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Published byLucinda Walsh Modified over 6 years ago
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What Defines Tragedy? A SERIES OF ACTIONS LEADS TO THE DOWNFALL OF THE MAIN CHARACTER OR TRAGIC HERO What are some of your favorite tragedies?
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Where does tragedy come from?
The Greek philosopher Aristotle first defined tragedy in his book Poetics written in about 330 BCE
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Aristotle’s definition of tragedy had SIX parts:
Plot Character Thought Diction Spectacle Melody
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What Defines Shakespearean Tragedy?
A Tragic Hero The Tragic Flaw-Hamartia Reversal of Fortune Catharsis Restoration of Social Order –Denouement
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The Tragic Hero The tragic hero is someone we, as an audience, look up to—someone superior. The tragic hero is nearly perfect, and we identify with him/her
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Tragic Flaw The hero is nearly perfect-
The hero has one flaw or weakness We call this the ‘tragic flaw’, ‘fatal flaw’, or hamartia.
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Reversal of Fortune The ‘fatal flaw’ brings the hero down from his/her elevated state. Renaissance audiences were familiar with the ‘wheel of fortune’ or ‘fickle fate’. What goes up, must come down.
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Catharsis We get the word ‘catharsis’ from Aristotle’s katharsis.
‘Catharsis’ is the audience’s purging of emotions through pity and fear. The spectator is purged as a result of watching the hero fall.
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This is why we cry during movies!
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Restoration of Social Order
Tragedies include a private and a public element The play cannot end until society is, once again, at peace.
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The End In your journal: think of one popular story that you consider to be a tragedy. Examine the main character. Would you consider them a tragic hero?
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