies where the outcome depends on a tightly constructed cause-and-effect chain of actions are superior to those that depend primarily on the character and personality of the protagonist. Plots that meet this criterion will have the following qualities: The plot must be “a whole,” with a beginning, middle, and end. The beginning, called by modern critics the incentive moment, must start the cause-and- effect chain but not be dependent on anything outside the compass of the play (i.e., its causes are downplayed but its effects are stressed). The middle, or climax, must be caused by earlier incidents and itself cause the incidents that follow it (i.e., its causes and effects are stressed). The end, or resolution, must be caused by the preceding events but not lead to other incidents outside the compass of the play (i.e., its causes are stressed but its effects downplayed); the end should therefore solve or resolve the problem created during the incentive moment. Aristotle calls the cause-and-effect chain leading from the incentive moment to the climax the “tying up” (desis), in modern terminology the complication.
He therefore terms the more rapid cause-and-effect chain from the climax to the resolution the “unravelling” (lusis), in modern terminology the dénouement. 1. The plot must be “complete,” having “unity of action.” By this Aristotle means that the plot must be structurally self- contained, with the incidents bound together by internal necessity, each action leading inevitably to the next with no outside intervention, no deusex machine. According to Aristotle, the worst kinds of plots are

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“‘episodic,’ in which the episodes or acts succeed one another without probable or necessary sequence”; the only thing that ties together the events in such a plot is the fact that they happen to the same person. Playwrights should exclude coincidences from their plots; if some coincidence is required, it should “have an air of design,” i.e., seem to have a fated connection to the events of the play. Similarly, the poet should exclude the irrational or at least keep it “outside the scope of the tragedy,” i.e., reported rather than dramatized. While the poet cannot change the myths that are the basis of his plots, he “ought to show invention of his own and skillfully handle the traditional materials” to create unity of action in his plot. Application to Oedipus the King.
The plot must be “of a certain magnitude,” both quantitatively (length, complexity) and qualitatively (“seriousness” and universal significance). Aristotle argues that plots should not be too brief; the more incidents and themes that the playwright can bring together in an organic unity, the greater the artistic value and richness of the play. Also, the more universal and significant the meaning of the play, the more the playwright can catch and hold the emotions of the audience, the better the play will be.
The plot may be either simple or complex, although complex is better. Simple plots have only a “change of fortune” (catastrophe). Complex plots have both “reversal of intention” (peripeteia) and “recognition” (anagnorisis) connected with the catastrophe. Both peripeteia and anagnorisis turn upon surprise. Aristotle explains that a peripeteia occurs when a character produces an effect opposite to that which he intended to produce, while an anagnorisis “is a change from ignorance to knowledge, producing love or hate between the persons destined for good or bad fortune.” He argues that the best plots

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combine these two as part of their cause-and-effect chain (i.e., the peripeteia leads directly to the anagnorisis); this in turns creates the catastrophe, leading to the final “scene of suffering”. Application to Oedipus the King. Character has the second place in importance. In a perfect tragedy, character will support plot, i.e., personal motivations will be intricately connected parts of the cause-and-effect chain of actions producing pity and fear in the audience.
The protagonist should be renowned and prosperous, so his change of fortune can be from good to bad. This change “should come about as the result, not of vice, but of some great error or frailty in a character.” Such a plot is most likely to generate pity and fear in the audience, for “pity is aroused by unmerited misfortune, fear by the misfortune of a man like ourselves.” The term Aristotle uses here, hamartia, often translated “tragic flaw,” has been the subject of much debate. The meaning of the Greek word is closer to “mistake” than to “flaw,” and I believe it is best interpreted in the context of what Aristotle has to say about plot and “the law or probability or necessity.”
In the ideal tragedy, claims Aristotle, the protagonist will mistakenly bring about his own downfall—not because he is sinful or morally weak, but because he does not know enough. The role of the hamartia in tragedy comes not from its moral status but from the inevitability of its consequences. Hence the peripeteia is really one or more self-destructive actions taken in blindness, leading to results diametrically opposed to those that were intended (often termed tragic irony), and the anagnorisis is the gaining of the essential knowledge that was previously lacking. Application to Oedipus the King.

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More details about Aristotle’s 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, [...]; with incidents arousing pity and fear, wherewith to accomplish its catharsis of such emotions.” (Aristotle, Poetics, Book V)Tragedy is drama – not narrative; it shows rather than tells. Tragedy deals with the fundamental order of the universe; it creates a cause-and- effect chain that clearly reveals what may happen at any time. Tragedy arouses not only pity but also fear, because the audience can envision themselves within this cause-and-effect chain. The plot must be “a whole,” with a beginning, middle, and end. The beginning must start the cause-and-effect chain, but not be dependent on anything outside the compass of the play. The middle, or climax, must be caused by earlier incidents, and it causes the incidents that follow. The end, or resolution, must be caused by the preceding events but not lead to other incidents outside the compass of the play. The plot must be “of a certain magnitude, “because the more universal and significant the meaning of the play, the more the playwright can catch and hold the emotions of the audience. Important terms: The main character in a tragedy has a tragic flaw, there is something “wrong with him”, that leads to his tragic end. The tragic flaw is called hamartia. Usually there is also some sort of chaotic element involved in the character's downfall; the chaotic element may be events that cannot be controlled by the character – bad luck, bad weather etc. It is, however, very important that hamartia is in place; the main character has to be able to blame himself. (Achilles' hamartia, for instance, was the weakness in his heel.)

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The main character's hamartia leads to peripeteia – a reversal of fortune in which everything goes wrong for him. The peripeteia is usually accompanied by anagnorisis – a realization in the main character when he learns something important about himself and/or his identity. Anagnorisis is very important for the audience to be able to feel pity with the main character. Without anagnorisis, the story may be sad but not really tragic.(Oedipus: “Oh no! I just killed my father and bedded my mother!?!?!?”)Hamartia leads to peripeteia and anagnorisis and the audience then experiences catharsis. Catharsis is when we (the audience) feel with the character and live out/relieve our emotional tension. Catharsis is a positive experience that is brought about when we watch something tragic. Through catharsis, we experience that our own problems are easily overcome compared to the ones we see on stage.
Characters in tragedy should have the following qualities:

1. “good or fine.” Aristotle relates this quality to moral purpose and says it is relative to class: “Even a woman may be good, and also a slave, though the woman may be said to be an inferior being, and the slave quite worthless.”


2. “fitness of character” (true to type); e.g. valor is appropriate for a warrior but not for a woman.


3. “true to life” (realistic)


4. “consistency” (true to themselves). Once a character's personality and
   motivations are established, these should continue throughout the play.
   “Necessary or probable.” Characters must be logically constructed according to “the law of probability or necessity” that governs the actions of the play.

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