Name: Makwana Monika
Roll No: 28
Paper-3: Literary criticism or theory
Topic: Hamartia and catharsis
Email i’d: makwanamonika76@gmail.com
Submitted to: smt. S. B. Gardi Department of English
Hamartia and Catharsis
• Aristotle is explained the Hamartia and catharsis in his poetics. The basis for understanding hamarstia, and then, is that a mistake is made, even it is due more to an mistake in judgment, and may more typically, a flaw in one’s character, rather than springing from malicious intent and it was created by Aristotle. Catharsis is connected to Greek and used by Greek philosopher Aristotle, was the first used term catharsis with reference to the emotions in his poetics.
• ‘Hamartia’ first described in literary criticism by Aristotle in his ‘poetics’. It is the term used by Aristotle in his poetics. Hamartia is also known as ‘Tragic flaw’ and “error of judgment”. it is the Greek word describes many people refer to as the tragic flaw of hero of Greek tragedy, Hamartia means ‘sin’, error’, ’trespass’ and ‘missing the mark’. The mistake of hero has an integral place in the plot of tragedy. The logic of hero’s descent into misfortune is determined by the nature of his or her particular kind of hamartia. hamartia means ‘error of judgment’, ’mistake’ of the tragic hero.
In Aristotle’s poetics
Aristotle was an ancient Greek philosopher, scientist and he is one of the Greatest Thinker in Politics, Psychology and Ethics. He was born in the city Stagira, Chalkidiki. The term ‘Hamartia’ was used by Aristotle. It was first described in subject of literary criticism by Aristotle in his work ‘Poetics’. The source of the hamartia is at juncture between character’s actions or behaviors as described by Aristotle.
“character in a play is that which reveals the moral purpose of the agents ,I.e. the sort of things they seek or avoid”
In his introduction to S. H. Butcher translation of politics, Francis Ferguson described ‘Hamartia’ as the inner feature that initiate, as he Dante’s words, a movement of spirit within protagonist to commit actions which drive the plot towards its tragic end, inspiring in the of build of pity and fear that leads to a purgation of those emotions, or catharsis.
Jules Brody, however, argues that “it is the height of irony that the idea of tragic flow should have had its origin in the Aristotelian notion of hamartia or tragic flaw whatever this problematic word may be taken to mean, it has nothing to with such idea as fault, vice, guilt , moral deficiency ,or the like. Hamartia is a morally neutral non-normative term, derived from the verb ‘hamartano’ means ‘to miss the mark’, ‘to fall short of an objective’ and by extension to reach one destination rather than the intended one; to make a error, not in the sense of a moral failure, but in the nonjudgmental sense of taking one thing for another ,taking something for its opposite.
“Hamartia” may broken an ‘error’ of an discernment due to ignorance, to the lack of an essential piece of information finally , Hamartia may be viewed simply as an act which for whatever reason ends in failure rather than success “In a Greek tragedy for a story to ‘of adequate magnitude’ it involves characters of high rank, prestige, or good fortune. If the protagonist is too worthy of approbate or too evil , his change of fortune will not evoke the ideal proportion of pity and fear necessary for catharsis, here Aristotle describes as the quality of a tragic hero that generates that optimal balance.
Hamartia
Hamartia is a personal error in a hero or protagonist personality, which brings about his tragic downfall in a tragedy. This error in a hero’s personality is also known as a “Tragic Flaw’’.
Hamratia is the deadly flaw in a protagonist or hero that leads to this characters downfall. Aristotle first used in his essay ‘Poetics’, the first treatise on literary theory. Aristotle describes the function of Hamartia, in Greek Tragedy as that aspect of the hero or perhaps an error of hero makes that sets into motion a chain of unavoidable incidents that change the hero’s fortune from good to bad.
Significance of hamartia in literature
Hamartia is a significant topic in literature. While hamartia was first applied to characters in Greek Tragedies, It is related to and present in known characters throughout the history of literature. Most teachers gives advise that a protagonist with no flaw is, really, quite a boring character and inappropriate of being written about it is really more difficult for the reader to relate to hero with no flaws , because that simply is not common or realistic in ordinary life.
‘Hamlet’ by William Shakespeare, the son of king Hamlet is prince Hamlet, a tragic hero. He is not able to act on impulse or take sudden decisions. His big error was he always postpones his revenge and quickly makes decisions that require a lot of intent. His error of judgment was during ‘the Ghost’ scene when he seen the shadow of Ghost look like his father. He suddenly believed that on ghost and he makes decision to take revenge to Claudius and his lack of impulsiveness of delay in action.
• Doctor Faustus a tragic hero with Hamartia
The aspiring nature of Doctor Faustus is the Hamartia or the tragic flaw of Doctor Faustus. He wishes to possess ultimate power, worldly delight for that he sells his soul to devil Lucifer though a contrast. Lucifer, the soul of Dr .Faustus takes away to hell and Dr. Faustus suffers eternal downfall because of his ambition.
Othello a tragic hero with Hamartia
Othello is the best example of Hamartia because of tragic downfall. Othello is a tragic flaw because he is a typical tragic character, Othello has the terrible hamartia in that he is disturbingly gullible, madly jealous, and irrationally quickly in his wrong judgment. While Iago provokes against Desdemona, he suddenly takes decision to kill Desdemona that is big error of Othello and cause of judgment.
Catharsis Catharsis is a Greek word in Literature, it is the purification and purgation of emotion particularly pity and fear thought art or any extreme that restoration. It is originally used by Aristotle in the poetics, comparing the effects of tragedy on the mind of a spectator to the effect of a catharsis on the body.
• Meaning of catharsis
Catharsis means “The process of releasing, and thereby providing relief from, strong or repressed emotions”
• Theory of Catharsis
As to the exact meaning and concept of Catharsis, there has been a lot of controversy between scholars and critics down the centuries. So, it is deserved separate treatment. Let us consider it in detail:
The critics has debated on catharsis by prolonged and has succeeded only in creating confusion not in clarifying the concept.
John Morley has tells about catharsis that Aristotle’s famous word in the six part of poetics about tragedy accomplishing the purgation of mood pity and fear. And F. L. Lucas in his Tragedy: serious drama in relation to Aristotle’s poetics asked the questions, and answers,
The questions are;
• What is really Aristotle’s view?
• How far is it true?
• What led him to adopt it?
The answers are;
• The meaning of catharsis
The meaning of catharsis by F. U. Lucas in his Quito’s. He tells controversy about Aristotle’s meaning, he gives example of catharsis, as purification or ‘corrections or refinement’, ‘Reinigung’ or the like. It has suggested that our our pity and fear are purified in the theatre by becoming disinterested.
• How far is a Aristotle’s view of Catharsis true? he tells his observation that the sort of relaxation or release after a prolonged that is build up and maintain during the Drama, through a welcome feeling, is not a purgation or moderation but fulfillment or satisfaction with conclusion.
• The third: what led to adopt this theory? Talks on his master Plato, has attacked poetry in general including tragedy from moral and philosopher point of view. And had to defend poetry against his master’s attack on moral and philosopher ground. He has to refute Plato’s charges.
• What is catharsis?
A catharsis is an emotion discharge due to one can achieve a state of moral or spiritual renewal, or achieve a state of libration from anxiety and stress.
How do you identify Catharsis in writing?
Aristotle is a Greek philosopher and a playwright. He address the role of Catharsis in his work ‘poetics’. He believed that the main aim of Drama and comedy is to purge and purify the audience feeling and emotion, mostly those of pity ad fear. Through imitating dramatic circumstances, a work of literature allows its reader to live vicariously by the situation and process their own feeling, Aristotle does not invariably say this, Many now feel that catharsis also permit the reader to come at a greater understanding of the world as well.
• Function of catharsis: Dramatic use
The term catharsis persuaded the impact of Tragedy, Comedy or any other form of art on audience and in some cases even on the performs themselves in The Dramatic art, Aristotle did not elaborate on the meaning of ‘Catharsis’ and way he used it in defining in his tragedy.
D. W. Lucas’s, an authoritative version in poetics thoroughly covered, in an appendix dedicated to pity, fear and Katharsis, the different shades of meaning and aspects inherent in interpretation of the word, Lucas identifies that there is a chance that catharsis may have aspect of meaning like ‘purification’, intellectual clarification’, and ‘purgation’.
Example
Oedipus Rex by Sophocles
“OEDIPUS: Dark, dark! The horror of
Darkness, like a shroud,
Wraps e and bears me on through
mist and cloud.
Ah me ah me! What spasms athwart
me shoot,
What pangs of agonizing memory?”
Oedipus is best example of catharsis. The Tragedy of the king Oedipus has many aspects, a staple one being that he does not heed the prophecies and bring down his own fate upon himself. It was the key plays that Aristotle was considering when he created his theory of catharsis in his tragedy. And really, the Oedipus Rex bring the audience a catharsis because Oedipus was overcome with memories, which we as the audience can only imagine as being those prophecies he did not pay sufficient intent to.
Conclusion
Aristotle has explained tragedy in his poetics, he tries to explain the human minds, Who feels ‘pity and fear’ and hero’s ‘error of judgment’, he has explained the theory of catharsis and he has given his views about hamartia and catharsis. According Aristotle in his tragedy the protagonist suffers from hamartia and then knowledge comes of ignorance imitated by a reversal in fortune with a feeling of purification in the character.
Roll No: 28
Paper-3: Literary criticism or theory
Topic: Hamartia and catharsis
Email i’d: makwanamonika76@gmail.com
Submitted to: smt. S. B. Gardi Department of English
Hamartia and Catharsis
• Aristotle is explained the Hamartia and catharsis in his poetics. The basis for understanding hamarstia, and then, is that a mistake is made, even it is due more to an mistake in judgment, and may more typically, a flaw in one’s character, rather than springing from malicious intent and it was created by Aristotle. Catharsis is connected to Greek and used by Greek philosopher Aristotle, was the first used term catharsis with reference to the emotions in his poetics.
• ‘Hamartia’ first described in literary criticism by Aristotle in his ‘poetics’. It is the term used by Aristotle in his poetics. Hamartia is also known as ‘Tragic flaw’ and “error of judgment”. it is the Greek word describes many people refer to as the tragic flaw of hero of Greek tragedy, Hamartia means ‘sin’, error’, ’trespass’ and ‘missing the mark’. The mistake of hero has an integral place in the plot of tragedy. The logic of hero’s descent into misfortune is determined by the nature of his or her particular kind of hamartia. hamartia means ‘error of judgment’, ’mistake’ of the tragic hero.
In Aristotle’s poetics
Aristotle was an ancient Greek philosopher, scientist and he is one of the Greatest Thinker in Politics, Psychology and Ethics. He was born in the city Stagira, Chalkidiki. The term ‘Hamartia’ was used by Aristotle. It was first described in subject of literary criticism by Aristotle in his work ‘Poetics’. The source of the hamartia is at juncture between character’s actions or behaviors as described by Aristotle.
“character in a play is that which reveals the moral purpose of the agents ,I.e. the sort of things they seek or avoid”
In his introduction to S. H. Butcher translation of politics, Francis Ferguson described ‘Hamartia’ as the inner feature that initiate, as he Dante’s words, a movement of spirit within protagonist to commit actions which drive the plot towards its tragic end, inspiring in the of build of pity and fear that leads to a purgation of those emotions, or catharsis.
Jules Brody, however, argues that “it is the height of irony that the idea of tragic flow should have had its origin in the Aristotelian notion of hamartia or tragic flaw whatever this problematic word may be taken to mean, it has nothing to with such idea as fault, vice, guilt , moral deficiency ,or the like. Hamartia is a morally neutral non-normative term, derived from the verb ‘hamartano’ means ‘to miss the mark’, ‘to fall short of an objective’ and by extension to reach one destination rather than the intended one; to make a error, not in the sense of a moral failure, but in the nonjudgmental sense of taking one thing for another ,taking something for its opposite.
“Hamartia” may broken an ‘error’ of an discernment due to ignorance, to the lack of an essential piece of information finally , Hamartia may be viewed simply as an act which for whatever reason ends in failure rather than success “In a Greek tragedy for a story to ‘of adequate magnitude’ it involves characters of high rank, prestige, or good fortune. If the protagonist is too worthy of approbate or too evil , his change of fortune will not evoke the ideal proportion of pity and fear necessary for catharsis, here Aristotle describes as the quality of a tragic hero that generates that optimal balance.
Hamartia
Hamartia is a personal error in a hero or protagonist personality, which brings about his tragic downfall in a tragedy. This error in a hero’s personality is also known as a “Tragic Flaw’’.
- Definition of Hamartia
Hamratia is the deadly flaw in a protagonist or hero that leads to this characters downfall. Aristotle first used in his essay ‘Poetics’, the first treatise on literary theory. Aristotle describes the function of Hamartia, in Greek Tragedy as that aspect of the hero or perhaps an error of hero makes that sets into motion a chain of unavoidable incidents that change the hero’s fortune from good to bad.
- Hamartia and Hubris
- Function of hamartia
Significance of hamartia in literature
Hamartia is a significant topic in literature. While hamartia was first applied to characters in Greek Tragedies, It is related to and present in known characters throughout the history of literature. Most teachers gives advise that a protagonist with no flaw is, really, quite a boring character and inappropriate of being written about it is really more difficult for the reader to relate to hero with no flaws , because that simply is not common or realistic in ordinary life.
- Examples
‘Hamlet’ by William Shakespeare, the son of king Hamlet is prince Hamlet, a tragic hero. He is not able to act on impulse or take sudden decisions. His big error was he always postpones his revenge and quickly makes decisions that require a lot of intent. His error of judgment was during ‘the Ghost’ scene when he seen the shadow of Ghost look like his father. He suddenly believed that on ghost and he makes decision to take revenge to Claudius and his lack of impulsiveness of delay in action.
• Doctor Faustus a tragic hero with Hamartia
The aspiring nature of Doctor Faustus is the Hamartia or the tragic flaw of Doctor Faustus. He wishes to possess ultimate power, worldly delight for that he sells his soul to devil Lucifer though a contrast. Lucifer, the soul of Dr .Faustus takes away to hell and Dr. Faustus suffers eternal downfall because of his ambition.
Othello a tragic hero with Hamartia
Othello is the best example of Hamartia because of tragic downfall. Othello is a tragic flaw because he is a typical tragic character, Othello has the terrible hamartia in that he is disturbingly gullible, madly jealous, and irrationally quickly in his wrong judgment. While Iago provokes against Desdemona, he suddenly takes decision to kill Desdemona that is big error of Othello and cause of judgment.
Catharsis Catharsis is a Greek word in Literature, it is the purification and purgation of emotion particularly pity and fear thought art or any extreme that restoration. It is originally used by Aristotle in the poetics, comparing the effects of tragedy on the mind of a spectator to the effect of a catharsis on the body.
• Meaning of catharsis
Catharsis means “The process of releasing, and thereby providing relief from, strong or repressed emotions”
• Theory of Catharsis
As to the exact meaning and concept of Catharsis, there has been a lot of controversy between scholars and critics down the centuries. So, it is deserved separate treatment. Let us consider it in detail:
The critics has debated on catharsis by prolonged and has succeeded only in creating confusion not in clarifying the concept.
John Morley has tells about catharsis that Aristotle’s famous word in the six part of poetics about tragedy accomplishing the purgation of mood pity and fear. And F. L. Lucas in his Tragedy: serious drama in relation to Aristotle’s poetics asked the questions, and answers,
The questions are;
• What is really Aristotle’s view?
• How far is it true?
• What led him to adopt it?
The answers are;
• The meaning of catharsis
The meaning of catharsis by F. U. Lucas in his Quito’s. He tells controversy about Aristotle’s meaning, he gives example of catharsis, as purification or ‘corrections or refinement’, ‘Reinigung’ or the like. It has suggested that our our pity and fear are purified in the theatre by becoming disinterested.
• How far is a Aristotle’s view of Catharsis true? he tells his observation that the sort of relaxation or release after a prolonged that is build up and maintain during the Drama, through a welcome feeling, is not a purgation or moderation but fulfillment or satisfaction with conclusion.
• The third: what led to adopt this theory? Talks on his master Plato, has attacked poetry in general including tragedy from moral and philosopher point of view. And had to defend poetry against his master’s attack on moral and philosopher ground. He has to refute Plato’s charges.
• What is catharsis?
A catharsis is an emotion discharge due to one can achieve a state of moral or spiritual renewal, or achieve a state of libration from anxiety and stress.
How do you identify Catharsis in writing?
Aristotle is a Greek philosopher and a playwright. He address the role of Catharsis in his work ‘poetics’. He believed that the main aim of Drama and comedy is to purge and purify the audience feeling and emotion, mostly those of pity ad fear. Through imitating dramatic circumstances, a work of literature allows its reader to live vicariously by the situation and process their own feeling, Aristotle does not invariably say this, Many now feel that catharsis also permit the reader to come at a greater understanding of the world as well.
• Function of catharsis: Dramatic use
The term catharsis persuaded the impact of Tragedy, Comedy or any other form of art on audience and in some cases even on the performs themselves in The Dramatic art, Aristotle did not elaborate on the meaning of ‘Catharsis’ and way he used it in defining in his tragedy.
D. W. Lucas’s, an authoritative version in poetics thoroughly covered, in an appendix dedicated to pity, fear and Katharsis, the different shades of meaning and aspects inherent in interpretation of the word, Lucas identifies that there is a chance that catharsis may have aspect of meaning like ‘purification’, intellectual clarification’, and ‘purgation’.
Example
Oedipus Rex by Sophocles
“OEDIPUS: Dark, dark! The horror of
Darkness, like a shroud,
Wraps e and bears me on through
mist and cloud.
Ah me ah me! What spasms athwart
me shoot,
What pangs of agonizing memory?”
Oedipus is best example of catharsis. The Tragedy of the king Oedipus has many aspects, a staple one being that he does not heed the prophecies and bring down his own fate upon himself. It was the key plays that Aristotle was considering when he created his theory of catharsis in his tragedy. And really, the Oedipus Rex bring the audience a catharsis because Oedipus was overcome with memories, which we as the audience can only imagine as being those prophecies he did not pay sufficient intent to.
Conclusion
Aristotle has explained tragedy in his poetics, he tries to explain the human minds, Who feels ‘pity and fear’ and hero’s ‘error of judgment’, he has explained the theory of catharsis and he has given his views about hamartia and catharsis. According Aristotle in his tragedy the protagonist suffers from hamartia and then knowledge comes of ignorance imitated by a reversal in fortune with a feeling of purification in the character.
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