This paper explores the history of the tragic art form.
Written in 2002; 1,190 words; 8 sources; $ 40.95
Paper Summary:
The paper begins by looking at different forms of tragedy and at the purpose of tragedy, as espoused by Plato. The basic element of tragedy (the fall of a noble person due to their own inherent flaws) is discussed. The writer brings in examples of tragic art forms, such as Shakespeare's "Othello" and Arthur Miller's "Death of a Salesman" and "The Crucible", to highlight variations of tragedy. It looks at Miller's seminal essay,"On Tragedy" and at the components of the modern tragic drama. It presents a comparison between the themes of the Elizabethan "Hamlet" and the modern/absurdist "Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead", two plays following the same tragedy from radically different angles. The paper concludes with a study of the key to writing a good tragedy.
From the Paper:
"The history of the tragic art form has through-out history undergone many apparent metamorphoses, even while keeping certain elements consistent through their many changes in form and theory. This artform is thought by many to have been brought into existence by the Greeks, and it is certainly best known classically according to Aristotle's definition in the 4th century Poetics. Yet the writing of tragic stories, and the role they play in history predates even Aristotle. The Jewish scriptures and Egyptian mythologies both relate stories of overwhelming loss and tragedy and hold these events up as tales which should be repeated often. According to Plato, tragedy on the stage is nothing more or less than play-actors pretending to be sad or villainous for no reason, and thus detrimental to the minds of the impressionable who might be purposefully made sad or villainous. Yet Aristotle claimed, most astutely, that tragedy serves instead a noble purpose (and surely the writers of Jewish scriptures and Egyptian tales would agree) He writes that tragedy serves as a catharsis, a purging and cleansing of the soul. While most other conventions and concepts of tragedy, have undergone and should undergo radical reinvention, this central theme of spiritual or emotional cleansing remains consistent and it may be suggested is the primary reason why tragedy has and should continue to exist."
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