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7/27/2019 An Evaluation of Prophecy in Greek Tragedy According to the Dramatic Theory of Aristotle
Recommended CitationSullivan, John F., "An Evaluation of Prophecy in Greek Tragedy According to the Dramatic eory of Aristotle" (1940). Master's Teses.
in Po e t i c s • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 5Purpose of thesis •••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 6Value of solution for study of drama ••••••••• 6State of question •••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 7
Order of treatment ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 8
CHAPTER I t ARISTOTLE'S THEORY OF DRAMATIC 'IMITATION'
' Imitat ion ' and Philosophy •••••••••••••••••••••••
Plato 's solution of problem of universal •••••Consequent evaluation of ar t as an
Objection answered ••••••••••••••••••••••••••Conclusion concerning val idi ty • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
CHAPTER I I I TRAGirJ VALUE OF PROPHECY
31 - 3531323234
35 - 4035353738
40 - ,48
40404243
47
48 - 49
Nature Q[ t ragic action ••••••••••••••••••••••••• 52 - 55Varied emotional effects of different
forms of drama •••••••••••••••••••••••••••Specific ef fect of tragedy • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •Source of tragic effect - the t r a ~ i c action •
Prophecy and the 'hamartia ' •••••••••••••••••••••Inte l lec tual error as the 'hamartia ' ••••••••
Prophecy as the occasion of 'hamartia ' ••••••In the Oedipus Tyrannus • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
THE POETICS The Poetics is the product of a combination of
circumstances unique in the history of dramatic
theory. Three centuries before i t s composition the t ragic dra-
ma had been born of Greek genius, had grown to the perfection
and beauty of the f i f th century, and declined to the mediocre
repet i t ions of the fourth. I t was at this time that i t became
the subject of study for one of the brightest in te l lects which
the world has ever seen. In perspective he could view the en
t i re f ield of Greek drama. Bringing to his study the same ana
ly t ica l penetration which he applied to metaphysics, Aristot le
sought out the principles upon which tragedy is founded and se t
them forth briefly in his Poetics . As Courthope observes:
Though the Poetics is not an elaborate t reat iseon technical pract ice , i t is exhaustive in i t sexamination of principle , and the condensedphilosacphical epigrams, which drop from the writerin a manner elsewhere unusual to him, show how
deeply he had thought upon the subject . (1)
Since the principles which he established are founded on the
very nature of the drama, they endure through the superficial
changes in form which characterize different countries and dif -
ferent ages. For a l l ~ e o p l e s and for a l l times the Poetics has
become a handbook of dramatic principle. In dramatic theory
no less than in metaphysics and ethics i t is true that -
7/27/2019 An Evaluation of Prophecy in Greek Tragedy According to the Dramatic Theory of Aristotle
in Athens, i t was s t i l l only a t the solemn fest ivals of Dionysus that plays were exhibited.The representation of a tragedy was thus in atrue and proper sense an act of public worshiprendered by the State to one of i t s Gods. I fthe spi r i t of Greek drama is pre-eminently re -l igious, i t is therefore no more than we shouldexpect from a consideration of i t s origin and
history. (5)
And, i t might be added, the religious tone of Greek drama is no
more than we should expect from a consideration of the l i fe
which i t represents. I t is only reasonable that the important
part which the gods played in the every day l i fe of the or
dinary Greek should find ref lect ion in the drama. Greek tragedy
therefore, as an act of worship and as a ref lect ion of Greek lif4
received i ts dist inct ive tone from Greek religion.
Since th is is so, i t is small wonder that the tragedians
incorporated in thei r plays some of the elements of contem
poraryrel igious bel ief
which they found useful adjuncts for the
working out of their plots . I t must be remembered that the cur-
rent religious doctrines of f i f th century Greece were not the
lof ty speculations of the philosophers, but the t radi t ional
theology which had been crystal l ized by Homer in his epics of
the heroic age and handed down through the succeeding genera-
t iona.
Homer and Hesiod had long been the rel igiousschool-masters of Greece. The Golden Age borethem in Pindar and the t ragic poets able com-mentators and successors •••••••••• Franklyaccepting the t radi t ional polytheistic m y t ~ o -logy, they s t i l l made notable advances in 1tsinner i n t e ~ p r e t a t i o n . (6)
The tenets of th is t radi t ional polytheist ic rel igion which enter
7/27/2019 An Evaluation of Prophecy in Greek Tragedy According to the Dramatic Theory of Aristotle
I t is the purpose of th is thes is , therefore, to examine
the prophecies which occur in the tragedies of Sophocles in the
l ight of the principles enunciated in the Poetics fo£ t h ~ ~ U £ -I!.OJ!.e of det¥rminin,& what t h ~ mind of Ar!_s!_o,ll!_ .!.&.!. !:ith !:_e!.-
I!.e£.t ,lo th!_s el!_m!.n1.• There are two reasons for selecting the
plays of Sophocles as the subject of our study. In the f i r s t
place, he represents Greek tragedy a t i t s beet . He was a mas
te r not only of beautiful dict ion, but especial ly of ar t i s t ic
plot s tructure. In the second place, he was a favorite of
Aristot le . There can be no doubt of this in the mind of one
who reads the Poetics. Speaking of the at t i tude of Aristotle
towards Sophocles, Butcher saysJ
Sm;phocles he admires not for the purity of hisethical teaching or for his deep rel igiousteaching, but for the unity which pervades thestructure of his dramas, and the closely linked
sequence of parts which work up to an inevitableend. ( 7)
The solution of th is problem will affect our judgment of
the merits not merely of the tragedies of Sophocles, but also
of the plays of Aeschylus and Euripides. In thei r dramas, no
less than in those of Sophocles, we find prophecy. This may
be looked upon as an extr insic argument for the validi ty of
supra-natural knowledge. For i f three men, admittedly masters
of the t ragic ar t , repeatedly use prophecy as a source of t ra-
gic ef fec t , i t must be legitimate or the i r works would not be
considered master-pieces of tha t ar t . This conclusion, however,
is not quite jus t i f ied . \Vhen we say that thei r works are master
pieces we do not mean to say that they are perfect in every
u
7/27/2019 An Evaluation of Prophecy in Greek Tragedy According to the Dramatic Theory of Aristotle
respect. I t may be that , in spite of a violat ion of a law of
tragedy, they obtain thei r effect and not because of i t . So i t
is that even Aristot le , admitting, as he does, that Homer was
the master of the epic, frequently cr i t ic izes his work, pointing
out that the poem would have bet ter attained i t s effect by the
observance of the law than by i t s violat ion.
The solution of our problem has a modern significance also.
Although oracles and soothsayers are found only in the ancient
drama, they have a modern counter-part in the ghosts and witches
of Shakespeare. The witches and the ghost of Banquo in Macbeth,
the ghost of Hamlet's father , the ghost of Caesar - a l l have
knowledge which surpasses that of humans. Nor have modern com-
mentators over-looked the par t which this knowledge plays in
the Shakesperian drama. Concerning this element A.C.Bradley
remarks:Shakespeare also introduces the supernaturalinto some of his t ragedies; he introduces ghosts,and witches who have supernatural knowledge.This supernatural element certainly cannot inmoat cases, i f in any, be explained away as ani l lusion in the mind of one of the characters.And further , i t does contribute to the act ion,and is in more than one instance an indispensable part of i t . (8)
Since the principles of Aristot le are fundamental, not only to
ancient but also to modern tragedy, the answer to our question
involves the legitimacy and significance of the ghosts and
witches of Shakespeare or of whatever else of th is nature which
appears in modern drama.
In view of the fact that both the Poetics of Aristotle
7/27/2019 An Evaluation of Prophecy in Greek Tragedy According to the Dramatic Theory of Aristotle
only true rea l i t ies , they have separate existence; there exists
in a super-mundane world an Idea of everything that is found
in the universe. (1) The varied and variable objects of sense
perception are but shadows of these rea l i t ies , mere appearances
and nothing more. When our senses apprehend these appearances,
the rea l i ty , the ~ ' which we knew before our bir th , is re
called to our mind. Thus was the problem solved at the ex
pense of material being.
r la to ' s evaluation of a r t flowed logically from his philo
sophy. The a r t i s t , by the very nature of his sensible medium,
cannot at ta in to the portrayal of the non-sensible Idea; a l l
that he can do is to represent the outward appearances of things
material - which are themselves but shadows of real i ty ! He
is l i t t l e more than an animated camera; his work is an .!!!1-tat ion which is twice removed from t ruth and useless for knowledge of the universal . •The imitator or maker of the image
knows nothing of true existence; he knows appearances only" (2}
' Imitat ion•, then, is at once Plato 's definit ion of, and ac
cusation against , ar t .
1N.hen Aristot le came to define a r t he retained his master's
term of ' imita t ion ' , but. the meaning which he attached to i t
differed ' toto coelo' from that of Plato. An accurate concept
of the term as used by Aristotle is absolutely essentia l for a
clear understanding of his dramatic theory since ' imi ta t ion '
is the font from which a l l other principles flow as corollar ies.
But "Aristotelem nonnisi ex ipso Aristotele in te l l iges• - to
7/27/2019 An Evaluation of Prophecy in Greek Tragedy According to the Dramatic Theory of Aristotle
stance is consti tuted in i ta specif ic nature (man, dog, t ree ,
e tc . ) and from the form come a l l the perfections proper to that
nature; from the matter which receives the form arise the in-
dividuating qua l i t ie s , the imperfections, and the l imitat ions
of the substance. Therefore, a l l things of the same species
have the same form which is individuated by the matter which
receives i t . Thus, because of i ta substantial form th is being
is a dog and not a cat ; because of the matter which receives
the form th is dog is Fide and not Rover. By reason of the
form Fide should have a l l the perfections which are proper to
a dog, but because of the imperfections arising from the matter
which receives the form, the potencies are never completely
actualized - and Fido is jus t Fide S
The individual thing, then, which i s apprehended by the
senses has two principles of being - matter and form.
The form, then, considered apart from the matter,is the essence of the object as far as in te l lec-tua l knowledge is concerned; for in te l lec tualknowledge has for i t s object the universal , andsince matter is the principle of individuation,and form the principle of specif icat ion, theconclusion of the inquiry as to the object ofin te l lec tual knowledge is that matter and theindividual qual i t ies arising from matter belong
to sense-knowledge, while the form alone, whichis universal , belongs to in te l lec tual knowledge. (5)
The individual thing with i t s individuating qual i t ies and im
perfect ions which arise from the matter is apprehended by the
senses. The mind spontaneously prescinds from the indivi
duating notes of the matter and abstracts those notes which
are essent ia l to the being; in other words, the in te l lec t grasps
7/27/2019 An Evaluation of Prophecy in Greek Tragedy According to the Dramatic Theory of Aristotle
Art •••••••• creating af te r a pattern exist ingin the mind, must be skil led in the use ofi l lus ion. By th is alone can i t give coherenceto i t s creations and impart to i t s f ict ions ana i r of real i ty . (7)
Therefore, a work of a r t is an ' imitat ion ' - but i t is
not an imitat ion of individuals; i t is an ' imi ta t ion ' of the i r
form, the universal principle of perfection, which is found in
each individual and apprehended by the idea. In the phi lo
sophy of Aristot le an ' imi ta t ion ' is not a copy of the thing,
but a creation, in some medium, of a l ikeness which corresponds
to the idea of the being. As Butcher puts i t (8) , the ' imi-
ta t ion ' is an "idealized reproduction•. I t is a picture of the
thing as i t would be i f i t were free from the imperfections
aris ing from the matter; i t is a. manifestation of the eternal
possibi l i t ies of the form. '.fherefore Aristotle says that the
' imi ta t ion ' •tends to express the universal• (9), that i t makes
things ' be t t e r ' (10), •as they should be• (11). For him:
Fine a r t was no longer twice removed from thet ru th of things; i t was the manifestation ofa higher t ru th , the expression of the universa l which is not outside of and apart from thepar t icular . The work of ar t was not a semblance
opposed to rea l i ty , but the image of a real i tywhich is penetrated by the idea, and throughwhich the idea shows nJOre apparent than in theactual world. (12)
The ' imi ta t ion ' i s not a photograph of Fido, but a picture of
what Fido would be i f he carne up to the idea of a dog, i f the
form of dog were completely actualized in Fido. Consequently,
•the ideal is the real , but r id of consradict ions, unfolding
7/27/2019 An Evaluation of Prophecy in Greek Tragedy According to the Dramatic Theory of Aristotle
can ca l l up in the imagination of others not merely a passing
moment but a whole 'chapter of l i f e ' (17); he can reproduce
not merely emotion, but also deeds and character.
The original which i t ref lects is human actionand character in a l l the i r diverse modes of
manifestation; no other a r t has equal range ofsubject matter, or can present so complete andsatisfying an image of i t s original . (18)
In this same medium of poetry, however, there are different
ways, or manners, of reproducing human l i f e , Aristotle points
out:
For the medium being the same, and the objectsthe same, the poet may imitate by narrat ion ••••••• or he may present a l l his characters asl iving and ffioving before us. (19)
Poetry, then, may be ei ther narrat ive or dramatic. I t is th is
l a t t e r method of presentation which Aristotle considers the
best , the way of comedy and tragedy, in which •speech has i t s
counterpart in speech, and, i f the play is put on the stage,
action is rendered by action• (20) Comedy and tragedy have
the same dramatic form but different subject-matter; comedy
presents the l ighter aspects of l i f e , tragedy the more serious.
'IMITATION'
ANDTRAGEDY
•Tragedy, then, is an imitation of an action
that is serious, complete, and of a certain
magnitude; • • • • • • • • • • in the form of action, not
of narrat ive". (21) t imi ta t ion ' , as we saw, does not consist
in copying the individual; i t consists in reproducing an image
which corresponds to the ~ , to the form, of the thing.
Tragedy, therefore, as an ' imi ta t ion ' , must reproduce an action
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factor in the t imita t ion• . The causal sequence of probabil i ty
or necessi ty depends upon his knowledge of human nature. Given
such a man and such a s i tuat ion , the poet must represent a
natural human reaction. His characters, i t is t rue , wil l have
stronger wil ls and more violent emotions than the general run
of men, they will have a ful ler humanity, but they should not
have a different humanity. This l ~ t t e r wil l be the case i f
the poet portrays men whose actions are prompted by motives
which are odd or freakish, or whose reactions are d i s ~ r o p o r -
t ionate to the motive. The reaction of a character should not
be an idiosyncrasy of an individual , but the ref lect ion of his
human nature. ~ i t h the man whose motives are narrow and per-
sonal we have nothing in common; i t is only when the deeds and
feelings are t ruly human that a l l men can make themselves one
with the characters.
Excessive individualism, l ike the l a tes t fashion,wil l be quaint and incongruous on the morrow.Homer liYes e terna l because through strangenames and strange language and strange costumeswe see our own sun and f ields and ocean and skyand put our f ingers on a pulse which reg is tersthe beat of a heart throbbing as ours. (30)
'.'/hen the motivation is baaed on human nature the causal i ty wil l
not have to be explained to the reader or audience; for , being
men, they wil l appreciate the motives of the characters , they
wil l real ize what they think and fee l , and consequently they
wil l understand what they do.
Nature is a language ~ 1 1 can understand and human
nature is a language a l l must and do understand.·:rhen lament was made over the body of Patroklos,
7/27/2019 An Evaluation of Prophecy in Greek Tragedy According to the Dramatic Theory of Aristotle
the elegy of Briseis s t i r red a l l , •and thereonthe women wailed, in semblance for Patroklos,but each for her own woe". Similar is the appeal of a r t where in the semblance of somethingelse , each sees what belongs to se l f . (31)
The second important principle of Aris tot le is that of
unity - nothing should be included in the drama which has not
an essent ia l re la t ion to the end towards which the causal
sequence is working. The plot should portray the working out
of the i n i t i a l si tuat ion to i t s logica l conclusion without any
los t motion. Incidents which are not essent ia l l inks in the
chain should be ruthlessly excluded. "For a thing whose pre-
sence or absence makes no visible difference, is not an or-
ganic par t of the whole" (32). There is no place for side
act ion, which, whatever i t s own in t r insic in teres t may be, has
only a tenuous connection with the princ ipa l act ion. £verything
must be careful ly subordinated to the main i ssue. unity willbe achieved when every incident is an essent ia l par t of a
sequence which converges on a defini te point .
I f a l l the incidents are directed to a single end and a l l
are bound together by the causal i ty of perfect motivation, the
action of the plot will const i tute a perfec t whole:
A whole is that which has a beginning, a middleand an end. A beginning is that which does noti t s e l f follow anything by causal necessi ty , butaf te r which something natural ly is or comes tobe. An end, on the contrary, is that which i t -se l f natural ly follows some other thing, ei therby necessi ty , or as a ru le , but has nothing fo l -
lowin6 i t . A well constructed plo t , therefore,must nei ther begin nor end at hap-hazard, but
conform to these principles . (33)
This whole wil l represent the 'working out ' of the i n i t i a l
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si tuat ion according to probable or necessary human motivation
and the conclusion wil l thereby be. seen to have -oeen implici t
in the opening s i tua t ion . :&,or, when the -oeginning is the cause
of the middle and the middle is the cause of the end, the end
wil l be the effec t of the beginning and the resul t wil l be one
action which i s an organic whole; i t wil l be the process by
which a cause at ta ins i t s ef fec t , each incident being a step
in the process.
That, then, is the essence of t ragic ' imi ta t ion ' : a causal
sequence forming one whole act ion which is an image of what
should happen according to the nature of man. What the poet
says in effec t is th i s : these characters are human beings; by
reason of the i r nature they think, and fee l , and determine the ir
words and deeds accordingly. I f they are placed in such and
such a s i tuat ion , the probable or necessary effec t of such
characters operating according to the i r nature wil l be that
which is presented in the conclusion. According to Bywater -
The action in such a story is a r r ~ ~ J.\loo.. K"'-'-~ ' > - ~ , i . e . a whole with a beginning, middle, andend; each incident resul t ing from something thatgoes before i t , and the entire ser ies from the6 tate Of things pre SUpposed 1 aS the ~ r ~ ~ Of the
whole, a t the beginning. ( ~ 4 )The plo t , therefore , const i tutes an action which is a perfect
expression of the human nature of the characters. I t is an
' imi ta t ion ' based, not on an individual of the species , but on
his nature.
Therefore, th is ' imi ta t ion ' of l i fe which the poet creates
i s , according to Aris to t le , ' be t t e r ' (.8t.)I.T{wv) ( ~ 5 ) than rea l
7/27/2019 An Evaluation of Prophecy in Greek Tragedy According to the Dramatic Theory of Aristotle
individual and the vagaries of chance, is as variable as those
two elements. Hence the false posit ion of those who claim that
they are presenting real i ty when they chronicle the sordid ad-
ventures of an individual. This is realism; true f ic t ion i s
rea l i ty .
Not only is the dramatic ' imi ta t ion ' bet ter than rea l l i f e ,
but i t also ' tends to express the universal ' . •Poetry, there
fore, is a more philosophical and a higher thing than history:
for poetry tends to express the universal , history the par
t icular . By the universal I mean how a certain ( ~ 9 ) person
wil l on occasion speak or ac t , according to the law of proba
bi l i ty or necessityn (40). Poetry presents human nature and
human nature is universal; the poet t i m i t ~ t e s ' not the in-
dividual, the singular, but the idea of the individual, the
universal . The observation of Bywater is pert inent :Hence i t follows that the incidents in the poeticstory are not only possible but also always poss ible , because they are such as may or must happen at any time, whenever the man and the circumstances are found together. (41)
Consequently, the drama presents in the concrete a law of l i fe
which philosophy would phrase in abstract terms. For example,
the philosopher, from his observation Qf individuals, mightI
formulate the t ruth that ' inordinate ambition 1 leads to ruin ' ;
Shakespeare fashioned a l i fe - that of Macbeth - in which the
working out of this law is seen more clearly and logically than
i t is in real l i fe . The ' imitat ion•, therefore, corresponds to
the idea. I t must not be thought, however, tha t the poet star te
7/27/2019 An Evaluation of Prophecy in Greek Tragedy According to the Dramatic Theory of Aristotle
from the abstract idea and t r i es to fashion a par t icu lar story
to exemplify i t . That is the process of al legory. Rather, the
imagination of the poet presents to him a concrete case which,
because of i t s perfect human causali ty, corresponds to the idea.
I t is only when the varied elements of thear t i s t ' s : experience have fused themselves intoa unity 'by having a well-motivated beginning,middle, and end that the mind feels the beautyof i t s vision. (42)
From what has been said concerning the nature of dramatic
' imi ta t ion ' i t is evident that the two elements which are
ut ter ly a t variance with i t are chance and unmotivated act ion.
The probabil i ty or necessi ty of the sequence i s the very es-
sence of the ' imi ta t ion ' ; whatever violates this tends to des-
troy i t s value as an ideal and universal representat ion of l i f e .
Chance, by i t s very defini t ion, is unpredictable and i s the
veryant i thes is
of the logical sequence which renders the ac-t ion of the drama universal . A thing that happens by chance is
in no sense probable or necessary; i t is decidedly individual
and hence has no place in the realm of ar t . In the f ie ld of
human action unmotivated act iv i ty , or act ion that is not auf-
f ic ient ly motivated, fa l l s under the head of chance; for , when
there is no apparent cause for an act ion i t i s jus t ly ascribed
to chance.
7/27/2019 An Evaluation of Prophecy in Greek Tragedy According to the Dramatic Theory of Aristotle
1. •For Plato the non-sensual nature of things isthe only true real i ty , which is to be distinguishedfrom thei r sensual phenomena. The Ideas are for himnot mere things of thought, as Antisthenes consideredthem to be, but rea l i t i es . There are ideas of everything possible: not merely of things, but of qual i t iestoo, and relat ions and ac t iv i t ies ; not only of natural things, but of the products of a r t , and notonly of valuable things but of bad and worthlessthings. ••••••••••••• A ll learning and knowledge cons i s t s in the recollection by the soul of the ideaswhen i t perceives the things of sense•. EduardZeller , Outlines Of ~ H i s t o r y Of Greek PhilosoQhy,
P• 130.
2. Benjamin Jowett, !h.!. Republic of P-lato {Translated),P• 306.
3. Cf. William Turner, History Of Philosophy, P• 132for a br ief and accurate summary of Aristo t l e ' s Logic.
4. Ib id . , p. 137. Much of this matter is taken fromTurnerts explanation of Aris tot le ' s theoryof matter and form.
5. ~ · , P• 133.
6. ~ · • P• 138.
7. s. H. Butcher, Aris tot le 's Theory Of P o e ~ r y ~ F i n eArt, P• 128.
8. Ibid . , P• 153.
9. .Poetics, 145lb 6-7.
10. Ibid . , 146lb 10.
11. Ibid . , 1459b 35.
12. s. H. Butcher, Aristot lets Theory Q! Poetry And Fine
.A!:.t• p .. 160 •
13. ~ · • P• 151 .14. Antigone, L.332. All t ranslat ions of the plays of
7/27/2019 An Evaluation of Prophecy in Greek Tragedy According to the Dramatic Theory of Aristotle
Sophocles are by F. Storr , Sophocles. LoebClassical Library.
_. ,
15. Poet ics, 1450a 17 \o Jt. ~ ~ o ~ ) ;>ev Jrf..\)t• ' e a - T ~ v .16. Ibid . , 1447b 30 _M l M . o v v - T o ~ . , C. I I -
0 1 ,NI .I_M.OV_M.f .vC>t ITfotTTOV'tolS,
17. •Ma.rgoliouth's phrase, "a chapter of l i f e" , i l luminates the meaning, since i t includes whatthe hero does ~ w h a t happens to him.•W. Hamilton Fyfe, Translation Of The PoeticsOf Aris to t le , Loeb Classical Library, P• 22 -commentary on 1449b 24.
18. s. H. Butcher, Aris tot le 's Theory Of P o e t r y ~ FineArt, P• 138.
19. Poet ics, 1448a 20-24.
20.
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
26.
27.
28.
29.
30.
31.
32.
s. H. Butcher, Aris tot le 's Theory Q!Poetry ~ F i n eArt, P• 138.
Poet ics, 1449b 24-2?.
Ib id . , 1451a 38-39.
Ibid . ,1450a 4-51-
Atfw f ~ ~ ~ v 0 o v TouTov ' 1 - r ~ v<J ( ; v 0 t..G \ V' T W v Tf f A 'f _M. . { T .....> v,
.... ~ ?' ' 7 ~Ibid . , 145la 121- K < A I ~ To € . . t J < O ~ 'Y\. To o { V J . . . ~ ) o { c t l o v ,
J . W. H. Atkins, Literary Criticism In Antiquity, vol .I ,P• 88.
Poet ics, 1452a 21-22.
Ibid . , 145lb 33-35.
Cf. s. H. Butcher, Aris tot le 's Theory Of P o e t r y ~Fine Art, P• 354.
Elisabeth Woodbridge, The Drama - ~ l a w A n d ~Technique, p . x i i i .
Francis P. Donnelly, S.J. , Art Principles In Literature,P• 12.
Ibid . , P• 16.
Poet ics, 145la 34-36.
7/27/2019 An Evaluation of Prophecy in Greek Tragedy According to the Dramatic Theory of Aristotle
34. Ingram Bywater, Aristotle On 1!1!..£1 Of Poetry,P• 187 - commentary on 145la 36.
35. Poet ics, 146lb 10.
36. Ib id . , 145la 3 9 - 145lb 5.
37. Francis P. Donnelly, S. J . , !£.i Principles .!!!._ Li t • ra
ture , P• 137.
38. Cf. Elisabeth Woodbridge, The Drama - I ts Law And I tsTechnique, p. 1- "In the l ight of s u e s - - - passages, the word "Imitat ion• takes onanother significance from that we might a t
f i r s t be inclined to give i t •••••••••••and i t seems bet ter to subst i tute the broader·term, "poetic t ru th• . •
39. The word employed by Aristot le is the indefinite adject ive ~ ~ • Butcher t ranslates this word•of a certain type". Although this is apossible rendit ion, the more l i t e ra l t ranslat ion "a certain person" seems preferable.
40. Poetics , 145lb 5-9.
41. Ingram Bywater, Aristot le On The !.!:,1 Of Poetry, p. 187:commentary on 145la 36.
42. Francis P ~ Donnelly, S . ~ •• ~ P r i n c i p l ~ _ [ In Literature , p • 13 7 •
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In the theology of the ancient Greek re l igion the anthro
pomorphic gods,to,_whom was at tr ibuted "the power of seeing a l l
thingsK (1) were the ult imate source of prophecy. The channels
through which they communicated the i r prophetic knowledge to
men were the oracles and the soothsayers. The former were
shrines of the gods where men could propose the i r questions to
the dei ty through his of f ic ia l servants and from these l a t t e r
receive the response of the god, the ' o rac l e ' . The l a t t e r were
gif ted men who received the i r insight into the future ei ther
by direct inspirat ion of the gods or through the ' a r t ' of
divination. These ins t i tu t ions of prognostication were of an-
cient origin and were thriving even a t the time of Homer as
T y ~ e r points outs
Prophets hear the voice of the gods, know the i rwi l l , and thus are acquainted with the past , thepresent , and the future. Guided by Zeus andApollo, they are competent to guide the af fa i r sof men. The oracles at Dodona and Delphi a l-ready exis t in the Homeric age, and individualsand nations go to them to learn the wil l of thegods. (2)
In the t ragedies of the Greeks we have ample evidence that the
dramatists availed themselves freely of this element of re -
l igious ~ e l i e f and wove the prophecies of the oracles and
soothsayers into the pattern of the i r p lo ts .
Now, i f Aris tot le were questioned concerning the dramatic
validi ty of th is element, i t is certa in that he would not have
excluded i t on the grounds that the prophecies involve anthro
~ o m o r p h i cgods
whonever did and never could exis t .
Hewas
probably the f i r s t to grasp the fundamental notion that poetry
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been the closest fr iend of Phi loc te tes , to accompany and
aid him. When the play opens we find Odysseus outl ining the
'modus agendi ' for Neoptolemua: the l a t t e r is to make known to
hiloctetes that he is the son of Achilles and, under the pre-
text of conveying the sufferer to his home in Greece, is to get
him aboard the ship; once aboard he will be aped to Troy, even
against his wil l . .Neoptolemus rebels against th is double-dealin
but for the sake of the warring Achaians re luctant ly consents.
The strategem succeeds to the extent that N e o p t o l e n ~ u s gains
possession of the precious bow and arrows, but when he declines
to res tore them and confesses the true s tate of af fa i r s , Philoc-
te tes is adamant in his re fusa l to accompany the youth and aid
the Greeks who had t reated him so badly. Neoptolemus and
Odysseus are about to depart without him when the former, moved
by the sufferings of Philoctetes and overcome with shame at his
part in the t ransact ion, res tores the bow and arrows and agrees,
sincerely th is time, to return to Greece with the aff l ic ted
warrior. ~ h e n they are set t ing out for the boat, however, an
unexpected incident occurs which completely reverses the i r in
tentions - the demi-god Heracles appears to them, bearing a
command from Zeus1
Go not yet t i l l thou has heardSon of Poeas, f i r s t my word:Heracles to thee appears,His; the voice that th r i l l s thine ears .'Tis for thy sake I have come,Leaving my Olympian home.
l ~ n d a t e from high zeus I bring
To forbid thy journeying:Hear the wil l of heaven's King.
• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •Go with yon man to Ilium. There f i r s tThou shal t be healed of thy grievous sore;Then,chosen as the champion of the host ,With these my arrows thou shal t pierce
to the heartPar is , guil ty cause of a l l that woe. (7)
With such an expl ic i t order from the gods there is l i t t l e l e f t
for Philoctetes to do except to put aside his wrath and join
his former comrades in the storming of the leagured ci ty . And
so a l l i s well because of • the god a t whose decree a l l was
ordered" (8}.
Two things must be noted about th is appearance of Heracles.
In the f i r s t place, as an incident of the plo t , i t can in no
sense be said to be the probable human consequence of what has
gone before. 1'he app.earance of Heracles certa inly does not
evolve out of the will of the characters , but is something in-
jected 'ab extr inseco ' . I t is an arb i t rary element which is
nei ther probable nor necessa.ry in the course of the human
act ion. In the second place, i t diverts the natura l course of
t h ~ action and thereby brings about a conclusion which is not
the probable or necessary resu l t of the i n i t i a l si tuat ion ac-
cording to the characters of Philoctetes and heoptolemus.
I t is through the intervention of the deifiedHeracles that the aim with which Odysseus andNeoptolemus came to Lemnoa - to secure Philocte tes and his bow for the f inal overthrow ofTroy - gains i t s fulfi l lment. Apart from thatintervention the issue would have been far otherthan that contemplated a t the outset of the
act ion. (9)
I f the story had been allowed to run i t s natural course, the
logica l conclusion would have been the departure of both
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Philoctetes and Neoptolemus for Greece. But zeus, through
Heracles, commands otherwise and so the act ion is directed to
an unnatural conclusion.
From th is character is t ic example of the 'deus ex machina'
i t can readi ly be seen why the gods violate the causal se-
quence when they are introduced into the act ion as personal
agents. ' rheir appearances, being independent of human cau-
sa l i ty , are uncaused incidents; the i r commands, suppressing
free play of human motivation, cause the denouement. Therefore,
the 'deus ex machina' in the Greek t ragedy was a miraculous
means £! ext r ins ic determination and as such was condemned by
Aristot le :
I t is therefore evident that the unravell ing ofthe plo t , no less than the complication, mustar ise out of the plot i t s e l f , i t must not bebrought about by the 'Deus ex Nachina' . •••••••••• 7ithin the action there must be nothingi r ra t iona l . I f the i r ra t iona l cannot be excluded, i t should be outside the scope of thetragedy. (10)
I t is from th is usage of the Greek t ragedians that the expressio
'deus ex machina' has come to s ignify any i r ra t iona l element
in f ict ion which is used to turn the act ion to the desired
conclusion.
'fhe Greek t ragedian, however, had much more reason for em-
ploying the 'machina' than have modern dramatists for in t ro-
ducing similar devices. ~ y a t radi t ion that was almost iron
bound he was forced to draw his story from the accepted legends
of the people; therefore the conclusion was predetermined and
well known to his audience.
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The t ragic poet hardly ever invents his fable .His duty is to present in the concrete, withl iving power. an act ion of which some l ineamentsare already given in legend or t rad i t ion . I twas only when the great period of Hellenic t r a gedy was past tha t such an elegant caprice couldbe attempted as the Flower of Agathon • • • • • • • • •The tas te for novelty, to which such a poem appealed, would be at tr ibuted by lovers of Aeschylus to the degeneracy of the contemporarytheat re . A good reason for the preference ofknown subjects is assigned by Aris to t le ; - "\Vhati s possible is credible , and what once happenedwas clearly possible• . (11)
The dramatist , therefore, took the legend and transfused i t
with his own personal i ty; i t was his function to work out a
sequence of events which would inevitably lead to the con-
elusion determined by the legend. That was a matter of his tory
which could not be changed; i t would be an intolerable t ravesty
of fac t for Sophocles to represent Philoctetes and Neoptolemus
as departing for the i r homes when every school-boy knew tha t the
bow of Philoctetes was an important factor in the taking of
Troy. Consequently, when the dramatist found his plot logi
cal ly tending towards a conclusion other than that required by
legend, his only avenue of escape was the 'machina' .
The Philoctetes i s the only play of Sophoclesin which the 'denouement' i s effected by the
intervention of a god, the 'deus ex machina' .Another ending was hardly possible af ter themanner in which the poet had emphasized Philoct e t e s ' unyielding nature. (12)
In spi te of the necessi ty induced by the legendary source of
the fables (of which Aristot le approved), the philosopher had
l i t t l e patience with:a use of the 'machina' and declares tha t ,
i f the s tory is such that i t must be used, i t would be bet te r
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caused him great anguish and that he has already taken steps
to learn the cause of the disas ter :
Thus pondering one clue of hope I caught,And tracked i t up; I have sent Kenoeceus' son,Creon, my consort ' s brother, to inquireOf Pythian Phoebus at his Delphic shrine ,How I might save the State by ac t or word. (14)
Scarcely has he f inished speaking when Creon enters bearing a
message from the oracle:
Let me report then a l l the god declared.King Phoebus bids us s t ra i t ly extirpateA f e l l pollution that infests the land,And no more harbour an inveterate sore. (15)
I t is the unpunished murderer of the former king Laius, he ex-
pla ins , who pollutes the land by his presence and causes the
plague; th is assassin must be found and brought to jus t ice .
But who is the murderer of Laius I In his perplexity Oedipus
appeals to the seer ' l 'eiresias for aid:
ChorusM.y l i ege , i f any man sees eye to eyeWith our lord Phoebus, ' t i s our prophet, lordTeires ias ; he of a l l men best might guideA searcher of th is matter to the l igh t .
OedipusHere too my zeal has nothing lagged, for twiceAt Creon's instance have I sent to fetch him,And long I marvel w ~ y he is not here. (16)
When the prophet f ina l ly comes he is unwill ing to make known
the murderer, but a t length, goaded to anger by Oedipus, he
divulges his heaven-sent knowledge:
I say thou a r t the murderer of the man7!hose murderer thou pursuest . (17)
Oedipus, unaware of such a crime, denounces the prophet as a
fraud and at t r ibutes his statement to the prompting of Creon
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whom he suspects of aspiring to the crown of Thebes. As the
play progresses , however, i t is brought home to Oedipus that
in t ruth he is the murderer; many years before, in a road-side
f igh t , he had s la in a man whom the subsequent incidents of the
play clear ly prove to have been I.aius. Thus the curses which
Oedipus had cal led down upon the bead of the assassin of the
king fa l l upon himself.
b) The Antigone. Antigone, daughter of the la te Oedipus,
defies an edict of the reigning sovereign Creon and gives
r i tua l bur ia l to the body of Polyneices, her brother, who had
been slain in an at tack on Thebes. ·,fuen she is apprehended
by the guards and brought before Creon she ju s t i f i e s her act
by appeall ing to the eterna l laws of r ight and wrong which are
superior to any law of man. Angered by ber defiance, Creon de-
crees that she shal l be buried al ive in a cavern dug in the
rock. 'l'he pleadings of Hae:mon, his san, who was to marry An-
t igone, f a l l upon deaf ears and the youth threatens to die
with her. ·:vhen Antigone has been led out to her death chamber
and Haemon has l e f t in anger, the blind prophet ·1'eiresias,
guided by an at tendant , comes to Creon to remonstrate with
him:
o King, thy wil fu l temper a i l s the State ,For a l l our shrines and a l ta r s are profanedBy what has f i l l ed the maw of dogs and crows,The f lesh of Cedipus' unburied son.Therefore the angry gods abominateour l i tan ies and our burnt offer ings . (18)
The body of Polyneices, he says, must be given fu l l bur ia l and
Antigone must be released from her tomb. 7lhen the king re -
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the oracles and prophets, not merely now and again, but habi
tual ly - and,in the case of the oracles , upon request : This
idea flowed logical ly from the i r concept of the gods; for , i f
the gods were l ike men in a l l things except power and knowledge,
what could be more natura l than tha t there should be some re-
gular means of communication petween the Olympians and the i r
lesser counterparts ?
There arose as to ta l resu l t of the s i tuat ion ,the need for an easy and quick access to divineauthori ty, to a revelat ion, in br ief , aD to adogmatically infa l l ib le teacher. The f igure of
Zeus was remote, but not so was his son and theconfidant of his counsels. ]'or the bel ief ofa l l the Greeks held that a t Delphi in Phocisthe sp i r i t of Apollo emanated from the sacredcavern and answered questions. (20)
In Greek l i f e , then, the remarkable powers of the oracles and
soothsayers were taken for grant:ed. They were accepted as
established re l igious ins t i tu t ions , a sor t of telephone system
which was avai lable to any individual or group which wished to
use i t . rhis commonplace nature of oracles in Greek l i fe is
t es t i f i ed by the aoracle Inscr ipt ions Discovered a t Dodona",
as E. s. Roberts points out in his ar t ic le on that subject :
The examination has established a new proof
of the considerable part which the consultationof the oracle played in the public and privatel i fe of the ancient Greeks • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •Aptly confirming the testimony of authors tothe wide-spread fame of the oracle, these hap)"'hazard survivals depict for us as seeking thehelp of the god, not only the simple peasant ofthe neighborhood, but members of other Greekcommunities fa r and near. (21)
8ince th is is the nature of the oracles and prophets i t can
readi ly be seen how the prophecies in the Oedipus and in the
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sciously involved a t the beginning of the play. The gods,
through the oracle and the prophet, merely furnish the facts
which he requests; the i r role is pract ica l ly equivalent to that
of a lawyer in a modern play. Far from imposing a necessary
course of act ion, they allow great freedom; Oedipus even spurns
the services of Teiresias - and l a t e r , to his sorrow, learns
how true were the words. In the Antigone the blind prophet
announces the suffering which is about to f a l l upon Creon;
everything hapf)ens !!§..he said , but not because he said i t .
The deaths of Antigone, Haemon, and Eurydice are brought about
not by the gods but by the passions of the persona involved .
Speaking of the plays of Sophocles, Campbell says:
Given the character and the s i tuat ion , a l l seemsto come inevita"bly. The persons are the i r fa tes .The gods have hidden themselves, even as the poethides his a r t . The only "ce les t ia l machinery" i safforded by the soothsayer, a famil iar personageof Greek l i f e , who reveals , but does not cause,the sequel. (24)
Prophecy, then, does not effec t the complication of the de-
nouement; i t is the mere relat ion of an event and not the cause
of i t .
I t might be objected, however, that pre-knowledge implies
pre-determination; therefore, a drama in which prophecy occurs
does not represent the working out of the origzinal si tuat ion
according to the nature of the characters , but according to
the wil l of the gods. J i th respect to th is argument i t must
be noted, in the f i r s t place, that foreknowledge, in i t s e l f ,
does not imply pre-determination. Of the innumerable courses
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We are now in a posi t ion to advance a step further in our
evaluation of the prophecies of the Greek tragedy according to
the principles of Aris to t le . In the l as t chapter we have seen
that prophecy does not violate the basic principle of ' imi ta-
t ion ' • namely, the causal sequence and i s , therefore, a legi-
t imate element in the t ragedy. This conclusion, however is
negative. We must now consider ~ r o p h e c y from another
of view and t ry to learn whether i t has any posit ive
value for the t ragic act ion. That is the purpose of th is
chapter .
NATURE OF
TRAGIC ACTION
Epic poetry and Tragedy, Comedy alsoand Dithyrambic poetry, and the music ofthe f lute and of the lyre in most of the irforms, are a l l in the ir general conception
modes of imitat ion. They di f fer , however, fromone another in three respects , - the medium, the
objects , the manner or mode of imitat ion, beingin each case dis t inc t . (1)
both tragedy and comedy are the same with respect to
the medium they employ (language) and the manner of represen-
ta t ion (action) they dif fer with respect to the nature of the
act ion which i s reproduced. Comedy is an ' imi ta t ion ' of a
l igh t act ion, tragedy is a reproduction of a serious act ion.
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Oracles present an inevitable future in termsthat are dim, ambiguous, equivocal, i ronica l ;the dimness lessens as the issue advances, butthe clear meaning or t rue rendering is onlyapparent when the fulf i lment is ent i re ly ac-complished. (7)
The prophecies provide information which is infa l l ib ly t rue ,
but owing to the natural l imitat ions of the human in te l l ec t
man f a i l s to understand them in the i r r ight l igh t and undertakes
a course of act ion which wil l inevitably lead him to his doom.
His f ran t ic , and frequently bl ind, struggle to escape the con-
sequences of his fa ta l mistake const i tu te an act ion which i s
t ruly t rag ic . From th is source spring the t ragic emotions - ~ v h i c h
are inspired by the Oedipus Tyrannus and the Trachiniae of
Sophocles.
a) The Cedipus Tyrannus. The actual play presents merely
the denouement of the whole act ion. In the mind of the Greek
audience the incidents which are presupposed were no l ess a
par t of the play than the action which was put on the boards.
Therefore, the t rue 'hamart ia ' of the play is the mistake which
Oedipus makes in the in terpretat ion of an oracle . 'dhen as a
youth Oedipus appeals to Delphi for advice he is told that he
wil l k i l l his father some time in the future. He believes that
his father is Eolybus, the king of Corinth, by whom he has been
raised from infancy; to avoid the catastrophe which the oracle
predicts he shuns Corinth and goes to Thebes. That is his
fa ta l step; for therehe
k i l l s Laius, his t rue father ,whom
he
had never known. Thus, due to his in te l l ec tua l e r ro r , the very
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characters to discuss the ~ u t u r e they expect inlanguage which is fearfu l and exquis i te ly sui tableto the future which actually awaits them. (9)
~ u s t as an orator employs irony in speech so the tragedians of
Greece used the prophecies to render the downfall of the pro
tagonist i ronical and therefore more p i t i fu l and ter r ib le . The
characters put one interpretation on the prophecy, but i t s
true meaning is ent i re ly d if ferent . Then, ei ther by opposing
or following thei r own interpretation they bring about the ful -
f i l lment of the prophecy in i t s true sense. The man learns the
true interpretat ion only at the endwhen he
is ruined, but i t
is known throughout by the spectators who pity him and fear
for his welfare.
PROPHECY Al'ID
TRAGIC SITUATION
Akin to i ta use as the occasion of the
'hamart ia ' , but somewhat dif ferent , i s ana-
ther function of prophecy. Since oracles and soothsayers were
natural means of obtaining information thei r pronouncements
were apt means of providing a t ragic situation a t the outset
of the play. A prophecy by ei ther an oracle o.r a seer , re
ferring to the unknown past , presentt or future, puts the
characters in possession of the necessary facts and leads them
to adopt a certain course of act ion. Examples of th is function
of prophecy are found in the Oedipus At Colonus, the Electra ,
and the Philoctetes .
a) The Oedipus At Colonus. The blind Oedipus, having
arrived a t a grove dedicated to the Furies, reca l ls an oracle
which predicted that he would find res t under the ir protection.
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From the king of Athens. in whose domain the grove is si tuated,
he obtains permission to remain there. Then his daughter Ismene
arrives bearing news of a recent oracle from Delphi:
IsmeneThy country (so i t runs) shal l yearn in time
To have thee for thei r weal alive or dead.Oedipus
And who could gain by such a one as I ?Ismene
On thee, ' t i s said, thei r sovereignty depends. (10)
According to this la te r oracle , then, the faction at Thebes
which procured Oedipus would gain the upper hand in the struggle
for supremacy. On these twoo r a c l e ~
the res t of the actiondepends. From the ancient oracle arises the firm determination
of Oedipus to remain a t Athens and f inish out his days in peace
according to the prediction of the god; in accord with the
l a te r oracle Polyneices and Creon str ive to win him to thei r
side so that with them wil l res t the sovereignty of Thebes.
As Croiset notes, the whole of the t ragic action depends upon
the oracles:
E t, de meme, la legende d'Oedipe a Colone n 'aura i tpas ete une matiere de t ragedie, s i Oedipe ne con-naissa i t sa destinee, s ' i l ne l 'acceptai t avecdes sentiments de joie e t de f i e r te , e t s i , d'unbout a l ' aut re du drame, i l ne s 'a t tachai t al 'accomplir en depit des resis tances. (11)
b) The Electra . In th is play Orestes goes to the Delphic
oracle to learn how he should take a ' j u s t ' vengeance; the
answer of the oracle establishes a si tuat ion from which the
res t of the story flows:
Know then that when I l e f t thee to consultThe Pythian oracle and learn how bestTo execute jus t vengeance far my sire
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A tragedy which presents the unimpeded course of a man from
prosperi ty to adversi ty is less suited to produce the emotions
of pi ty and fear than i s a plot in which the catastrophe is the
sudden, unexpected, but probable effect of what has gone before.
Due to the sharp contrast of happiness and misery the t ragic
emotions of pity and fear are accentuated. I t i s for th is
reason that Aris tot le prefers what he cal ls the 'complex plo t • .
A complex action is one in which the chapge(from prosperi ty to adversity) is accompaniedby • • • • • • • • • • • • Reversal, or by Recognitionor by both. {16)
Reversal of the Situation is a change by whichthe action veers round to i t s opposite. (17}
Recognition • • • • • • • • is a change from ignoranceto knowledge, producing love or hate betweenthe persons destined by the poet for good orbad fortune. (18)
In such an act ion, then, the man a t f i r s t seems to be victorious
against the forces which seek his downfall, but then is sud-
denly plunged into the catastrophe. There is a complete re
versal of the si tuat ion within the scope of a single ac t . How-
ever gradual the approach to the catastrophe may be, i t seems
to the man to happen suddenly; he thinks himself a happy man
at the beginning of an act , but he learns the t ruth of the
si tuat ion and i s a miserable man a t the end of i t .
In the plays of Sophocles we find such surprises in the
action aris ing from prophecy. The information which i t sup
pl ies brings the man to a recognition of the t rue s ta te of a f -
fa i rs and precipi tates the catastrophe. The prophecies in the
Antigone and in the Ajax are used to effect such a Recognition
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tended to use as the instrument of his death. At th is his
wife and comrades are over-joyed:
0 joy, when Ajax has forgot once moreHis woe, and turns the godhead to adore ! (19}
However, they are soon plunged from happiness to misery. When
Ajax has departed to bury his sword a messenger bearing news of
a prophecy of the seer Calchas arrives . The humiliated warrior
must be kept within his tent for that one day i f he is to l ive :
ChorusList to th is man - the t id ings he has broughtOf Ajax' fortunes, f i l l ing me with gr ie f .
Tecmessa-Nhat is thy news, man ? Say, are we undone ?Messenger
I know not of thy fortunes, only th is -I f Ajax is abroad, I augur i l l .
TecmessaAlas ! . he i s . How thy words ch i l l my soul ! (ao)
I t is then that they recognize the true import of the words of
Ajax; he went for th to bury the sword in his s ide ! Fran-
t i ca l ly they search for him; they find him dead on the sol i ta ry
beach, pierced by his own weapon. The prophecy of Calchas is
the means which brought them to an understanding of the true
state of af fa i r s and a t the end. of the act their joy has
turned to sadness.
PROPHECYAND
SUSPENSE
Speaking of the best way to excite t ragic pi ty and
fear , Aristot le says:
He (the tragedian) may not indeed destroy the framework of the received legends ••••••• but he ought to show invention of his own,and ski l ful ly handle the t rad i t ional mater ial . (21)
He then proceeds to enumerate various methods by which the
7/27/2019 An Evaluation of Prophecy in Greek Tragedy According to the Dramatic Theory of Aristotle
poets fashion the i r mater ial and construct a sequence of events
which leads natural ly to a catastrophe. He singles out one
type of act ion which he considers most capable of producing the
proper t ragic effect :
The l a s t case is the best , as when in the Cresphontes Merope is about to slay her son, but ,recognising who he is , spares his l i f e . (22)
I t is evident tha t in such a si tuat ion as Aris tot le sets for th
the effect on the audience is one of suspense. This mental
s ta te a r i ses when we perceive in a certa in set of circumstances
the possibi l i ty of e i ther a fe l ic i tous or a disastrous outcome.
Accompanying th is perception is a tense emotional state which
i s a mixture of hope and fear - an effec t which is t ruly proper
to the tragedy. In the excitation of suspense the Greek t ra -
gedies excel l . Since the legendary source of the ir fables des-
troyed the possibi l i ty of novelty of subject-matter , the t r a
gedians developed th is source of t ragic effect to perfect ion.
Symonds has summed up in an apt simile the suspense which is
characteris t ic of Greek tragedy:
We seem to be watching a boatful of carelesspersons gliding down a r ive r , and graduallyapproaching i t s f a l l aver a vast c l i f f . I f
we take an in teres t in them, how t e r r ib le i sour anxiety when they come within the i r re s is t ib le current of the s l iding water, howfrigfitful is their cry of anguish when a t l as tthey see the precipice ahead, how horrorstricken is the si lence with which they shootthe f a l l , and are submerged 1 Of th is naturei s the in teres t of a good Greek tragedy. ( 2 ~ )
In prophecy the tragedians found a splendid instrument by
which they could bring about th i s effect of t ragic suspense.
7/27/2019 An Evaluation of Prophecy in Greek Tragedy According to the Dramatic Theory of Aristotle
c) ~ h e Oedipus Tyrannus. When the king sends for Tei
resias and t r i e s to extort from him the name of the murderer
of Laius, the si tuat ion is one of breathless suspense, The
audience knows that Oedipus himself is the guil ty party and
that Teiresias i s aware of that fac t . The pert inaci ty of
Oedipus in seeking the t ruth gives the audience grounds for
fearing that he will learn i t to his own sorrow; on the other
hand, the stubborn refusa l of Teiresiaa to divulge his knowledge
provides the hope that the king wil l , af ter a l l , be l e f t in his
bl i ss fu l ignorance. Thus the knowledge of the prophet fur-
nishes material for t ragic suspense.
PROPHECY AND
ACCElERATIONOF ACTION
In the l as t chapter of the Poetics Aristot le
sets for th a number of arguments to demonstrate
the superiority of tragedy over the epic as a
l i terary form. One point in his argumentation is the followinga
Moreover, the a r t at ta ins i t s end within narrower l imi ts ; for the concentrated effec t ismore pleasurable than one which is spread overa long time and so diluted. (25)
I f th is is true of a l l tragedy, i t is true of the Greek tragedy
in a specia l manner. Concentration of action is a quality
which i s peculiar ly character ist ic of the Greek dran:a. In i t
we find none of the side action or pauses of modern drama; the
action is concerned with a single issue and runs along rapidly
without any los t motion. The resu l t is that the emotions of
pi ty and fear are intensif ied because of the speed and in
evi tabi l i ty with w h ~ c h the catastrophe follows upon the in i -
7/27/2019 An Evaluation of Prophecy in Greek Tragedy According to the Dramatic Theory of Aristotle