Aristotle's Poetics

This blog is written as a response to the task given by Dilip Barad, sir. (Department of English, MKBU)

Que. Have you studied any tragedies during B.A. programme? Who was/were the tragic protagonist/s in those tragedies? What was their 'hamartia'?5. Did the 'Plot' of those tragedies follow necessary rules and regulations proposed by Aristotle? (Like chain of cause and effect, principle of probability and necessity, harmonious arrangement of incidents, complete, certain magnitude, unity of action etc)

Ans.

In B.A. Shakespeare's tragedy 'Othello' was there, so we have studied that tragedy. In this tragedy, Othello himself is the protagonist. If we find the cause of hamartia in the play Othello, it is jealousy and misjudgement. In the play, we find that Iago makes Othello feel insecure about his marriage with Desdemona, showing fake evidence that Desdemona has an affair with Cassio. Othello's inability to control his jealousy and his willingness to believe Iago's fake proofs about his wife, Desdemona, result in a series of tragic events, including the murder of Desdemona and his own eventual suicide. This tragic flaw of jealousy is central to the tragic end of the play.

We try to evaluate the plot of the play with the rules and regulations given by Aristotle.

1.Chain of cause and effect: One can find it clear in the play that each and every action has a trigger point where things move, so this rule is maintained in the play.

2.Principle of probability and necessity: That rule is also maintained in the play; one can find the new probability that can happen in the plot. The principle of necessity is also there because the main character, Othello, is bound by his own belief system, so he is supposed to act in a certain way.

3.Harmonious arrangement of the incidents: As we know, Shakespeare is really good at making arrangements of the incidents; here he also did the same as the plot moves forward in a creative way.

4. Completeness: It is a complete tragic event. At first, we find Othello's rise, and at the end, the sudden fall, so it also follows this principle.

5. Magnitude: The play is divided into five acts. Each act has its own significance. So it stays within the perfect definition of magnitude.

6. Unity of action: We find actions are well organised. With each and every step, we can see how the protagonist is going towards his own downfall. Iago, as the antagonist, also plays his role quite well as a man in action.

So, overall, we can find that mostly all the rules of tragedy are well maintained in the play 'Othello'.