Aristotle+-+Comedy+and+Tragedy

Aristotle **Comedy and Tragedy **

The two major forms of Greek drama were the tragedy and the comedy.

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According to Aristotle, these elements define a **tragedy **:


 * The major characters in a tragedy are not average. They are heroes, kings, and gods.
 * The conditions of a protagonist(s) life goes from good to bad.
 * A "tragic flaw" in the protagonist brings about his (or her) downfall.
 * The fate of many people is tied to the protagonist, so his or her downfall is a catastrophic event.
 * The purpose of a tragedy is catharsis, which cleans the soul of “fear and pity” that most people carry within themselves.

According to Aristotle, these elements define a **comedy**:
 * The major characters in a comedy are average people.
 * The conditions of a protagonist(s) life goes from bad to good.



Not everybody agreed with Aristotle

**Plato** was Aristotle’s teacher. He used the **rhetorical definition** of comedy and tragedy.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 25px;">According to the rhetorical definition:
 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 25px;">**Tragedy** is a form of fiction that is not true, nor does it seem like it could be true.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 25px;">**Comedy** is a form of fiction that, although untrue, seems like it could be true. <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 25px;">All genres that inspired laughter was comedy.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 25px;">**Modern literary definitions** of comedy and tragedy are mostly based on Aristotle’s idea, although the definition has been simplified. There are **two ways to look at it.**


 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 25px;">One way is to say that a **comedy** is a story that treats characters and situations in humorous way and ends happily for the protagonist, and that a **tragedy** is a story that ends unhappily for the protagonist.


 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 25px;">Another way is to look at it in terms of the protagonist. If the protagonist succeeds in his or her goal, the story is a comedy, and if the protagonist fails it is a tragedy.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 20px;">source: Domain of the Brain



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