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Macbeth: Aristotelian Tragedy

Macbeth: Aristotelian Tragedy


Kim Blair
Per.5

Interpretive Test


The definition of tragedy in an excerpt from Aristotle's "Poetics" is
the re-creation, complete within itself, of an important moral action. The
relevance of Aristotle's Poetics to Shakespeare's play Macbeth defines the
making of a dramatic tragedy and presents the general principles of the
construction of this genre.
Aristotle's attention throughout most of his Poetics is directed towards
the requirements and expectations of the plot. Plot, 'the soul of tragedy',
Aristotle says, must, be an imitation of a noble and complete action. In
Macbeth, Shakespear provides a complete action, that is it has what Aristotle
identifies as a beginning, a middle, and an end. These divisible sections must,
and do in the case of Macbeth, meet the criterion of their respective placement.
In an excerpt from Aristotle's "Poetics" it states:

"The separate parts into which tragedy is divided are: Prologue,
Episode, Exodus, Choric songs, this last being divided into Parodos and Stasimon.
The prologos is that entire part of a tragedy which precedes the Parodos of the
Chorus. The Episode is that entire part of a tragedy which is between complete
choric songs. The Exodos is that entire part of a tragedy which has no choric
song after it. Of the Choric part the Parodos is the first undivided utterance
of the Chorus." Shakespeare follows this precise arrangement of parts to tell
his story of Macbeth. Macbeth is divided into five acts. It contains a
Prologue, Episode, Exodus, Parodos and Stasimon, but is the only one of
Shakespeares plays that does not include Choric songs. This does not dismiss
Macbeth as a tragedy in the Aristotelian sense, because it still follows
Aristotle's fundamental component of a plot. That the arrangement of actions
and episodes arrange themselves into a 'causally connected', seamless whole.
The ideal arrangement of action into a plot is: Exposition, Inciting...