Classical Drama

Course Title: Classical Drama
Final Term Paper
Submitted by: Mehak Arshad
M.Phil (2015-2017)


"Tragedy dramatises the undoing of the harmony and balance showing their replacement with chaos. It does so by counterpoising the protagonists' tragic characteristics with their opposites" (Word Limit: 3000-5000 words)
Tragedy- a regal concept and perhaps a casually used term of modern day , is understood as a series of miserable events. Events that evoke "effeminate" feelings (Eagleton 153). It would not be wrong to say that tragedy is the manifestation of disruption of peace or natural order. This imbalance instigates a turmoil, quite reminiscent of Yeats' verse : "...Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold;/ Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world." (The Second Coming).
Before proceeding it is essential to establish the cause of such anarchy and how it is brought about. The statement clearly says that it is done by the juxtaposition of the "protagonists' tragic characteristics with their opposites". The word incorporated is "opposites" which can be catered on two different levels. Opposites can be external forces, depicting an exoteric conflict. It can be gods or God at work, the cunning ventriloquist-Fate or society, which persuades an individual to become a product of his/her circumstance. Secondly, "opposites" can also refer to the binaries within a character making the conflict esoteric in nature. The tragic hero is bestowed with a 'tragic flaw', which testifies that gods/God, Fate or society are not the only participants of the blame game. Like Bradley puts it "...catastrophe follow inevitably from the deeds of men, and that the main source of deeds is character" (Substance of Tragedy 13). It is the hero/ protagonist's own actions that bring about chaos in an otherwise stabilized world.
For instance, in Christopher Marlowe's Dr. Faustus, the protagonist is introduced through an analogy with the mention of "waxen wings" (Faustus 3) which establishes his stature equivalent to that of Icarus. He wants to transcend his limitations. And this character asks for nothing ordinary but the "art" to "afford" "greater miracle", to "make men live eternally" or "being dead, raise them to life again" (Faustus 3)--attributes that are exclusively God's monopoly. Although he is conscious of the fact that he is still a "man". "What art thou still but Faustus, and a man" (Faustus 3). Hence it is a direct challenge to the supreme authority which can be regarded as a disturbance in the natural order, a shift in the matrix of the universe's design. This blasphemous endeavor "to practice more than heavenly power permits" would not be overlooked therefore he is "condemned to death". His position evokes the image of the "Tree of Knowledge" and "Tower of Babel" from the book of Genesis and the story of Job (1:8-12) from the book of Job. In his case the opposing force is actually 'The Force'- God himself as "heavens" have conspired his "overthrow". Faustus' conflict is unique in a sense that it is a wager between man-with his dilemma to go beyond the human limitations and achieve knowledge and God--who has "conspired" his downfall. Thus the ventriloquist here is none other than "El-Qanna", the Jealous God, moving the chess pieces high above, causing calamity down on mankind.
In a similar fashion, Oedipus Rex, is a play that brings to surface grave existential concerns like Fate, predestination and the question of man's existence. In his case it is Fate that is set as an opposing force. It bestows him with misfortune while he remains oblivious. He marries Jocasta, in a customary way as a king should when he conquers a land. There is a smooth course being followed until an unnatural or abnormal incident takes place to disrupt the natural order of things-incest. Oedipus, little did he know that the queen he married was actually his mother. He commits incest, marking the onset of his fall. Since the order is disturbed, chaos ensues. In the text, Oedipus reiterates that he is not destined for a peaceful existence rather reserved or "saved for another fate- strange and terrible" and he had no option but to "let what is destined happen" (Oedipus Rex 1456-1458). On one hand is Oedipus with the guilt of incest and on the other is Fate. Needless to say that Sophocles has established fate as an antagonist, unjust and superior when set against the protagonist. Hence, there is a tug of war between the "whole or order" of the universe and the individual. According to Bradley, the "individual part shows itself powerless" (qtd. in Leech 7). Oedipus is reduced to a mere puppet, with his strings being controlled by Fate.
Euripedes' Medea, unlike Oedipus or Dr. Faustus is not a portrayal of man versus God/Fate it is in fact individual and society. It is society that has triggered a catastrophe and ultimately led to the creation of a "child murderess" (Medea 756). Right from her advent at Corinth, her place as the other is established she is an "alien" constantly being subjected to alienation has rendered her without a foothold. Moreover, Jason who's "love" had "smitten" her "soul" (Medea 723) betrays her for a "royal bride" and Medea is "banished from her land" (Medea 740). A wife has been wronged and a mother cheated, once again the natural order has been shaken. It is important to note that it is evil human actions that force her to take desperate measures. There can be an argument that it is Medea's own character flaw as "all her love" has now "turned to hate, and tenderest ties are the weakest" (Medea 723) but the society's contribution in her tragedy cannot be overlooked. It is the society that has created an imbalance inverted the ideal of a mother to a "murderess" (Medea 756). It is a "father's feeble lust" that has resulted in the creation of a "vile" "mother" (Medea 755) and a "cursed witch"(Medea 756). In this case it can be concluded that society set was against the protagonist, she was merely "an innocent victim of the malignant outside forces and responsible" (Napieralski 441) fuelling a catastrophe for herself as those around her.
Then comes the second category. Characters possessing binaries within, making their conflict quintessentially internal or esoteric. It is not necessarily the intervention of gods/God or Fate that brings about the downfall or destruction but the own actions of individuals. The "tragic flaw" as Aristotle calls it. This concept can be better understood in terms of Jung's theory of Individuation that he presented in "On the Psychology and Phenomenology of the So-Called Occult Phenomena" published in 1902. According to him, every individual has potential "splinter-personalities" that "manifest" themselves during "seances" that were evidently "components of more comprehensive personality hidden in their unconscious psyche" (qtd in. Ways to Individuation). He is basically endorsing the idea that individuals have "splits" within themselves and these counter-personalities reside within and they have a tendency to materialize. Moreover, he elucidates that a balance can be restored through the integration or reconciliation between these splits. Which ushers us to the former point that if there is no reconciliation or resolution it reinstates the fact that there is a disorder that prevails. Ultimately leading to chaos. Shakespeare, the literary genius takes this to a whole new level, making it problematic. Not only does he give a psychological insight into the characters but also intensifies it by juxtaposition of his characters with their opponents.
Richard III for example, is an intense study of psychology as it chiefly revolves around the exploration of Richard's mind who happens to be the protagonist as well as the villain. We see binaries within him. And within the parameters of these "opposites" it is the evil that supersedes, causing an imbalance and consequently ushering towards self-destruction. The play opens with the stage set after a lengthy civil war and Richard utters these lines :
"...since I cannot prove a lover
To entertain these fair well-spoken days,
I am determined to prove a villian
And hate the pleasure of these idle days." (I.i)
Vividly showing that Richard's has decided that to side with the evil. Interestingly as Jung ponited out, such "splits" manifest themselves during the "seances" or spiritual encounters. The dialogue here is also a soliloquy, Richard talking to himself. It is during this soliloquy that the audience get a preview into his mental topography. This too can be regarded as a distortion of the natural order as his "shadow" dominates his "self". There is an "undoing of harmony". This abnormality results in self-destruction. It is his "tragic flaw" the lust for throne that makes him commit atrocities. He murders Clarence, King Edward, the two princes, Queen Anne and all those who proved to be a hindrance in his way.
Later in the text he says:
"...What do I fear? Myself? There's none else by.
Richard loves Richard;that is, I am I.
Is there a murderer here?No. Yes, I am.
Then fly! What, from myself? Great reason. Why:
Lest I revenge. Myself upon myself?" (V.v.136-40)
Richard's speech towards the end of the play reiterates the same notion, giving an insight into his conscience as well. To pacify himself he assures that he his by himself but that rejuvenates the fear as the insidious is inexhaustibly haunting. Frightened, he suggests himself to run away but realizes that he cannot run from himself.
Moving on, if a comparison is drawn between Richard and his opponent-Richmond he possesses all those attributes that Richard does not. For instance he is pious for he calls out "God and your arms be praised! victorious friends". (V.v 19) while Richard resonates "I am" equating him with The Great "I am". His reign merely brought "bloody days" while Richmond promises "fair prosperous days" balancing out his vices with his virtue. This not only establishes him as a complete individual but also fit for the throne. Hence we see that formerly the state of anarchy that prevailed "England hath long been mad, and scarred herself ;/ The brother blindly shed the brother's bood." has now been transformed as "civil wounds have stopped" and "peace lives again" (V.v.40)
Macbeth potrays a similar tragedy. It is a tragedy of political over-ambition, fused with intense psychological suffering on part of the tragic hero. Macbeth murders King Duncan, thwarting the natural order, after receiving the prophesy of his future as the king by the witches."Fair" becomes "foul" and "foul becomes fair" (I.i 11) Like Richard, the evil dominates and he is no longer full of the "milk of human kindness". The unnatural ensues only on an individual level but affecting the State at large. When Macduff reports Malcolm of the state of affairs he talks about the "misery" "chanced" upon his country and the "bloody tyranny of Macbeth" which means that his vaulting ambition and lust to hanker after the "crown" without any "right or title" has rendered Scotland infested with mayhem. Not only that , the muder has mental repercussions and we see the chaos seeping in as he can "sleep no more" and the guilt overpowers him to his death. Shakespeare brings to surface a problematic question in front of his audience. The leaves it to them to decipher the direction of his conflict that is whether it was the prophesy (external) that corrupted him, or was there a presence corruption in his soul and the witches simply stirred it ? Was the protagonist juxtaposed against fate or himself? Whatever the reasons may be but his actions lead him to his downfall.
Lear's tragedy in King Lear also germinates from his "tragic flaw" which creates a disproportion in the set of natural order. The effects of his tragedy can be seen on a family as well as political level. It is his foolish decision of dividing his kingdom " Give me map there. Know, that we have divided/ In three our Kingdom: and 'tis our fast intent " ( I.i. 12) that leads to his doom. Not only did he banish his daughter, Cordelia " Here I disclaim all my paternal care,/ Propoinquinty and property of blood/ And as a stranger to my heart and me, Hold thee from this forever..." (I.i.29) but also reduced himself to the mercy of Regan and Goneril daughters who "flattered him like a dog" and told him that the "white hair" in his "beard" were actually "black" (IV.vi. 21).It is only after the divison that the is able to see their true faces. Ultimately he is reduced to the stature of a "wretched fool" and a "dog". Cordelia on the other hand is sentenced to death. Bradley in Shakespearean Tragedy argues that within the structure of tragedy it is mandatory that "calamity" or "catastrophe" should be succeeded by "death. Unfortunately, it is too late when Edgar receives the message. Lear cannot save her and his "poor fool is hang'd" ( V.iii) . Despite calling out "Pray you undo this button" he cannot "undo" what he himself initiated. One decision has set the entire plot in motion and against Lear's fall.In the end he dies of a heart break which is tragic.
In Hamlet , Prince Hamlet is burdened with the weight of vengeance and saddened because of his mother's act. Surely there is an imbalance set from the beginning as something is "rotten in the state of Denmark" and the reason is not merely the death of Claudius' "dear brother " or those "incestuous sheets" but the tension is deeper. His conflict is internal as Bradley aptly calls him "philosopher king". He is stuck between an existential crisis:
"To be, or not to be, that is the question:
Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer
The slings and arrows of outrageous Fortune,
Or to take arms against the sea of troubles..." (III.i6-10)
He is fixated between indecisiveness and overthinking which becomes his tragic flaw of character marking his downfall. Right from the start we find him contemplating the idea of suicide. "Oh,that this too too solid-flesh, would melt/Thaw, and resolve itself into a dew:/Or that the Everlasting had not fix'd/ His canon 'gainst self-slaughter.O God, O God! /How werary, stale, flat and unprofitable /seems to me all the uses of this world!" (I.ii20-24) As in Richard III , the audience is informed about this "splits" through his soliloquy that are no different from Jung's "seances". There is already a turmoil within his being and we do not see a "reconciliation" or "assimilation" of the binaries within his own character, as Jung propounded. His makings are perhaps of a "philosopher" and not of a king. Claudius on the other hand is not as passive as Hamlet, he introduced as an effective acting head who has restored peace to a "war-like State" (I.ii 24) by taking an "imperial jointress" (whatever the means may be) and ordering instructions to Voltemand and Cornelius. Whereas it literally takes Hamlet four long acts to commit the deed. Not only that we also see Claudius' haste when he discovers that Hamlet is a threat, at once orders are sent to the King of England to get Hamlet killed. When that fails Claudius manipulates Laertes and fuels his vengeance by saying "Requite for your father" (IV.vii 138). A stark difference can be observed unlike Hamlet he is not a man of words but rather of deeds.
In the light of the given argument it can be deduced that tragedy is the depiction of disrupted harmony or disorder in the natural course of events that arises by a "tragic flaw" human action like in Hamlet, Richard III and Macbeth or imposed by external forces like fate in Oedipus, gods in Agamemnon or God in Dr. Faustus. This imbalance is sought by equating or juxtaposing the protagonists with their "opposites" which then complements to even out the disproportion . In some exceptions however, the proportion is deliberately distorted so as to show one side overpowering and superior than the other. This can also be taken as an attempt to render the readers questioning whether characters chose the tragedy or tragedy chose them.








Works Cited
Bradley. A.C. "The Substance of Shakespearan Tragedy." Shakespearean Tragedy. 2nd ed.
London: Macmillan, 1919. EPUB File.
Eagleton, Terry. Sweet Violence: The Idea of the Tragic. London: Blackwell Publishing, 2003. PDF File.
Euripedes.Medea.The Complete Greek Drama.Trans. E. P. Coleridge. Whitney. J. Oates and Eugene O'Neil,Jr. Eds.vol.1.ed.1.723-762.PDF.File.
Leech, Clifford. Tragedy: The Critical Idiom. London: Taylor & Francis e-Library: 2002. PDF File.
Napieralski, Edmund A. "The Tragic Knot: Paradox in the Experience of Tragedy." The Journal of Aesthetics and Art Criticism 31.4 (1973): 441-449. JSTOR. 29 December 2015.
Marlowe, Christopher. The Tragical History of Doctor Faustus. Ed. Rev. Alexandar Dyce.
Shakespeare, William. Macbeth. Ed. Roma Gill. UK: Oxford University Press 2001.Print.
----.Richard III. London: Popular Penguin Classics, 1994. Print.