In the wake of Aristotle's Poetics (335 BCE), tragedy has been used to make genre distinctions, whether at the scale of poetry in general (where the tragic divides against epic and lyric) or at the scale of the drama (where tragedy is opposed to comedy).
The meaning of TRAGEDY is a disastrous event : calamity. How to use tragedy in a sentence.
Tragedy, branch of drama that treats in a serious and dignified style the sorrowful or terrible events encountered or caused by a heroic individual. By extension the term may be applied to other literary works, such as the novel.
TRAGEDY definition: 1. a very sad event or situation, especially one involving death or suffering: 2. a play about…. Learn more.
- a lamentable, dreadful, or fatal event or affair; calamity; disaster: a family tragedy. 2. the tragic element of drama, of literature generally, or of life: the tragedy of poverty. 3. a literary composition, as a novel, dealing with a somber theme carried to a tragic conclusion.
Common usage of tragedy refers to any story with a sad ending, whereas to be an Aristotelian tragedy the story fit the set of requirements as laid out by Poetics.
Tragedy is a dramatic genre that delves into human suffering, moral conflict, and inevitable downfall. It invites audiences to witness the rise and fall of characters whose lives are shaped by forces beyond their control.
In his Poetics, the ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle defined tragedy as a morally ambiguous genre in which a noble hero goes from good fortune to bad.
What is Tragedy? | Oregon State Guide to Literary Terms | Oregon State ...