MAIN ISSUES (WAWA)Remember what you are
looking for:1) You are looking for
what Aristotle has to say about imitation -- What does the artist imitate?
What is the status of the artist's imitation? What is Aristotle's definition
of the real and how does art relate to reality. How is Aristotle's idea
of imitation similar to and where is it different from Plato's?
2) What does Aristotle
say about the audience -- What affect/effect does the work have on those
who experience it? What are the ends or purposes of art? How does the work
achieve these ends? How does Aristotle's perception of the function of
tragedy differ from Plato's attitude about poetry's effects on it hearers?
3)What does he have to
say about the artist -- How does the artist work? What gives the artist
his power to move people? How much is the artist in control of what s/he
is doing? Is his attitude towards the artist at all similar to Plato's?
4) What does he have to
say about the work itself -- how do you evaluate a work of art's success? STRUCTURE/ GLIEDERUNGAs you read through the
Poetics, section by section, stop at the end of each section and
invent a title for it. Keep a running list of these titles on a piece of
paper and see if you can begin to group the 26 sections into 3-5 larger
units. NB: these are a student's notes on Aristotle's lecture, so the structure
isn't perfectly elegant and symmetrical. Also, as you read, try to be making
priority decisions on which sections are really the important ones. (Hint:
Near the end you will come across a few really boring sections; it's okay:
they really are boring.)
OUTLINE ACCORDING TO TOPICS
RATHER THAN NUMBERS OF SECTIONSI. Chapters 1-5+: Basic
classificationA. Poetry defined as one
of the imitative arts (I & iv) B. Subdivision of the imitative
arts on the basis of:1. MEDIA/ MEDIUM: poetry
uses words (I) 2. OBJECTS: all imitative
arts imitate actions of men (ii)(No, I don't know what
he'd say about a painting of a fish.) Subdivision of poetry on
the basis of the moral quality of object imitated:a) Tragedy (men better
than they are) b) comedy (men worse than
they are)3. MANNER (iii) -- poetry more
or less divided into:a) Epic -- narration with
only partial assumption of character (v) b) Drama -- direct representation
of character
II. Chapters 6-22: Definition
of tragedy as a form plus more classificationsA. Definition of tragedy
using previous subdivisions:1. OBJECTS OF IMITATION:
Plot (actions), character, thought (theme) 2. MEDIA: Diction (word
choice) and spectacle (stage effects) 3. MANNER: songB. Discussion of objects of
imitations1. Unity of plot (vii) 2. Relation of poetry to
reality (ix/ xxv) 3. Kinds of plots and parts
of a play (x-xii/ xvi-xviii) 4. Effects of plot structure
on audience (xii-xiv) 5. Characters (XV) 6. Thought (appropriateness)
(xix)C. Discussion of media of imitation:
style and diction (xx-xxii)
III. EPIC (xxiii-xxi)Comparison of epic and
tragedy (xvi)
LEXICON OF GREEK WORDS USED
BY ARISTOTLE OFTEN USED BY SUBSEQUENT CRITICS WHO LIKE TO MAKE YOU FEEL
GUILTY BECAUSE YOU CAN?T READ GREEK
katharsis Fits
into our cognate (catharsis), but can have any of four possible interpretations:
1. Purgation -- a physical
relief of tensions 2. Purification -- establishment
of moral equilibrium/ disinterested attitude 3. Clarification -- an
intellectual understanding of issues 4. Resolution -- structural
balancing of tension within the fabric of the work of art itself, as opposed
to the mind or body of the audience (later C20th interp)
mimesis Means imitation,
but different authors define it differently:
1. Plato -- literal copying,
close to mimicry 2. Aristotle -- a creative
activity, more like representation
spoudaious --The
good guy, a noble character, most often literally noble as in upper class
but also in the moral sense. The word can also be translated a ?serious?
or significant.
phaulos -- The bad guy,
a base character, often lower class, with no moral sense: a comic, a buffoon,
not to be taken seriously
anagnoresis -- Recognition,
discovery ( can mean literal recognition such as identification from a
birthmark, or enlightenment/ understanding)
peripitia --reversal,
fall, climactic turn of action
agon -- conflict
hamartia -- the tragic flaw,
hubris, lack of self-knowledge
mythos -- plot or story (cognate
of our word myth)
dianoia -- thought, theme,
idea -- often represented through imagery
ethos -- character
Of course, the game is to find
the places in the English text which are translations of these Greek terms.
