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Reflect on Aristotle’s ideas in Poetics about pity and fear in an effective tragedy, and explain how the excerpt from Oedipus Rex supports this idea.
Aristotle’s ideas in Poetics suggest that pity and fear are the two most important components of an effective tragedy. He believes that by arousing both emotions, a playwright can make their audience become more engaged with the story and its characters. Through pity, viewers will sympathize with the protagonist while through fear they will be able to understand his struggle as he faces overwhelming odds against him. The excerpt from Oedipus Rex supports Aristotle’s idea because it features a scene where these two emotions are present in abundance
In this passage, Oedipus is faced with news of his impending doom after learning that he has unwittingly killed his father and married his mother; this moment produces great pity for the suffering king, but also a feeling of dread for what fate awaits him if he does not find a way out of his dilemma. Thus, this excerpt reinforces Aristotle’s idea that for an effective tragedy to be achieved, pity and fear must be present within its narrative structure.