Jennifer Clary

Question 4. Spectacle and the Sublime

Spectacle and the Sublime are two elements of Tragedy that work separately, as well as together, to create an affective form of literature. While spectacle is something that is seen or heard directly or indirectly, the sublime is used to pull emotion from the reader. When just the right amount of each is used, these two elements can separately, or together, create a physically and emotionally memorable experience for the audience member or reader.

The word “spectacle” means something dramatically big that can be seen or heard with the eyes or ears. When it comes to the word “spectacle” we tend to think of something visually traumatic; like a car wreck. As humans, we are naturally drawn to spectacle. Showy costumes and overly dramatic scenes pull people into movie theaters. However, spectacle isn’t just useful in the movies. It can be useful and attractive in the genre of Tragedy as well.

 Although spectacle can add emotional attraction to a work, it is typically repressed in Tragedy. When spectacle is repressed, the horrific action is not witnessed by the reader or viewer. It is instead relayed to us by the use of other characters. Repression of spectacle could be seen in Jarrod’s film presentation of Detour, as the audience didn’t actually see Vera strangled. The event occurred behind a closed door and we were only made aware of the tragic event through the character Mr. Roberts.

The repression of spectacle in Tragedy however, is a convention and not a rule. When it comes to Tragedy, readers will find spectacle being used as an on stage as well as an offstage device. Several examples of the use of spectacle, within Tragedy, can be found within the plays we have read this semester. The purple carpets that Clytaemnestra laid on the ground, in Agamemnon is a beautiful use of onstage spectacle. The audience, as well as the reader, is able to see, or in our case visualize, the vibrant, blood-like colors as well as the placement and walking of the tapestries. An example of offstage spectacle can be found on line 1472 of Samson Agonistes; “What noise or shout was that? It tore the sky.” In this example, something of enormous proportions has occurred. However, the audience has only been made aware of it through the use of the character Manoa’s verbal communication.  So, regardless of if it is onstage or offstage, huge, or repressed spectacle lends dramatic effect to tragedy.

            The “Sublime” is another useful element in the genre of Tragedy. For an audience or reader of a Tragic play, “the sublime” offers us pleasure mixed with pain. It is capable of producing strong emotions within the human mind, allowing us to reach out to a character in pity, while at the same time recoiling from that same character in disgust. The sublime allows the reader of a tragic play to merge their own human characteristics with those of the character. As a reader begins to feels sorrow for a character, he is emotionally drawn into that character; almost creating a single being.  An excellent example of the sublime comes from Euripides’ Hippolytos. On page 11, we have Phaedra ask, “What do they mean, when people say, “in love?”. The Nurse answers, “The sweetest and most stinging honeyed pain”. The emotion of the Nurse’s line pulls from the readers past experiences, and emotions are pulled to the surface. This allows the reader to become almost one with Phaedra; and the sublime has done its job.

            Spectacle and sublime work just as magically together as they do separately. When working together, these two allow us not only to become aware of considerable action within the play, but they also allow us to feel the characters’ grief, anxiety, fear, or joy. Spectacle and the sublime create awareness and emotion. They bring life to Tragedy. One example of spectacle and sublime being used together can be seen in the dance scene of Desire Under the Elms. Cabot’s bizarre actions and Abbie’s somewhat lost state within the scene mix spectacle with sublime to create strong emotions with the reader.  A little later, in Scene Three, we are given this coupling again. Although the actual spectacle of the smothering of the baby is repressed, we are still given spectacle in the form of Abbie bending over the cradle, her sobbing, moving swiftly toward the bedroom door, and finally running wildly into Eben’s arms. The sublime within this scene is very strong. As human beings we feel Abbie’s fear and grief as she shrinks away from the cradle with a gesture of horror. We are filled with pity, fear, and disgust all at the same time. In both these scenes, the use of spectacle and the sublime have coupled together to give a full spectrum of visual and emotional effect upon the reader.

             Spectacle and the Sublime are two elements of Tragedy that work separately, as well as together, to create an affective form of literature. When just the right amount of each is used, these two elements can create a physically and emotionally memorable experience for the audience member or reader.