 |
LITR 4370
TRAGEDY
Midterm2 Samples 2015 (midterm2 assignment)
Model Answers to Part 3. |
 |
Part 3. Begin Research Report: Write at least
3-4 substantial paragraphs with two sources toward completion of
your Research Report on selected special topic
(to be completed on
Final Exam)
Victoria Webb
2
April 2015
Rise of the
Spectacle and Sublime in Tragedy
A
spectacle is not uncommon by today’s standards in cinema and play productions.
It is the overdramatic moment or object that that draws the viewer in. By
definition, a spectacle is “A specially prepared or arranged display of a more
or less public nature (esp. one on a large scale), forming an impressive or
interesting show or entertainment for those viewing it” (White, Spectacle notes,
2015); in short, it’s the “wow” factor. Sublime, in literature, involves the
description of aesthetics and always in reference to something that is “larger
than life” (White, Sublime notes, 2015). Sublime can the moment in which the
audience or reader is rendered speechless, and this moment can be caused by an
expression of a spectacle. A modern example of a spectacle that many may
remember is this year’s Super Bowl halftime show with Katy Perry and her amazing
performance. The quick changing wardrobe, riding a robotic lion, and “flying”
through the air. That is a spectacle; the moment in which the audience is in awe
of the performance or performer. So now that there is a clear understanding of
what sublime and spectacle entail, the question is how does this relate,
contribute, or fit into tragedy? Traditionally, tragedy displays the repression
of spectacle, for example, a murder only being heard but not seen. However, as
times have changed, the repression of spectacle has lessened and it is the
expression of spectacle that has made modern tragedy all the more tragic.
Before
diving into the modernization of tragedies and spectacles, one must take a look
back at the originals, the classics. In
Libation Bearers, there is a
major repression of spectacle with the dramatic deaths of Clymenestra and
Aegisthus at the hands of Orestes. The audience does not see him actively
murdering his mother and her lover, but the audience is left with their
imagination running wild imagining the grotesqueness of the situation. After
this repression, the audience is given another repression of spectacle when
Orestes begins to have visions of his mother and her lover’s spirit coming after
him looking for revenge. What is different about this repression is that Orestes
describes to the audience what is happening before his eyes. He exclaims “their
eyes drip with blood” (Libation
Bearers, line 1321) and “they’re
coming for [him]” (1325) and runs off of the stage in a panic. While the
audience does not necessarily “see” these images of ghouls with bloody eyes, the
description is enough to give anyone a mental image. So what is worse, the
complete repression of spectacle leaving the audience with their own
imagination, or detailed description of a horror that the audience cannot see?
Aristotle in Poetics writes, "The
spectacle has, indeed, an emotional attraction of its own, but, of all the
parts, it is the least artistic, and connected least with the art of poetry…for
the power of tragedy, we may be sure, is felt even apart from representation and
actors” (6g). Aristotle believes that spectacle should come last in terms of
aesthetics of tragedy; tragedy does not
need the use of spectacle, because of its ability to pull at human emotions.
However, this does not mean that tragedy is ruined by spectacle.
Even in
traditional tragedies, there is not a complete absence of spectacle. The chorus
is Agamemnon wore masks with dramatic expressions on the face and spoke with
booming voices. This was necessary in order to have the entire audiences’
attention, but still was a depiction of spectacle in the performance. The actors
wore elaborate and sometimes vividly colored costumes in order to emphasize
their significance in the play, as well as being identifiable to the entire
audience. In the 1957 film Oedipus
Rex, King Oedipus is adorned in gold
clothes which contrasts greatly form the darker greyish clothes of the rest of
the cast; Queen Jocasta also wears a vibrant wardrobe that separates her from
the rest of the actors. It is because of this use of spectacle that there is no
mistaking the focal characters with any other actor. At 53 minutes into the
movie, the king and queen, in their vibrant clothes, create a spectacle in with
their arms raised and voices exaggeratingly loud. At around 55 minutes, Jocasta
begins to slowly move her head in realization of what is being admitted about
Oedipus’s birth, and this slow but dramatic movement gives the audience an
understanding of the climatic (normally repressed) spectacle that is about to
happen. As tragedy becomes more modernized, the introduction into more obvious
uses of spectacle begin to make its appearance in classic and new tragedies.
Works Cited
Aeschylus. "Libation Bearers" Texts for Craig White's Literature Courses. N.p.,
n.d. Web. 03 Apr. 2015.
"Aristotle’s Poetics." Critical Sources. N.p., n.d. Web. 03 Apr. 2015.
“Oedipus Rex” (1957 Film). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZZUCgq8LfhY.
N.p.,n.d. Web. 03 Apr. 2015.
“Spectacle”. Terms/Themes. N.p., n.d. Web. 03
Apr. 2015
“Sublime”.
Terms/Themes. N.p., n.d. Web. 03 Apr. 2015.
|
|
|
|
|
|
