1. Oedipus Rex & The Tragic Hero

2. Carl Jung – (1875 – 1961) psychologist
What’s an Archetype?
Carl Jung – (1875 – 1961) psychologist
Developed concepts of introvert/extrovert and collective unconscious
Archetype – Universal patterns of thought, action, narrative that transcend culture, history, etc.

3. Examples: Family – the father, the mother, the son
What’s an Archetype?
Examples:
Family – the father, the mother, the son
Characters – the hero, the maiden, the magician, the trickster, the villain
Animals – the loyal dog, the devious cat, the enduring horse

4. Aristotle and the Elements of Tragedy
Aristotle – (384 – 322 BCE), Greek philosopher
Poetics (335 BCE) – earliest surviving work of dramatic theory and literary theory
FORM - Cataloged the various types of “making” (expressed creativity)
Drama (comedy, tragedy, satyr) and Poetry (lyric, epic, dithyramb)
CONTENT – Described the different elements of a story
Examined and theorized about the relationship between the audience and the details of the story (plot, character, diction, melody, spectacle).

5. Aristotle and the Elements of Tragedy
 "Tragedy, then, is a process of imitating an action which has serious implications, is complete, and possesses magnitude; by means of language which has been made sensuously attractive, with each of its varieties found separately in the parts; enacted by the persons themselves and not presented through narrative; through a course of pity and fear completing the purification (catharsis, sometimes translated "purgation") of such emotions."

6. Aristotle and the Elements of Tragedy
“Imitation” (mimesis) – artist cannot just write things exactly as they happen, but must create a fictional scenario that imitates real life to give meaning to reality itself.
Think-Pair-Share
Why is it especially important that a work of tragedy be realistic?

7. Aristotle and the Elements of Tragedy
“an action with serious implications”
Meaningful, significant – limit the rando, meaningless stuff
“complete and possesses magnitude”
Complete w/ beginning, middle, and end
Think-Pair-Share
What’s the difference between “real” and “realistic”? Why does it matter?

8. Aristotle and the Elements of Tragedy
“language sensuously attractive”
Engaging, interesting language that is appropriate to context & purpose
Think-Pair-Share
Why would a writer want to use different language for different scenes?
“tragedy”
Audience is more likely to be moved by enactment than by simple story-telling

9. Aristotle and the Elements of Tragedy
“purification”
Tragedies are successful because they elicit a wide-range of emotions in the audience, but especially pity and fear.
The most satisfying tragedies conclude with a sense of catharsis or emotional release

10. Aristotle and the Elements of Tragedy
Aristotle based his theories about tragedy and tragic heroes on the character of Oedipus from Sophocles’ Oedipus Rex.
As we read Oedipus Rex we will be tracking the 6 characteristics of the archetypal tragic hero to examine exactly how they work in the story. As we progress through the unit, we will see a number of tragic heroes and analyze how/why each fits or doesn’t fit the model.

11. The Characteristics of an “Archetypal” Tragic Hero
Nobel Stature
Since tragedy involves the "fall" of a tragic hero, one theory is that one must have a lofty position to fall from, or else there is no tragedy (just pathos).
Another explanation of this characteristic is that tragedies involving people of stature affect the lives of others

12. The Characteristics of an “Archetypal” Tragic Hero
Tragic Flaw (Hamartia)
the tragic hero must "fall" due to some flaw in his own personality. The most common tragic flaw is hubris (excessive pride).
One who tries to attain too much possesses hubris.

13. The Characteristics of an “Archetypal” Tragic Hero
Free Choice
while there is often a discussion of the role of fate in the downfall of a tragic hero, there must be an element of choice in order for there to be a true tragedy.
The tragic hero falls because he chooses one course of action over another.

14. The Characteristics of an “Archetypal” Tragic Hero
The Punishment Exceeds the Crime
the audience must not be left feeling that the tragic hero got what he deserved.
Part of what makes the action "tragic" is to witness the injustice of what has occurred to the tragic hero.

15. The Characteristics of an “Archetypal” Tragic Hero
Hero has Increased Awareness
it is crucial that the tragic hero come to some sort of an understanding of what went wrong or of what was really going on before he comes to his end.

16. The Characteristics of an “Archetypal” Tragic Hero
Produces Catharsis in Audience
catharsis is a feeling of "emotional purgation" that an audience feels after witnessing the plight of a tragic hero: we feel emotionally drained, but exultant.

17. The Characteristics of an “Archetypal” Tragic Hero
Think-Pair-Share
Can you think of any contemporary “tragic hero” stories that fit this archetype?

18. The Characteristics of an “Archetypal” Tragic Hero
Think-Pair-Share
Can you think of any contemporary “tragic hero” stories that fit this archetype?

19. The Story of Oedipus
The story of Oedipus pre-dates Sophocles’ play – audience members watching the play would already know about the story of Oedipus, which limits the amount of suspense.
In Greek mythology, Oedipus (King of Thebes) famously killed his father and married his mother.
Laius (Oedipus’ father) received a prophecy that he would be killed by his son
At birth, Oedipus was sent out of Thebes and was to be hung by his ankles (Oedipus roughly means “swollen foot”) to die

20. The Story of Oedipus
A shepherd took pity and rescued him by sending him to live in Corinth, where he was adopted by King Polybus.
When Oedipus learned of the prophecy of his birth, he fled Corinth, thinking that Polybus was his father.
Travelling toward Thebes, he got into an argument with a man and killed him, not knowing it was his real father, Laius.
When he arrived in Thebes, he solved the riddle of the sphinx that had plagued the town. Since Laius was missing, he was crowned king and married Jocasta, his mother.