1. Tragedy: Aristotle, Plutarch, Shakespeare

2. Genre of Tragedy: Aristotle Dramatic literature of a serious nature Ends in death, but also restoration of order Evokes our pity and fear –We have compassion for the tragic hero (pathos), but we tremble in fear when we see his mistake in moral action

3. Tragic Hero Not a common man Of high status (prince, king, leader, etc) Basically a good man (exceptional man) Hamartia- to err or miss the mark (archery term) –Becomes the Tragic Flaw (leads downfall) Jealousy, Ambition, Hubris (arrogance)

4. Shakespearean Works William Shakespeare 1564-1616 37 plays in four genres (comedy,history, tragedy, tragicomedy) Blank Verse vs. Prose –Blank Verse = unrhymed iambic pentameter –Prose = no rules or measurements –Social Class Distinctions

5. Shakespeare’s Tragedies Written in mid-life after his comedies Suffered mental breakdown after King Lear Show great character insight “Negative Capability”according to Keats Performed for over 350 years –Hamlet, Macbeth, Othello, King Lear, Julius Caesar

6. The Tragedy of Julius Caesar Elizabethans fascinated with JC- scholar, soldier, politician (Renaissance Man) Based on Plutarch’s Lives of the Noble Greeks and Romans Based on actual events (44 BC) Not so much on JC as minds and motives of Brutus and Cassius (murders) Transitional/Hybrid play, history and tragedy