"Tragedy is a genre of drama based on human suffering and, mainly, the terrible or sorrowful events that befall a main character."
A serious work of drama that depicts the downfall or misfortune of the main character, usually due to a fatal flaw or external circumstance.
Definition of Tragedy: Explains what Tragedy is, its origin, and why it is still a genre that is revered in literature.
Greek Tragedy: Covers the history of Ancient Greek Tragedy and how it became the cornerstone of Western literature. This topic should also include the different types of Greek Tragedy, and the most popular playwrights.
Aristotle's Theory of Tragedy: Discusses how Aristotle defined tragedy, including the six elements that make up Greek Tragedy. It should also include the three unities, and how they fit into Aristotle's theory of tragedy.
Shakespearean Tragedy: Focuses on William Shakespeare, and how he contributed to the development of tragedy. This topic should also discuss the different types of Shakespearean tragedy, and what makes them unique.
Modern Tragedy: Discusses how the concept of tragedy has evolved over time, and how it is still relevant in modern literature. This topic should also explore the different types of modern tragedy and the themes and concepts that they touch upon.
The Tragic Hero: Explores the characteristics of the tragic hero archetype, including their strengths, weaknesses, and how they contribute to the tragic ending of the story.
The Tragic Flaw: Covers the concept of the tragic flaw in literature, including how it contributes to the fall of the tragic hero, and its role in creating tension and conflict within the story.
Dramatic Irony: Explains the literary device of Dramatic Irony that is often used in Tragedy. This topic should discuss how it creates tension in a story, and how it can lead to unexpected twists and turns.
Tragic Plot Structure: Discusses the structure of Tragedy, including the three act structure, and how it differs from traditional storytelling.
"Traditionally, the intention of tragedy is to invoke an accompanying catharsis, or a 'pain [that] awakens pleasure', for the audience."
"The term has often been used to invoke a powerful effect of cultural identity and historical continuity."
"From its origins in the theatre of ancient Greece 2500 years ago..."
"There survives only a fraction of the work of Aeschylus, Sophocles, and Euripides..."
"...the later Roman tragedies of Seneca; through its singular articulations in the works of Shakespeare, Lope de Vega, Jean Racine, and Friedrich Schiller..."
"...to the more recent naturalistic tragedy of Henrik Ibsen and August Strindberg; Samuel Beckett's modernist meditations on death, loss and suffering..."
"A long line of philosophers...have analysed, speculated upon, and criticised the genre."
"...tragedy has been used to make genre distinctions, whether at the scale of poetry in general... or at the scale of the drama."
"Drama, in the narrow sense, cuts across the traditional division between comedy and tragedy..."
"Both Bertolt Brecht and Augusto Boal define their epic theatre projects... against models of tragedy."
"Taxidou... reads epic theatre as an incorporation of tragic functions and its treatments of mourning and speculation."
"Tragedy... has played a unique and important role historically in the self-definition of Western civilization."
"Tragedy often refers to a specific tradition of drama that has played a unique and important role historically in the self-definition of Western civilization."
"...tragedy has remained an important site of cultural experimentation, negotiation, struggle, and change."
"In the modern era, tragedy has also been defined against drama, melodrama, the tragicomic, and epic theatre."
"In the wake of Aristotle's Poetics (335 BCE), tragedy has been used to make genre distinctions..."
"A long line of philosophers... have analysed, speculated upon, and criticised the genre."
"Heiner Müller postmodernist reworkings of the tragic canon..."
"Taxidou reads epic theatre as an incorporation of tragic functions and its treatments of mourning and speculation."