Paper Name: Literary criticism
Name: Baraiya Bhavna P.
Semester: 1
Topic: Six part of tragedy
Submitted To: Dr. Dilip Barad.
Department of English,
Bhavnagar University.
Six part of tragedy
The 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; through pity and fear effecting the proper purgation
of these emotions.”
Following
his definition, Aristotle begins to introduce the six constitutive components
of a tragedy. The first in the discussion is ‘ spectacle’, which includes the costuming
of the actors, the scenery, and all other aspects that contribute to the visual
experience of the play.
Next
come ‘song ‘ and ‘ diction’. Song obviously
refers to the vocal compositions incorporated into the performance, and diction refers
to the metrical composition of the spoken lines.
Aristotle
moves on to elements relating to the humans represented in tragedy, ‘thought’
and ‘character’. Character includes all qualities we
associate with individuals represented in the play; the meaning ofthought is
more elusive, but it seems to indicate the processes of reasoning that lead
characters to behave as they do.
The
final component is plot, which Aristotle defines as "the arrangement
of the incidents" .
These
six elements can be organized, as Aristotle shows, under the major categories
of medium, object, and mode:
Medium Object Mode
Diction Plot
Spectacle
Song
thought
Character
The Elements of Tragedy:
Aristotle presents these components in order
of importance, expanding a little on the significance of each to the tragedy as
a whole.
*Objects
Plot
Aristotle considers plot as the soul of tragedy. Tragedy imitates ‘actions’ and its plot consists of a logical and inevitable sequence of events. The action must be a whole. It must have a beginning, a middle and an end.
The tragic plot must have a certain magnitude or ‘length’. ‘Magnitude’ here means ‘size’. It should be long enough to allow the change from happiness to misery but not too long to be forgotten before the end. Action, too short, cannot be regarded as proper and beautiful for its different parts will not be clearly visible. Its different parts must be well-related to each other and to the whole. It must be an ‘organic’ whole.
Emphasizing that tragedy is first and foremost the representation of actions, and not of characters, Aristotle makes the remark that many contemporary tragedies do not succeed in their characterizations, but are still tragedies. The tragic effect comes from the plot, and especially from the peripeteia–the reversal of the situation in which the characters find themselves– as well as from scenes of recognition. Aristotle divides the tragic plot into ‘Simple’ and ‘Complex’. In Simple Plot the change in the fortunes of hero takes place without Peripety and Discovery; while the Complex Plot involves one or the other, or both. The Peripety is the change in the fortunes of the hero, and the Discovery is a change from ignorance to knowledge. Aristotle prefers complex plot for it startles, captures attention and performs the tragic function more effectively. He regards episodic plot, lacking probability and necessity, as worst of all.
Character
Character is second in importance after plot; tragedies depict characters as they relate to the action which is the main object of representation. Characters represent their moral qualities throught the speeches assigned to them by the dramatist. Aristotle stresses four essential qualities for characterization. First, the characters must be good, but not perfect. Wicked characters may be introduced if required by the plot. Secondly, they must be appropriate. They must have the traits of the profession or class to which they belong. Thirdly, they must have likeness. By likeness he means that the characters must be life-like. Fourthly, they must have consistency in development. There should be no sudden and strange change in character.
Thought
'Thought' is the power of saying what can be said, or what is suitable to the occasion. It is the language which gives us the thoughts and feeling of various characters. The language of Tragedy must be unusually expressive. The Language of Tragedy ‘must be clear, and it must not be mean’. It must be grand and elevated with familiar and current words. ‘Rare’ and ‘unfamiliar’ words must be set in wisely to impart elevation.
Thought comprises both the rational processes through which characters come to decisions, as represented in the drama, as well as the values put forward in the form of maxims and proverbs.
*Media
Diction
Diction has already been defined as the metrical composition of the play, the way language is used to convey the representation.
Song
Music is described as an embellishment of language. The lines assigned to the chorus in a tragedy are usually conveyed in song accompanied by rhythmical movement. By various embellishments in various parts, Aristotle means verse and song. Tragedy imitates through verse in the dialogue and through song in the Choric parts. Verse and song beautify and give pleasure. But Aristotle does not regard them as essential for the success of a tragedy
*Mode
Spectacle
Aristotle lists spectacle last in order of importance, pointing out that the power of tragedy is not fully dependent upon its performance (we can read a tragedy and still appreciate its message), and that the art of the spectacle really belongs to the set designer and not to the poet.
Conclusion :
According to Aristotle, the end of poetry is to give pleasure, and
tragedy has its own pleasure beside. Proper aesthetic pleasure can be possible
only when the requirements of morality are satisfied. Verse and rhyme enhance
the pleasure of poetry. Peripeteia and Anagnorisis heighten the seductive power
of the action. Pure pleasure results from the exercise of our emotions and
thoughts on the tragic action.
Such are the main features of Aristotle's theory of Tragedy. Aristotle knew only Greek Tragedy. His conclusions are based entirely on the drama with which he was familiar and often his views are not of universal application. His view might have been challenged but their history is the history of Tragedy.
Such are the main features of Aristotle's theory of Tragedy. Aristotle knew only Greek Tragedy. His conclusions are based entirely on the drama with which he was familiar and often his views are not of universal application. His view might have been challenged but their history is the history of Tragedy.
