What Is Tragedy?

For this assignment, you will read from Aristotle’s Poetics which lays out his Classical Greek notion about what makes good drama, namely what distinguishes tragedy from comedy.  Aristotle’s ideas in the Poetics go one to influence the way drama is conceived for centuries, really only loosening their grip in and around Shakespeare’s era, but not fully renounced until well into the 19th century. And even that is up for debate.  Virtually all contemporary dramatists are well aware of the unities and often play with these ideas in creative ways, for example. Aristotle can be a bit dense, so please set aside enough time to work through it.  I have linked to a digital version in the syllabus. Once you have read the Poetics, I want you to turn to Sophocles’ drama Antigone and consider the following: One of the key ideas that Aristotle develops in his Poetics is the idea that a tragic character undergoes a reversal because of hamartia, AKA a tragic flaw. Since there are many tragic figures in Antigone, take one and identify what you think the tragic flaw is for the character.  Identify, if you can, the underlying reasons for the tragic flaw and when the moment of no-return is for the character.  There always seems to be an internal struggle that, at one point or the other, tips in the wrong direction. Why is this?Make sure you write at least 250 words and:Reference the Poetics and Antigone Include textual evidence and/or direct quotes to support your thoughts
 Aristotle’s Poetics (Links to an external site.) Optional Video: A Midsummer Night’s Dream presented by Rice University Department of Visual and Dramatic Arts (Links to an external site.), 2013Optional Podcast: “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” (Links to an external site.) by In Our Time, BBC Productions, 2018Optional Video: “Shakespeare in American Communities” (Links to an external site.) by the National Endowment for the Arts, 2014Optional Podcast: “Shakespeare’s Work” (Links to an external site.) by In Our Time, BBC Productions, 2018 Optional Video: “Shakespearean Comedy with Dr Anjna Chouhan” (Links to an external site.) by Cambridge School Shakespeare, 2014