Aristotle's The Poetics

A detailed Summary of Aristotle's The Poetics

In Aristotle's The Poetics, tragedy is stated as being "an imitation not only of a complete action but, also of incidents arousing pity and fear (137)." As Agamemnon, one of the works of Aeschylus, begins, pity is immediately brought into play. Although the audience does not see it, Agamemnon makes a difficult decision. He is a great leader and must make a sacrifice to please the Gods in order for them to produce the wind he needs to continue his voyage. Agamemnon's dilemma is that he must sacrifice his daughter Iphigeneia. He would be doing so for the good of the state. It is his duty to save and protect his people. He puts the state above his personal interests and makes the sacrifice and the reader (audience) immediately feels pity for Iphigeneia and Agamemnon. Iphigeneia was a young innocent child that did nothing to deserve death. Aeschylus makes the audience feel pity for Agamemnon who lost his daughter (although he was the person that made the choice to sacrifice her) by making it know that he was thinking of his people's welfare. By making that choice, Agamemnon becomes a tragic hero.

Aeschylus makes the audience feel for the tragic hero because Agamemnon had to endure the pain and suffering of sa

The audience has already begun to look at Clytaemestra as having hubris and not being pitiful anymore. She got revenge for the daughter that was taken from her but she has been putting herself at the same level or above the gods. This makes the reader feel more pity for Agamemnon.

The arousal of fear is provoked in the audience when Cassandra gives the description of the murdered of the children of Thyestes being eaten by their father. It also illustrates the magnitude of the tragedy. Fear is induced in the reader when Cassandra describes the scene.

The chorus is foreshadowing the murder. The tragic hero that deliberately sacrificed his daughter will be killed because of it. This passage is not the only time that the foreshadowing of Agamemnon's death is show to the audience. There is a double meaning behind Clytaemestra's words when she says: "Let there spring up into the house he never hoped to see, where Justice leads him in, a crimson path" (32). Clytaemestra is describing both the death of Iphigeneia and foreshadowing the murder of Agamemnon. The "crimson path" is the blood that has been shed (Iphigeneia) and the blood that will be shed (Agamemnon).

crificing his daughter and then watch, his people die at a war fought over a woman. The tragedy of the war is briefly described in the beginning of the play. The audience feels a great deal of pity for the young men that died and the families that suffered the loss of a loved one. The reason for the war was meaningless. It was fought to win back a woman.

At the very end of the play, the audience can see the hubris in Clytaemestra. The Chorus says: "Crow and strut, brave cockerel by your hen; you have no threats to fear" (60). The Chorus is warning Aegisthus that he should fear the gods.

The Chorus is saying, do you (Aegisthus) think that Cl

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Approximate Word count = 1236
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)

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