Aristotle was born in 384 B.C. in ancient Greece and was one of the greatest philosophers of all time. Among the many impacts he made on our understanding of human life was his interpretation of theater. Aristotle believed that theatre came from the human desire to imitate situations around us and looked at it as a recreation rather than an invention. He also believed that the purpose of theatre is to arouse feelings of pity and fear in the audience (called catharsis), which results in people becoming stronger emotionally.
The Greeks created the very first great plays along with the first principles of dramatic construction. Aristotle was the most important influence in dramatic criticism as well as literature. He analyzed plays from his own time as well as plays of the fifth century, classifying types of drama and laying down rules for its construction.
Aristotle was especially a fan of tragedies. He wrote the Poetics, which is a description of the tragedy genre and why he believed it was important. He believed that tragedies should be complete stories that are serious and important. Protagonists of Greek tragedies were usually royalty, and they had a tragic flaw that was out of their control (often pride). Aristotle believed that audiences would feel pity and fear for the protagonist, and would purge their emotions by watching the play. He concluded that tragedy restored balance to people by allowing them to release these emotions.
Aristotle ranked 6 elements of drama from greatest to least importance. First; Plot – the arrangement of events in the story. Second; Characters – the people in the storyline. Third; Theme – the message being conveyed. Fourth; Language – the dialogue being used to express feelings. Fifth; Music – both background sound and vocalizations. Sixth; Visual elements – props, scenery, costumes, etc.
Sources cited:
Aristotle. Untitled document. (n.d.). Retrieved April 24, 2022, from https://people.wou.edu/~aarndt08/myweb/aristotle.html
Bellinger, M. F. (n.d.). Aristotle, Classic Technique, and Greek Drama. Aristotle, Classic technique, and Greek drama. Retrieved April 24, 2022, from http://www.imagi-nation.com/moonstruck/spectop007.html
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