Why tragedies are alluring - David E. Rivas
-
0:07 - 0:09The story goes something like this:
-
0:09 - 0:16a royal, rich or righteous individual,
who otherwise happens to be a lot like us, -
0:16 - 0:20makes a mistake that sends his life,
and the lives of those around him, -
0:20 - 0:23spiraling into ruin.
-
0:23 - 0:24Sound familiar?
-
0:24 - 0:28This is the classic story pattern
for Greek tragedy. -
0:28 - 0:29For thousands of years,
-
0:29 - 0:32we've spun spellbinding tales
that fit this pattern, -
0:32 - 0:37and modern storytellers around the world
continue to do so. -
0:37 - 0:41Three critical story components
influenced by Aristotle's "Poetics" -
0:41 - 0:44help us understand the allure.
-
0:44 - 0:49First, the tragic hero should be elevated
in rank and ability, -
0:49 - 0:51but also relatable.
-
0:51 - 0:54Perhaps he is a king, or extraordinary
in some other way. -
0:54 - 0:57But because you and I
are neither unusually good -
0:57 - 0:59nor unusually bad,
-
0:59 - 1:01neither is the hero.
-
1:01 - 1:05And he has one particular tragic flaw,
or hamartia, -
1:05 - 1:10something like ambition, tyranny,
stubbornness, or excess pride -
1:10 - 1:13that causes him
to make a critical mistake. -
1:13 - 1:18And from that mistake comes
disaster and downfall. -
1:18 - 1:20As an example of these elements in action,
-
1:20 - 1:23let's look to Sophocles's "Oedipus Rex,"
-
1:23 - 1:25about a man who doesn't know
he was adopted, -
1:25 - 1:30and is warned by an oracle
that he's destined to murder his father -
1:30 - 1:32and marry his mother.
-
1:32 - 1:34In trying to escape this fate,
-
1:34 - 1:37he kills a man who won't get out
of his way at a crossroad. -
1:37 - 1:41He then cleverly answers the riddle
of the monstrous Sphynx, -
1:41 - 1:44freeing the Kingdom of Thebes
from a plague. -
1:44 - 1:48He marries the widowed queen
and becomes king. -
1:48 - 1:51But after he finds out that the murdered
man was his father, -
1:51 - 1:54and the queen he married is his mother,
-
1:54 - 1:59Oedipus gouges out his eyes
and retreats into the wilderness. -
1:59 - 2:01At the beginning of his story,
-
2:01 - 2:05Oedipus is elevated in ability,
and he's elevated in rank. -
2:05 - 2:09He's neither unusually evil
nor saintly. -
2:09 - 2:10He's relatable.
-
2:10 - 2:12Notice the height of the fall.
-
2:12 - 2:15Once a king, but now homeless and blind.
-
2:15 - 2:19It's more tragic, after all, if a king
falls from a tall throne -
2:19 - 2:22than if a jester falls off his step stool.
-
2:22 - 2:26Oedipus's tragic flaw is hubris,
or excessive pride, -
2:26 - 2:31and it causes him to attempt to avoid
the fate prophesied for him, -
2:31 - 2:34which is exactly what makes it happen.
-
2:34 - 2:36He's a particularly unlucky soul
-
2:36 - 2:39because his mistake of killing his father
and marrying his mother -
2:39 - 2:44is done in complete ignorance.
-
2:44 - 2:48Of course, these narrative principles
transcend classic Greek tragedy. -
2:48 - 2:50In Shakespeare's canon,
-
2:50 - 2:55we see Hamlet's indecisiveness
lead to a series of bad decisions, -
2:55 - 2:57or perhaps non-decisions,
-
2:57 - 3:01that culminate in the death of almost
every character in the play, -
3:01 - 3:04and Macbeth's ambition
catapults him to the top -
3:04 - 3:07before sending him careening to his grave.
-
3:07 - 3:11Even modern pop culture staples
like "Game of Thrones" and "The Dark Knight" -
3:11 - 3:17resonate with the tropes Aristotle
identified over 2000 years ago. -
3:17 - 3:20So what's the point
of all of this suffering? -
3:20 - 3:22According to Aristotle,
and many scholars since, -
3:22 - 3:27a good tragedy can evoke fear
and pity in the audience: -
3:27 - 3:30Fear of falling victim to the same
or similar catastrophe, -
3:30 - 3:34and pity for the height
of the hero's downfall. -
3:34 - 3:37Ideally, after watching
these tragic events unfold, -
3:37 - 3:40we experience catharsis,
-
3:40 - 3:43a feeling of relief
and emotional purification. -
3:43 - 3:46Not everyone agrees why this happens.
-
3:46 - 3:48It may be that empathizing with the hero
-
3:48 - 3:54allows us to experience and release
strong emotions that we keep bottled up, -
3:54 - 3:58or maybe it just lets us forget
about our own problems for a little while. -
3:58 - 4:01But regardless of how you feel
when you watch poor Oedipus, -
4:01 - 4:04never has there been
a more salient reminder -
4:04 - 4:06that no matter how bad things get,
-
4:06 - 4:10at least you didn't kill your father
and marry your mother.
- Title:
- Why tragedies are alluring - David E. Rivas
- Description:
-
View full lesson: http://ed.ted.com/lessons/why-tragedies-are-alluring-david-e-rivas
The story goes something like this: A royal, rich, or righteous individual — who is otherwise a lot like us — makes a mistake that sends his or her life spiraling into ruin. It's the classic story arc for a Greek tragedy, and we love it so much that we continue to use it today. David E. Rivas shares three critical story components, influenced by Aristotle’s “Poetics,” to help illustrate the allure.
Lesson by David E. Rivas, animation by Globizco.
- Video Language:
- English
- Team:
- closed TED
- Project:
- TED-Ed
- Duration:
- 04:26
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