Aristotle's Poetics Study Guide. 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.
He defines poetry as a 'medium of imitation' that seeks to represent or duplicate life through character, emotion, or action. Aristotle defines poetry very broadly, including epic poetry, tragedy, comedy, dithyrambic poetry, and even some kinds of music. The Classical Origins of Western Civilization. Aristotle: Poetics. CriticaLink | Aristotle: Poetics | Overview Like many important documents in the history of philosophy and literary theory, Aristotle's Poetics, composed around 330 BCE, was most likely preserved in the form of students' lecture notes.
This brief text, through its various interpretations and applications from the Renaissance onward, has had a profound impact on Western aesthetic philosophy and artistic production. 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.
Aristotle Poetics. Ancient Tragedy, Greece and Rome Andrew Scholtz, Instructor Ancient Tragedy, Study Guide. . .
Greek Tragedy, Ancient Theory: Aristotle Poetics Aristotle.