the imitation of an action that is serious and also, as having magnitude, complete in itself; in language with pleasurable acces­sories, each kind brought in separately in the parts of the work; in a dramatic, not in a narrative form; with in­cidents arousing pity and fear, wherewith to accomplish its catharsis of such emotions.” (Imgram Bywater: 35).  Watch this 4 min video!

[scroll down for more information on Aristotle's definition of tragedy]

a tragic flaw, a complex meaning which includes "sin," "error," "trespass," and "missing the mark" (as in archery-missing the bull's-eye). The "mistake" of the hero has an integral place in the plot of the tragedy. The logic of the hero's descent into misfortune is determined by the nature of his or her particular kind of hamartia

overweening pride and insolence; wanton violence; in tragedy, the human attempt to bypass mortal limits and to be a god. Youtube Video explanation (approx 3 min); Youtube Review (approx 8 min)

Hybris (hubris) Debate over the precise meaning of this word, so important for our understanding of Greek literature and Greek law, has been going on for centuries, and studies still come out offering new interpretations. In his Rhetoric, the great philosopher Aristotle, who lived in Athens in the century after Sophocles’ death, defined hybris as physical or verbal assault that brings shame to the victim, but no reward to the agent other than the personal satisfaction received from inflicting disgrace on another. Aristotle associates the act of hybris with the state of anger. (It is important to note that hybris is the act of violence itself; modern readers often make the mistake of thinking of it as some kind of attitude or pride.) In Athenian law, hybris was more serious than simple assault, whether the act was physical or verbal; it could be punished by death. Because someone who got away with hybris would have placed himself in a position of superiority, the Chorus of our play can say that “hybris creates a tyrant” by giving him power over other men.

Originally, the idea of hybris seems to have referred to cultivated plants that grew beyond their designated boundaries and, thus, had to be pruned; eventually, its metaphorical application to humans became the only meaning of the word.

the purging of the emotions of pity and fear that are aroused in the viewer of a tragedy. Debate continues about what Aristotle actually means by catharsis, but the concept is linked to the positive social function of tragedy. 

one of the emotions aroused in the audience of a tragedy. This fear results, Aristotle seems to suggest, when the audience members understand that they, as human beings bound by universal laws, are subject to the same fate that befalls the tragic hero. Fear, along with pity, is "purged" in the process of catharsis. 

the intervention of a divinity in the action of a drama to resolve a conflict and, often, to bring the action to a conclusion. Its literal sense, "god from the machine," comes from ancient stagecraft, in which an actor playing the deity would be physically lowered by a crane-like mechanism into the stage area. We sometimes use the term to refer to a miraculous (or just improbable) external influence that brings about the resolution of a problem or conflict. Aristotle recommends against using this technique to resolve the plots of tragedies, suggesting that its proper place is for staging commentaries by the gods that lie outside the actual action of the drama.

one of the six components of tragedy, occupying the category of the mode of imitation. Spectacle includes all aspects of the tragedy that contribute to its sensory effects: costumes, scenery, the gestures of the actors, the sound of the music and the resonance of the actors' voices. Aristotle ranks spectacle last in importance among the other components of tragedy, remarking that a tragedy does not need to be performed to have its impact on the audience, as it can be read as a text. 

makes up one of the media of the tragedy; some parts of the text of the play are conveyed through the singing of the chorus or of other characters. 

In Aristotle, poetry refers to literary works in general and extends even to include some kinds of musical performances. The word "poetry" is derived from the Greek verb poiesis, "making." For Aristotle, all poetry is mimetic; its goal is to represent reality. As poetry is the product of human making, human experience is the ultimate object of poetic representation. 

The most important of the six components of the tragedy, the plot is the representation of human action. Plots can be simple or complex; Aristotle clearly indicates that complex plots are required for successful tragedies. The plot must be unified, clearly displaying a beginning, a middle, and an end, and must be of sufficient length to fully represent the course of actions but not so long that the audience loses attention and interest. 

the powerful emotions of pity and fear aroused in the audience of a tragedy. Aristotle names pathos as one of the components of the tragic plot, along with anagnorisis and peripeteia. 

god of wine and ecstasy, was worshipped in festivals called Dionysia, which included performances of dithyrambic poetry, comedy, and tragedy. The Greater Dionysia in Athens, established by the ruler Pisistratus around 534 BCE, provided an occasion for performances of plays by all the major ancient playwrights. 

represents human beings as "worse than they are," but he notes that comic characters are not necessarily evil, just ridiculous and laughable. He contrasts comedy with tragedy, which represents humans as "better than they are." Many scholars speculate that Aristotle treated comedy in a lost section of the Poetics or in another lost treatise. 

One of the six components of tragedy, character refers to the human beings represented in the drama. Aristotle stresses that the central aim of tragedy is not to depict human personalities, but rather to represent human action. Character is second in importance to plot in Aristotle's hierarchical organization of these elements; representation of character should always enhance the plot. 

(circa 497 - 406 BCE) Author of Oedipus the King and six other extant tragedies, Sophocles was a highly successful playwright, winning the dramatic competition of the Greater Dionysia in Athens eighteen times. He defeated the famous Aeschylus in the competition in 468 BCE. Aristotle regards Oedipus as one of the finest examples of the tragic genre.