This document discusses Aristotle's Poetics and its importance. It provides background on Aristotle, noting he was born in 384 BC in Greece and wrote over 200 treatises covering philosophy and science. His most important works include Physics, Metaphysics, and Poetics. Aristotle defined tragedy as "an imitation of an action that is serious, complete, and of a certain magnitude through pity and fear effecting the proper purgation." He outlined six elements of poetry including plot, character, diction, thought, spectacle, and song. The document also discusses Aristotle's three unities of drama - action, time, and place - and their definitions.

1. Literary Theory and Criticism
Submitted to:
Maam Irum
Submitted by:
Nagina 381

2. Aristotle’s poetics

3. Childhood
• Aristotle was born in
384 B.C. in Stagira in
northern Greece.
Both of his parents
were members of
traditional medical
families.
• His parents died
while he was young.
Education
• As a youth, Aristotle
likely had tutors who
taught him about all
sorts of subjects. He
learned to read and
write Greek.
• He also learned about
the Greek gods,
philosophy, and
mathematics.
work
• His most important
treatises include
Physics, Metaphysics,
Nicomachean Ethics,
Politics, On the Soul
and Poetics.
• Aristotle wrote as
many as 200 treatises
and other works
covering all areas of
philosophy and
science.

4. Aristotle is
student of
plato

5. Both plato and Aristotle believed in rhese shared principles:
Harmony
organic approach (society functions as an organism)
natural approach, politics and morals,
 they believed that humans are social creatures,
they believed in the functioning of the state and its citizens.
common themes between plato and Aristotle

6. • “Tragedy,” says Aristotle, “is an imitation of an action that is
serious, complete, and of a certain magnitud through pity and
fear effecting the proper purgation [catharsis] of these
emotions.”
• Ambiguous means may be employed, Aristotle maintains in
contrast to Plato, to a virtuous and purifying end.
Aristotle’s Definition of Tragedy

8. Aristotle’s 6 poetics
Plot
Character
Diction
Thought
Spectacle (Science Effect)
Song/ Music

10. importance of Aristotle’s poetics:
It teaches effectively and it teaches the truth.
Convincing and powerful drama describes truth of human nature.
Introduces the concept of “Organic Unity”.

11. Three Unities
Unity of action Unity of place
Unity of time

12. Unity of Action
• The Unity of Action
limits the supposed
action to a single set
of incidents which are
related as cause and
effect, "having a
beginning, middle,
and an end." No
scene is to be
included that does not
advance the plot
directly.
• No subplots, no
characters who do not
advance the action.
Unity of Time
• The Unity of Time
limits the supposed
action to the duration,
roughly, of a single
day.
• Aristotle meant that
the length of time
represented in the
play should be ideally
speaking the actual
time passing during its
presentation.
Unity of place
• a tragedy should exist
in a single physical
location.