Aug 08, 2015 aristotles poetics hardcover august 8, 2015 by aristotle author 4. Here, walter watson offers a new interpretation of the lost second book of aristotle s poetics. For oxford worlds classics he has translated aristotles eudemian ethics. The editors 300page exposition and interpretation follows. The new york times this book contains the celebrated butcher translation of aristotle s poetics, faced, page by page, with the complete greek text as reconstructed by mr. Aristotle s poetics is the most influential book on poetry ever written. Aristotle begins with a loose outline of what he will address in the poetics. Though the precise origins of aristotle s poetics are not known, researchers believe that the work was composed around 330 bce and was preserved primarily through aristotle s students notes. His most recent book is a new history of western philosophy 2010. These legislations on literature went on to have a significant influence throughout the ages and, in fact, remained prevalent and often unquestioned until the 19th century.
The centerpiece of aristotles work is his examination of tragedy. Aristotle writes also that he will address catharsis and an analysis of of all the writings on theory and aestheticsancient, medieval, or modernthe most important is indisputably aristotles poetics, the first philosophical treatise. The tractatus, thought to have been written in the. Aristotle in his books on the aristotelian philosophy. The principal texts in new translations for rhetorical discussion and second comparative translation aristotle for everybody for philosophyw. Based on richard jankos philological reconstruction of the epitome, a summary first recovered in 1839 and hotly contested thereafter, watson mounts a compelling philosophical argument that places the statements of this summary of the. The author offers a fresh interpretation of the lost second book of aristotles poetics.
This paper provides an overview and commentary of aristotle s theory of poetry, of drama, and of narrative structure, as presented the poetics. In poetics, aristotle outlines what he sees as the essential components of tragedy, along with a few interesting literary devices that can be thrown in to spice things up. Aristotles poetics, halliwell university of chicago press. Its discoverer suggested that it derived from the lost second book of aristotles poetics, which inaugurated the systematic study of comedy, but it was soon condemned as an ignorant compilation verging on forgery, and thus matters stood until the. Here, at last, aristotle s lost second book is found again. On the second book of aristotle s poetics and the source of theophrastus definition of tragedy is an article from harvard studies in classical philology, volume 28 view more articles from harvard studies in classical philology. Aristotles poetics chapters 15 summary and analysis. The deficiency is explained on that basis by gercke,4 following rose. On the second book of aristotles poetics and the source of. Aristotle himself respected homer so much that he personally corrected a copy of the iliad for his student alexander, who carried it all over the world.
Perfect for acing essays, tests, and quizzes, as well as for writing lesson plans. Full text of on the second book of aristotles poetics. What is poetry, how many kinds of it are there, and what are their specific effects. Download for offline reading, highlight, bookmark or take notes while you read the lost second book of aristotles poetics. He defines poetry as a medium of imitation that seeks to represent or duplicate life through character, emotion, or action. Despite its vague beginning, the poetics has been a central document in the study of aesthetics and literature for centuries, proving especially influential during the renaissance. An intellectual adventure of the most stimulating kind.
With a critical text and a translation of the poetics. In it, aristotle offers an account of what he calls poetry. The lost second book of aristotles poetics bryn mawr classical. The titles might suggest that these works are primarily relevant to themes of literature, but they in fact fit more tightly with the themes of human life explored in aristotle ethics.
Theres no introduction to the book, just a note about when it was written circa 330bc and about aristotle himself, taking up less than a page. The lost second book of aristotles poetics in searchworks. Such scholars fail to appreciate the achievements of robertellus, bernays, and lane cooper, who have shown us how much can be done with the extant text of the poetics in terms of uncovering a solid basis for a theory of comedy. Aristotle on tragedy cliffsnotes study guides book. Because this book, as we shall see, is supposed to have contained a theory of comedy, its loss, measured by the value of the aristotelian theory of tragedy, is incalculable. Aristotle does this by attempting to explai n poetry through first principles, and by classifying poetry into it s different genres and component parts. The lost second book of aristotles poetics classics for all. Here, walter watson offers a new interpretation of the lost second book of aristotles poetics. Poetics by aristotle, free pdf, ebook, epub global grey. Pdf the second book of aristotles politics francisco. Read download the lost second book of aristotles poetics pdf.
Chapter 4 of the poetics, for example, discusses the essential place of imitation in learning, and the books of the rhetoric are full of material about psychology. Now, philosopher walter watson offers a new interpretation of the lost second book of aristotles poetics. Assessing this theory against the background of earlier greek views on poetry and art, particularly. In these first two books aristotle shows his complete mastery of political theory and practice, and raises many crucial issues still with us today. Jun 29, 2012 the lost second book of aristotles poetics ebook written by walter watson. The lost second book of aristotles poetics 9780226274119. I remembered that aristotle was a rhetorphilosopher. Poetics aristotle aristotles poetics aims to give an account of poetry.
The lost second book of aristotles poetics by walter watson. Aristotle s poetics hardcover august 8, 2015 by aristotle author 4. Read download the lost second book of aristotles poetics. As mentioned above, there has long been speculation about the existence of a lost second book of the poetics dealing with aristotle s theory of comedy. Mar 04, 20 the natural appendix to the politics is the poetics ably translated by seth benardete and michael davis as aristotle on poetics under st. Aristotle defines poetry very broadly, including epic poetry, tragedy. Core terms edit mimesis or imitation, representation, or expression, given that, e.
Aristotles intellectual range was vast, covering most of the sciences and many of the arts, including biology, botany, chemistry, ethics, history, logic, metaphysics, rhetoric, philosophy of mind, philosophy of science, physics, poetics, political theory, psychology, and zoology. The lost second book of aristotle s poetics is a core plot element in umberto eco s bestseller novel, the name of the rose. Meanwhile, while teaching at st andrews, i came across a mysterious and forgotten text that, when it was first published in 1839, was identified as an abstract of the lost second book of aristotle s poetics, his missing treatise on comedy. Of all the writings on theory and aesthetics ancient, medieval, or modern the most important is indisputably aristotles poetics, the first philosophical treatise to propound a theory of literature.
Of all the writings on theory and aestheticsancient, medieval, or modernthe most important is indisputably aristotle s poetics, the first philosophical treatise to propound a theory of literature. In the absence of that book, if it ever existed, scholars have had recourse to two sources as a basis for establishing aristotle s views about the nature of comedy. The lost second book of aristotles poetics bryn mawr. Learn exactly what happened in this chapter, scene, or section of aristotle 384322 b. Aristotle s poetics seeks to address the different kinds of poetry, the structure of a good poem, and the division of a poem into its component parts. Aristotle supposedly wrote a second book on comedy, which is now lost. For some time now scholars have argued that a tenth century manuscript known as tractatus coislinianus summarizes. The existence of a second book is proved by ancient. Sir anthony kenny is a distinguished philosopher whose books include the aristotelian ethics 1978, aristotles theory of the will 1979, and aristotle on the perfect life 1992. Learn exactly what happened in this chapter, scene, or section of poetics and what it means. The lost second book of aristotle s poetics by walter watson. The poetics is much better known than the rhetoric, though only the first book of the former, a treatment of epic and tragic poetry, survives. In the poetics, aristotle s famous study of greek dramatic art, aristotle 384322 b. In the poetics, aristotle writes that he will speak of comedybut there is no further mention of comedy.
The lost second book of aristotles poetics by walter. Aristotles poetics the science of tragedy classical. The lost second book of aristotles poetics ebook, 2012. Aristotle s approach to the phenomenon of poetry is quite different from plato s. He was the founder of formal logic, devising for it a finished. The lost second book of aristotles poetics classics. Aristotle s poetics is the earliestsurviving work of dramatic theory and the first extant philosophical treatise to focus on literary theory.
Walter watson of all the writings on theory and aesthetics, ancient, medieval, or modern, the most important is indisputably aristotle s poetics, the first philosophical treatise to propound a theory of. The book builds on richard jankos aristotle on comedy 1984, which argued that the supposed abstract or epitome of poetics book two, in the manuscript known as tractatus coislinianus, is actually based on the lost second book, an opinion much debated over the previous century. The book the lost second book of aristotles the lost second book of aristotles poetics, watson the chicago distribution center has reopened and is fulfilling orders. A book called aristotles poetics for screenwriters, published after this article was written, commits the same sins as the other texts mentioned here. As of 20, all three are highly recommendable as the best scholarly translations of these three works. Aristotle writes also that he will address catharsis and an analysis of what is funny. The lost second book of aristotles poetics is a core plot element in umberto eco s bestseller novel, the name of the rose. Here, at last, aristotles lost second book is found again. In book i he argues vigorously for a political theory based on nature. The plot is the source and the soul of tragedyin his nearcontemporary.
Strangely, though, the poetics itself is rarely read with the kind of sensitivity its critics claim to possess, and the thing criticized is not the book aristotle wrote but a caricature of it. Aristotle s politics is a key document in western political thought. In point of fact, euripides, the last of the three great tragic poets of ancient greece, wrote many plays that violated the logical and structured principles of aristotle s poetics in a conscious effort to depict a world that he saw as neither logical nor structured. Walter watson, the lost second book of aristotles poetics. The book aims, among other things, to answer platos criticisms of representative art. The poetics is in part aristotle s response to his teacher, plato, who argues in the republic that poetry is representation of mere appearances and is thus misleading and morally suspect. Based on richard jankos philological reconstruction of. The second book of the politics has been object of multiple considerations, but it has called the attention of the scholars mainly because of its detailed criticism of platos political projects, especially the republic. A founding text of european aesthetics and literary criticism, it has shaped much of our modern understanding of the creation and impact of imaginative writing, including poetry, drama, and fiction. The lost second book of aristotles poetics walmart. A penetrating, nearcontemporary account of greek tragedy, it demonstrates how the elements of plot, character and spectacle combine to produce pity and fear and why we derive pleasure from this apparently painful process. Aristotle second book of poetics the book the lost second book of aristotle s.
Its discoverer suggested that it derived from the lost second book of aristotles poetics, which inaugurated the systematic study of comedy, but it was soon condemned as an ignorant compilation verging on forgery, and thus matters stood until the first publication of aristotle on comedy in 1984. Critical essay aristotle on tragedy in the poetics, aristotle s famous study of greek dramatic art, aristotle 384322 b. Mar 23, 2015 here, walter watson offers a new interpretation of the lost second book of aristotles poetics. It is especially popular with screenwriters as seen in many script gurus howto books. But he does not actually address any of those ideas. The tradition of a lost second book of the poetics 1 since the renaissance any treatment of aristotle s poetics has discussed and lamented the loss of a second book.
Full text of on the second book of aristotles poetics and. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders. A document known as the tractatus coislinianus, first recovered in the biblioteque nationale in paris in 1839, appears to be a summary of aristotles second book. The lost second book of aristotles poetics walter watson. Based on richard jankos philological reconstruction of the epitome, a summary first recovered in 1839 and hotly contested thereafter, watson mounts a compelling philosophical argument that places the statements of this summary of the aristotelian. Jan 01, 2012 in the poetics, aristotle writes that he will speak of comedybut there is no further mention of comedy.
The second book of aristotles poetics home facebook. It is simply a more elongated example of bending, twisting and misrepresenting aristotles words to support a. Aristotle s poetics is one of the most powerful, perceptive and influential works of criticism in western literary history. The lost second book of aristotle s poetics is a core plot element in umberto ecos bestseller novel, the name of the rose.
But before he begins tackling these topics, aristotle first. He determines that tragedy, like all poetry, is a kind of imitation mimesis, but adds that it has a serious purpose and uses direct action rather than narrative to achieve its ends. As the shortest book ive got on my literature student bookshelf, this dover thrift edition poetics is the cheapest, and most flimsy, but completely worthwhile book. Its discoverer suggested that it derived from the lost second book of aristotle s poetics, which inaugurated the systematic study of comedy, but it was soon condemned as an ignorant compilation verging on forgery, and thus matters stood until the first publication of aristotle on comedy in 1984. Based on richard jankos philological reconstruction of the epitome, a summary first recovered in 1839 and hotly contested thereafter, watson mounts a compelling philosophical argument that places the statements of this summary of the aristotelian text in their true context. It discusses things like unity of plot, reversal of situation, and character in the context of greek tragedy, comedy and epic poetry. Buy the lost second book of aristotle s poetics by watson, walter isbn.
1437 762 602 85 1338 428 1531 607 670 491 405 47 845 1166 751 877 1425 565 1519 1340 1199 25 88 1555 128 898 1456 877 271 394 401 1105 511 447 1394 97 852 1418 111 329 902 1496 1221 1227 316 1231