Rebecca Watts

True Meaning of Tragedy

When the genre of Tragedy is spoken of, it conjers thoughts of sadness, violence, and usually death. In fact, when I registered for this class, I automatically associated with a depressing mood, as any story that is tragic is typically understood to not have a favorable conclusion. However, I have learned that Tragedy can be very desirable and necessary to be well rounded in the literary world.

            I believe that one reason that Tragedy is so appealing is that as human beings we feel a need to walk in someone shoes during their lowest moments in life. A tragic story grounds us and brings us back to reality. Life is very short and precious, and Tragedy is there to remind us that we should not take life for granted. I have always appreciated a well told story that examines life to its deepest core, and explores the fact that life isn’t always full of happy moments. Tragic events shape our lives and develop us better as human beings. Because of this I think that Tragedy is considered the greatest genre. While a Comedy may be more appealing to a wider audience, the impact of a Comedy is more short lived and less meaningful. Tragedy, on the other hand, has the ability to reach into the depths of our soul, and truly question our existence and purpose in life. A well told tragic story has the potential to stay with us for a long time, and is something we will refer back to over the years.

            A new term that I have learned this semester is the Oedipal/Electral conflict. This seems to be a popular theme among Tragedies, as told in Oedipus the King, Hamlet, and Mourning Becomes Electra. All three plays explore the element of love between parent and child, and how this love can appear to extend beyond family norms. However, when these plays are examined more closely, we can compare them to our own lives, perhaps not to such extremes, but they are evident of the relationships between mother and son or father and daughter and help to explain the reasons for this cross-gender closeness. I believe that the relationship between Lavinia and her father Ezra in Mourning Becomes Electra most closely reflects a daughter’s love for her father and her instinct to place him on the highest of pedestals. Many girls consciously or subconsciously seek a husband with characteristics that closely resemble their father, and I must admit that I married someone who personality wise is a carbon copy of my own father. The Oedipal/Electra conflict is without a doubt a topic that deserves further examining in many tragic stories.

            Perhaps the most interesting aspect of Tragedy that I have learned is the concept of spectacle. I always thought that a tragic play involved a dramatic death scene such as the ending of Romeo and Juliet. While it can be agreed that Romeo and Juliet is a tragic play, the visible deaths are not the norm. Spectacle actually takes away from the play as a whole, leaving the audience shocked to a point where they cannot enjoy and absorb the actual meaning of the story. If the murders of Agamemnon and Cassandra had been shown on stage, it would be a very gruesome and gory sight. Instead the play is written in such a way that the audience knows what happens through Cassandra’s premonitions, yet we don’t have to see it unfold. It is my opinion that a great play should not need to rely upon special effects to convey a meaning or message.

            In taking this class, I have learned that a Tragedy must not necessarily contain a grim spectacle to be appealing. A tragic story is more valuable if the audience can focus on the story line without having to shield their eyes from a horrific murder scene. Tragedy also doesn’t always involve death, it can be centered upon family strife and the outward ripple effect that these problems cause. Finally, a Tragedy has the power to touch the soul of the audience and leave a lasting effect to be remembered for a long time.