Aristotle And William Shakespeare - 1781 Words

Both Aristotle and William Shakespeare followed certain guidelines throughout their writing in tragedies. Aristotle’s interpretation of a tragedy’s guidelines is expressed in Shakespeare’s plays as William Shakespeare was greatly inspired by Aristotle and firmly believed in his ideas. Aristotle set a bar that most notable authors including William Shakespeare strove to expound upon. Reading through the many different texts of these authors, a reader can definitely see that significant impact that Aristotle had on William Shakespeare. Aristotle believed in getting through to the reader’s emotions, which is crucial in writing a tragedy. The reader’s intense emotions are built up throughout the work. Then by the finish, the reader’s emotions have stabilized back to normal. Aristotle believed in expressing emotions rather repressing emotions (Jones 21). Shakespeare also believed in getting through to readers by building up their emotions. His writing would build the readers’ emotions and then release the intensity by the end of the work. Both Aristotle and Shakespeare played off of people’s pity and fear when writing tragedy. Aristotle’s tragedies begin with a protagonist. This protagonist is an important person like one with royalty. This person will also have some type of flaw which may cause the protagonist to be humiliated, to be defeated or even to die. This kind of protagonist is the type that the reader can relate and will cause the reader to feel sorry forShow MoreRelatedThe Tragic Hero Of Macbeth By William Shakespeare1724 Words   |  7 PagesA Greek philosopher named Aristotle once said, Tragedy is an imitation not of men but of a life, and action†¦. Aristotle is famous for his theory of tragedy. His definition of tragedy applies to William Shakespeare s play Macbeth. The play is about a hero who reaches a high position in the play and then falls because of his choices. Macbeth is a tragic hero according to Aristotle s aspects that make a tragedy. Macbeth is neither a villain nor a perfect character, he appears in the play in a highRead MoreEssay about Greek Tragedy Exemplified in Shakespeares Hamlet1191 Words   |  5 PagesGreek--the famous philosopher and intellectual, Aristotle. Aristotle took note of the what qualities created a successful dramatic piece by observing a plethora of plays written by different Greek dramatists. As a result of what he observed, Aristotle compiled a set of guidelines to define the perfect tragedy. So influential, thorough, and well crafted were his writings that many poets and playwrights since have patterned their own works after them. Aristotle noted six basic requirements for a good tragedy--plotRead MoreEssay The Tragedy of Othello1292 Words   |  6 PagesWilliam Shakespeare masterfully crafted Othello, the Moor of Venice as an Aristotelian tragedy play. The main protagonist of the play, Othello, is the perfect example of a tragic hero. Shakespeare was influenced by Aristotle’s concept of a tragic hero and used Aristotle’s principles to create Othello. William Shakespeare attempted to create an Aristotelian tragedy play with a tragic hero and succeeded in Othello, the Moor of Venice by weaving in pity and fear into each line and action. The powerRead More Othello, The Moor of Venice Essay examples1319 Words   |  6 Pagestragedies written by William Shakespeare that follows the main character, Othello through his trials and tribulations. Othello, the Moor of Venice is similar to William Shakespeare’s other tragedies and follows a set of specific rules of drama. The requirements include, following the definition of a tragedy, definition of tragic hero, containing a reversal of fortune, and a descent from happiness. William Shakespeare fulfills Aristotle’s requirements in this famous play. Aristotle the famous philosopherRead MoreTragic Hero in Othelo by William Shakespeare996 Words   |  4 PagesConventions of Othello Shakespeare has been a part of the American Society for many years. Compared to other Authors, he has a different style of writing but within his own writings, they are all very much alike. He has written many plays including Othello and Romeo and Juliet. Shakespeare was a man who wrote plays that followed the same literary conventions. These conventions included tragic hero, fallacy, irony, and also suspense. A tragic hero is a male figure who is high in society and one whoRead MoreEssay on Othello as a Tragic Character in William Shakespeares Play1677 Words   |  7 PagesOthello as a Tragic Character in William Shakespeares Play The play Othello by William Shakespeare is about passion, treachery and revenge. Othello is a black, well-respected army general in Italy. He falls in love with the white daughter of Brabantio, a senator of Italy, called Desdemona and gets married to her without Brabantios consent. Iago and Cassio are Othellos best friends, Iago turns out to be two-faced and evil towards Othello because he gave the job of Read MoreOthello: The Tragedy of an Aristotelian Tragic Hero Essay1531 Words   |  7 PagesShakespeares play, â€Å"Othello, the Moor of Venice,† is a powerful example of a tragedy and it’s main character, Othello, is an excellent illustration of what Aristotle constitutes as a tragic hero. The play imitates life through basic human emotions such as jealousy and rage. In addition, Othello is far from being a perfect character - another quality that meets Aristotles requirements. Othello also matches Aristotles ideas of tragic hero because our Othello realizes the error of his ways, causingRead MoreThe Tragic Hero Of Shakespeare s Othello1613 Words   |  7 Pagesspectacle, and song (Aristotle, 169). According to Aristotle, tragedies also often focus on a tragic hero who possesses a flaw which ultimately leads to their downfall. In fact, Aristotle prescribes the three most important points to any tragedy to be hamartia, a tragic flaw in the tragic hero’s char acter that brings about his downfall, catharsis, a purgation of the audience’s emotions and anagnorisis, the character’s revelation of some fact not previously realized. In William Shakespeare’s play,Read MoreEssay on Aristotles Concept of Tragedy Applied to Hamlet1500 Words   |  6 Pagesthe proper purgation of these emotions† (McManus). According to Aristotle, the plot is the â€Å"soul† of the tragedy from which the other parts such as characters, diction, thought, spectacle, and melody stem (McManus). Shakespeare skillfully applies Aristotle’s concept of tragedy, to Hamlet in various ways, dramatizing what may happen or â€Å"what is possible according to the law of probability or necessity (McManus). † Aristotle explains that the plot may be simple, â€Å"having a change of fortune†Read MoreEssay The Comedies of Bernard Shaw and William Shakespeare1018 Words   |  5 Pagesliterature as defined by the philosopher Aristotle in his work Poetics. The three other genres are consistent of tragedy, epic poetry, and lyric poetry. Not to be confused with the comedy associated with television and film which focuses entirely on humorous discourse generally intended to amuse; literary comedy is characterised by general humour, happy endings and communal celebration. This assignment will critically analyse the comedies of William Shakespeare and Bernard Shaw and consider what characteristics