Tragic Delights in Aristotle's Poetics

Abstract

Our notion of the pleasure provided by tragedy has undoubtedly its origin in Aristotle's Poetics: we indeed associate this pleasure with pity and fear as well as with catharsis, notions that are ali derived from this treatise. On the other hand, we find it difficult to explain why this pleasure takes place at ali: we experience it while witnessing most horrible scenes, represented in tragedy, scenes that would arouse only great pain in us, if they were real. Does Aristotle's discussion of tragedy and of »the pleasure from pity and fear« help us to explain the paradoxical nature of this pleasure? In the articlesearch for Aristotle's answer as to why tragedy provides pleasure.