Literary Criticism

Literary Criticism Lecture two: Classical Literary Criticism Aristotle

Aristotle • The most brilliant student at Plato’s Academy was Aristotle. • His enormous contribution to the history of thought spans several areas: metaphysics, logic, ethics, politics, literary criticism, and various branches of natural science. • He served as tutor to Alexander the Great. Lecture Two: Aristotle

Aristotle • Aristotle opened his own school of rhetoric and philosophy, the Lyceum, in Athens. • The history of Western thought has often emerged as a conflict between two main visions: • The idealistic Platonic vision which views reality as above and beyond our own world; • The empirical Aristotelian view which seeks to find reality within our world. Lecture Two: Aristotle

Aristotle’s Poetics • Aristotle’s major contribution to literary criticism is his great book, Poetics. • In contrast with Plato, Aristotle sees poetry as having a positive function in the political state. • For Aristotle, poetry and rhetoric had the status of “productive” sciences. • These disciplines had their place in a hierarchy of knowledge. • Aristotle viewed them as rational pursuits, as seeking a knowledge of “universal” truths, and as serving a social and moral function. Lecture Two: Aristotle

Aristotle’s Poetics • The entire structure of the Aristotelian system was governed by the notion of substance, from the lowest level to God as the First Cause, or Unmoved Mover. • Each element within this hierarchical order had its proper place, function, and purpose. • Aristotle’s universe is effectively a closed system where each entity is guided by an internalized purpose toward the fulfillment of its own nature, and ultimately toward realization of its harmony with the divine. Lecture Two: Aristotle

Aristotle’s Poetics • At the core of Aristotle’s Poetics are two complex notions: • Imitation (Mimesis) • Action (Praxis) Lecture Two: Aristotle

Aristotle’s Theory of Imitation • Like Plato, Aristotle holds that poetry is essentially a mode of imitation. • In contrast with Plato, Aristotle invests imitation with positive significance. • For Aristotle, imitation is a basic human instinct • It is a pleasurable avenue to knowledge. • Aristotle asserts that all the various modes of poetry and music are imitations. Lecture Two: Aristotle

Aristotle’s Theory of Imitation • These imitations can differ in three ways: • The Means of Imitation (rhythm, language, melody) • The Object of Imitation (human beings), • The manner of Imitation (narration, dramatic representation, or a mixture of both). • For Aristotle, the essential characteristic of the poet is imitation, in which all human beings take pleasure. • Aristotle defines the poet as an integral part of human society, rationally developing and refining basic traits which he shares with other human beings. Lecture Two: Aristotle

Aristotle’s Theory of Action • For Aristotle, all arts imitate men involved in action. • For Aristotle, “action” has a moral end or purpose. • Art imitates human action; but human action must have as its ultimate purpose “the Supreme Good.” • The actions imitated, says Aristotle, must be either noble or base since human character conforms to these distinctions. • Tragedy represents men as better than the norm; comedy as worse than the norm. Lecture Two: Aristotle

Aristotle’s Theory of Action • Aristotle states that action can be represented in only two basic types: • Narration • Dramatic representation • Narration means the poet speaks in his own person or through a character • Dramatic presentation means the story is performed and acted out. Lecture Two: Aristotle

Aristotle’s Theory of Action • According to Aristotle, artistic representations of people fall into three categories: • Better than us • Worse than us • The same as us Lecture Two: Aristotle

Aristotle’s View of Tragedy • Aristotle’s analysis of tragedy remained influential until the eighteenth century. • Aristotle defines comedy as an imitation of ridiculous human beings. • He defines tragedy as an imitation of an action that is serious, complete and of a certain magnitude. • Tragedy is essentially dramatic rather than narrative. • It represents men in action and does not use narrative. • The tragic action is morally serious. Lecture Two: Aristotle

Aristotle’s View of Tragedy • The Greek word used for “action or story” is praxis. • The tragic action is a complete of related incidents and events that are connected together logically through cause and effect. • Tragedy provides relief or Catharsis for various emotions, primarily pity and fear. • Hence, the effect of tragedy on the audience is part of its very definition. Lecture Two: Aristotle

Aristotle’s Elements of Tragedy • Aristotle identifies six components of tragic action: • Plot: the “structure of events” through which action is imitated/represented • Character: the persons of the drama; the “moral bent” of each person must be clear to the audience. • thought: the power of saying whatever can be said and should be said at each moment of the plot. Lecture Two: Aristotle

Aristotle’s Elements of Tragedy • Diction: the actual composition of the lines that are recited. • Melody: the use of musical accompaniment. It has to blend in with the play appropriately. • Spectacle: it refers to the staging of the play. It should be appropriate to the theme of the play. • The last four elements (Thought, Diction, Melody, and Spectacle) are the least important, but Aristotle felt they must be done well for the play to succeed. Lecture Two: Aristotle

The Aristotelian Plot • For Aristotle, the plot is the most important of the six elements. • It is the “first principle” and “the soul of tragedy”. • The plot, is “the end at which tragedy aims”. • There must be unity of Plot. • This has already been described in the definition tragedy as “one complete action.” • Any events or episodes must be necessary to the main issue and must also be probable or believable. Lecture Two: Aristotle

The Elements of the Perfect Plot • For Aristotle, there are six elements that work together to create the perfect plot. • A unified plot has a beginning, a middle, and an end. • The plot is shaped like an inverted “V”: • a series of complications (the rising action) draws the plot “upward” to its climax (the point of the “V”); after the climax comes the unravelling or denouement (the falling action). Lecture Two: Aristotle

The Elements of the Perfect Plot • In the best plots, the climax is marked by a reversal and/or a recognition: • The use of a reversal/recognition is what renders a simple plot complex. • A reversal (in Greek, peripeteia) occurs when the fortune of the hero moves suddenly from good to bad or bad to good. • In Oedipus, the messenger thinks he brings news that will free Oedipus from fear, but that very news leads to his destruction. This is the peripeteia. • A recognition (in Greek, anagnorisis) occurs when the hero moves suddenly from a state of ignorance to enlightenment. This is the anagnorisis. • In Oedipus, the messenger reveals to Oedipus his true Theban origins. • The best kinds of recognitions are accompanied by reversals; this is the case with the scene from Oedipus mentioned in items III.C.3 and III.C.5. Lecture Two: Aristotle

The Elements of the Perfect Plot • The best plots do not end with a Deus ex machina (“god from the machine”) • The deus ex machina was a crane-like device that allowed an actor to descend onto the stage in the guise of a god or goddess. • It was used by dramatists as a way of resolving “from above” all manner of difficulties and misunderstandings in the play. • Aristotle considered the use of this device an artificial way to end a plot. • The plot, he felt, should be strong enough to resolve itself in a manner consistent with necessity, probability, and inevitability. • Oedipus is so well-constructed that the final tragic revelation of Oedipus’ parentage arises naturally out of the plot. • Aristotle’s prejudice against the deus ex machina reveals his strong commitment to a balanced, rational universe in which all makes sense. Lecture Two: Aristotle

The Elements of the Perfect Plot • the best plot centres on a tragic flaw (in Greek, hamartia)of the hero: • Hamartia is usually translated as tragic (or fatal) flaw, but it would be better to translate it merely as “error.” • Aristotle clearly does not see this hamartia as a vice or moral flaw. • Readers of Oedipus, generally blame the hero’s misfortunes on his pride (in Greek, hubris). • But, it is really Oedipus’s good qualities (his love of his people and his unswerving devotion to truth) that leads to the tragic revelation of his birth. Lecture Two: Aristotle

The Elements of the Perfect Plot • The best plot shows a good man who, on account of a tragic error, moves from good to bad fortune; Such a movement elicits the proper pity and fear: • A bad man moving from good to bad fortune evokes neither pity nor fear: it merely makes us feel smugly satisfied. • A bad man moving from bad to good fortune merely arouses disgust. • A good man moving from bad to good fortune makes us feel happy, but it does not inspire either pity or fear. • Pity is evoked when we watch a good man suffer undeservedly; fear is evoked when we realize the same may happen to us. • Pity draws us toward the hero; fear drives us away. Lecture Two: Aristotle

The Character of the Tragic Hero • The Aristotelian tragic hero must possesses five qualities: • He must be a good man: he should be neither immoral nor vicious. • His character must be appropriate to his station in life. • He must possess a likeness to human nature: though heroic, he is a man. • His character must be consistent: even if he is inconsistent, says Aristotle, he should be consistent in his inconsistency. • Aristotle also advises that the hero be taken from one of the great tragic houses of ancient Greece (i.e., he should not be a commoner). Lecture Two: Aristotle

The Character of the Tragic Hero • The character of Oedipus possesses all five of these characteristics.: • Though stubborn and a bit prideful, he is a good king who loves his people and is devoted to truth and justice. • His love and devotion, as well as his stubbornness and pride, are befitting the nature and role of a king. • Though “larger than life,” Oedipus still possesses very human traits. • Both within the framework of the play and throughout his “off-stage life,” Oedipus is supremely, and consistently, the solver of riddles. • Oedipus is a member of the royal house of Thebes. Lecture Two: Aristotle

Literary Criticism