Tragedy Is the Consequence of a Man's Total Compulsion to Evaluate Himself Justly
Question: “Tragedy is the consequence of a man’s total compulsion to evaluate himself justly.” Discuss with reference to two plays.
Tragedy occurs when the tragic hero of a play fails to evaluate himself and sees that he is the main problem and the one that is causing society and the good of mankind to suffer. It is because of his compulsion to evaluate himself justly, that tragedy occurs.
Aristotle provided us with a Greek theory of what is tragedy; he defines it as “a form of drama exciting the emotions of pity and fear. It is the imitation of an action that is serious and also having with it a magnitude complete in itself. On the other hand the English, Elizabethan, Shakespearian culture had a total different perspective from the Greek. Instead of reporting violence on stage like the Greek, the English would act out the violence in the play. They stated that in tragedy the action should be in one whole and take place in one day and in one place. Tragedy was mixed with other genres such as romance and comedy, emphasis is placed on action, spectacle and increasingly sensation.
The idea of tragedy will be given to us in both perspectives, one from Oedipus the King by Sophocles which represents Greek drama and the other which is Macbeth representing the Shakespearian by William Shakespeare. It can be argued that if both tragic heroes had started o asses themselves early from within their respective plays, damage caused to family, friends and love one would have not been so devastating to the point where we see the tragic heroes ultimate demise, where he completely becomes something less than human and destroys himself.
Both tragic heroes were first shown to us as of having good qualities. They were seen as good, honorable, brave men, who got glorified for their respective gifts and talents, which was used in great service to mankind and their people or country. Oedipus with the gift to solve riddles saved his people and the land of Thebes by solving the
Tragedy occurs when the tragic hero of a play fails to evaluate himself and sees that he is the main problem and the one that is causing society and the good of mankind to suffer. It is because of his compulsion to evaluate himself justly, that tragedy occurs.
Aristotle provided us with a Greek theory of what is tragedy; he defines it as “a form of drama exciting the emotions of pity and fear. It is the imitation of an action that is serious and also having with it a magnitude complete in itself. On the other hand the English, Elizabethan, Shakespearian culture had a total different perspective from the Greek. Instead of reporting violence on stage like the Greek, the English would act out the violence in the play. They stated that in tragedy the action should be in one whole and take place in one day and in one place. Tragedy was mixed with other genres such as romance and comedy, emphasis is placed on action, spectacle and increasingly sensation.
The idea of tragedy will be given to us in both perspectives, one from Oedipus the King by Sophocles which represents Greek drama and the other which is Macbeth representing the Shakespearian by William Shakespeare. It can be argued that if both tragic heroes had started o asses themselves early from within their respective plays, damage caused to family, friends and love one would have not been so devastating to the point where we see the tragic heroes ultimate demise, where he completely becomes something less than human and destroys himself.
Both tragic heroes were first shown to us as of having good qualities. They were seen as good, honorable, brave men, who got glorified for their respective gifts and talents, which was used in great service to mankind and their people or country. Oedipus with the gift to solve riddles saved his people and the land of Thebes by solving the