Shakespearean Tragedy as a shortest play

-
             Shakespearean Tragedy


A.C. Bradley is a distinguished literary critic of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. He made an indelible mark on Shakespearean scholarship with his seminal work "Shakespearean Tragedy."  He analyzed the psychological depth, character development, and themes in plays like "Hamlet," "Othello," "Macbeth," and "King Lear."  This essay seeks to explore A.C. Bradley's contributions to our understanding of Shakespearean tragedies. 

Hamartia or Tragic Flaw
A.C. Bradley's analysis of Shakespearean tragedies centers around the fatal flaw of the tragic heroes. He emphasized the tragic flaw, or "hamartia," that leads to the downfall of the tragic hero. 
           King Lear - ill judgement
           Othello - suspicious
           Macbeth -  ambitious
           Hamlet - Brooding nature

Heroes of Shakespeare 
 Shakespeare's heroes belong to a royal families. Eg. 
      King Lear - He is the King of Great Britain 
      Othello - Moorish General
      Macbeth - Scottish nobleman 
      Hamlet - Prince of Denmark 

Catharsis
Aristotle coined the term catharsis—which comes from the Greek kathairein meaning "to cleanse or purge"—to describe the release of emotional tension that he believed spectators experienced while watching dramatic tragedy.
A.C. Bradley uses the term "catharsis" in his essay.  Shakespearean tragedies help the audience to feel and release emotions through the aid of tragedy.

Peripetia 
A sudden reversal occurs in the fortune of the heroes. 
King Lear :  King Lear experiences peripeteia when he divides his kingdom among his three daughters. The sudden reversal occurs when he  his two older daughters betray him. He  realizes the true love of his daughter Cordelia . This  leads to  his downfall and cause of madness.
 Othello: Othello  is manipulated by Iago. He suspects his wife, Desdemona to be unfaithful.This sudden reversal of trust and love  leads Othello to murder his wife. 
Hamlet: Hamlet's peripeteia comes in the form of discovering his father's ghost and learning about his murder.
4. Macbeth: Macbeth encounters the witches who prophesy his rise to power. This sudden reversal of fortune ignites his ambition and leads him down a path of murder. 

Bradley's analysis of Shakespearean tragedies emphasizes the downfall of the protagonist due to their tragic flaw and their fate.  Shakespeare's tragedies offer profound insights into the human condition, exploring themes of fate, ambition, and moral complexity, leaving readers and audiences with a deep understanding of the complexities of human nature and the consequences of our actions.




Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Summary for At the Church Door

-
Image
At the Church Door -         Guy De Maupassant Guy De Maupassant is a prolific French Writer. He was influenced by a French writer Flaubert. His short story “At the Church Door” reflects real life and real people. This story is about a worried couple who have lost their son 20yrs before. The theme of this story is parent love for their children. The story centers around a Wheelwright and his wife. Both are looking for a peaceful and happy life. The only comfort is Jean, their son. Jean was born to them after a long period. Their life gets scattered when they discover their son missing at the age of five. Unable to bear the loss of their son both gathered all their wealth and went in search of him. They travelled to different places for around twenty years in search of Jean. Hearing to the advice of an innkeeper both travel to the crowded city, Paris.  They often stood in front of a church door. The Parish priest appoints the Wheel wright at the church door. The
Read more

Like an Old Proud King in a Parable A. J.M. Smith, Summary for BA Students.

-
Image
  Like an Old Proud King in a Parable A. J.M. Smith The Poem Like an Old Proud King in a Parable was written by the Canadian Poet, A.J.M Smith. This poem appeared in McGill Fortnightly Review in the year 1926. In this poem Smith narrates the story of an Old King who abandons his Kingdom to become a poet. This poem depicts the poetic career of Smith. Smith breaks some of the old poetic conventions and brings novelty into the society. A king is bored to forego the pleasure of the Kingdom. He renounces his kingdom, and leave his flattering courtiers and adoring wife. The king readily sacrifices the existing kingly life and moves to a lonely land, “a meadow in the Northern Stone”. Northern Stone is in the northern parts of Canada, a land of mountain, snow and forest filled with nature. The King rejoices to live his life along the meadow. In the meadow he feels like an uncontrollable swan, “the heart that controlled liked swan”. The King desires to give up his worldly life and aspir
Read more

Summary for the Play Strife by John Galsworthy

-
Image
                                                                                        Strife -        John Galsworthy Strife is a three-act play written by John Galsworthy. It is his third play and the play highlights the social issues. It was produced in the year 1909 at the Duke of York Theatre. The title “strife” has a biblical meaning which means bitter conflict. The theme in this play is capital and labour. The action takes place on 7 th february at the Trenartha Tin Plate Work. The factory workers involve in a prolonged strike. There arises a conflict between the company chairman John Anthony and the workers leader Roberts. Both are very stern and adamant to compromise. Anthony was the chairman for 32 years and he is determined to fight and win. In his thirty two years of experience he has won four strikes. He was certain that he could win the strike once more. The directors felt unfair about the stern nature of Anthony. The directors were aware about the outcome of this
Read more