Book description
A penetrating account of Greek tragedy, it demonstrates how the
elements of plot, character and spectacle combine to produce 'pity and
fear' - and why we derive pleasure from this apparently painful
process. It introduces the crucial concepts of mimesis ('imitation'),
hamartia ('error') and katharsis, which have informed serious thinking
about drama ever since. It examines the mythological heroes, idealised
yet true to life, whom Aeschylus, Sophocles and Euripides brought on
to the stage. And it explains how the most effective plays rely on
complication and resolution, recognitions and reversals.
Essential reading for all students of Greek literature, the Poetics
remains equally stimulating for anyone interested in theatre today.
Aristotle was born at Stagira, in the dominion of the kings of
Macedonia, in 384 BC. For twenty years he studied at Athens in the
Academy of Plato. However he left on Plato's death and, some time
later, became the tutor of young Alexander The Great. His writings
have profoundly affected the whole course of ancient and medieval
philosophy, and they are still studied and debated today.
Malcolm Heath has been Reader in Greek Language and Literature at
Leeds University since 1991.
