Summary
Aristotle now narrows his focus to examine tragedy exclusively. In order to do
so, he provides a definition of tragedy that we can break up into seven parts:
(1) it involves mimesis; (2) it is serious; (3) the action is
complete and with magnitude; (4) it is made up of language with the
"pleasurable accessories" of rhythm and harmony; (5) these "pleasurable
accessories" are not used uniformly throughout, but are introduced in separate
parts of the work, so that, for instance, some bits are spoken in verse and
other bits are sung; (6) it is performed rather than narrated; and (7) it
arouses the emotions of pity and fear and accomplishes a katharsis
(purification or purgation) of these emotions.
Next, Aristotle asserts that any tragedy can be divided into six component
parts, and that every tragedy is made up of these six parts with nothing else
besides. There is (a) the spectacle, which is the overall visual appearance of
the stage and the actors. The means of imitation (language, rhythm, and harmony)
can be divided into (b) melody, and (c) diction, which has to do with the
composition of the verses. The agents of the action can be understood in terms
of (d) character and (e) thought. Thought seems to denote the intellectual
qualities of an agent while character seems to denote the moral qualities of an
agent. Finally, there is (f) the plot, or mythos, which is the
combination of incidents and actions in the story.
Aristotle argues that, among these six, the plot is the most important. The
characters serve to advance the action of the story, not vice versa. The ends we
pursue in life, our happiness and our misery, all take the form of action. That
is, according to Aristotle, happiness consists in a certain kind of activity
rather than in a certain quality of character. Diction and thought are also less
significant than plot: a series of well-written speeches have nothing like the
force of a well-structured tragedy. Further, Aristotle suggests, the most
powerful elements in a tragedy, the peripeteia and the
anagnorisis, are elements of the plot. Lastly, Aristotle notes that
forming a solid plot is far more difficult than creating good characters or
diction.
Having asserted that the plot is the most important of the six parts of tragedy,
he ranks the remainder as follows, from most important to least: character,
thought, diction, melody, and spectacle. Character reveals the individual
motivations of the characters in the play, what they want or don't want, and how
they react to certain situations, and this is more important to Aristotle than
thought, which deals on a more universal level with reasoning and general
truths. Melody and spectacle are simply pleasurable accessories, but melody is
more important to the tragedy than spectacle: a pretty spectacle can be arranged
without a play, and usually matters of set and costume aren't the occupation of
the poet anyway.
Analysis
Aristotle's definition of tragedy at the beginning of this chapter is supposed
to summarize what he has already said, but it is the first mention of the
katharsis. The Greek word katharsis was usually used either
by doctors to talk about purgation, the flushing of contaminants out of the
system, or by priests to talk about religious purification. In either case, it
seems to refer to a therapeutic process whereby the body or mind expels
contaminants and becomes clean and healthy. Determining exactly what role
katharsis is meant to play in tragedy is somewhat more difficult.
First, we might ask what exactly katharsis is in reference to tragedy.
The idea, it seems, is that watching a tragedy arouses the emotions of pity and
fear in us and then purges these emotions. But, by virtue of mimesis,
we aren't feeling real pity or real fear. I may feel pity for
Oedipus when he learns that he has killed his father and
married his mother, but this is a different kind of pity than the pity I feel
for the homeless or for those living in war zones. I know that Oedipus is not a
real person and that no one is really suffering when I watch Oedipus suffer. As
a result, I can empathize with the character of Oedipus without feeling any kind
of guilt or obligation to help him out. Watching tragedy has a cathartic effect
because I can let go of the emotional tension built up in me as I leave the
theater. I am able to experience profound emotion without having its
consequences stay with me and harden me to subsequent emotional shocks.
