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There is less unity in the imitation of the epic poets (plurality of actions) and this is proved by the fact that an epic poem can supply enough material for several tragedies. Aristotle also draws a famous distinction between the tragic mode of poetry and the type of history-writing practiced among the Greeks.
Kullervo, a tragic hero from the Karelian and Finnish Kalevala. The influence of the Aristotelian hero extends past classical Greek literary criticism.Greek theater had a direct and profound influence on Roman theater and formed the basis of Western theater, with other tragic heroes including Macbeth in William Shakespeare's The Tragedy of Macbeth, and Othello in his Othello. [4]
The story of the Iliad follows the great Greek warrior Achilles, as well as his rage and the destruction it causes. Parallel to this, the story also follows the Trojan warrior Hector and his efforts to fight to protect his family and his people. It is generally assumed that, because he is the protagonist, Achilles is the hero of this story.
However, much secular poetry was also written in Latin. Some poems and songs, like the Gambler's Mass (officio lusorum) from the Carmina Burana, were parodies of Christian hymns, while others were student melodies: folksongs, love songs and drinking ballads. The famous commercium song Gaudeamus igitur is one example.
Lyric poems often employed highly varied poetic meters. The most famous of all lyric poets were the so-called "Nine Lyric Poets". [21] Of all the lyric poets, Sappho of Lesbos (c. 630 – c. 570 BC) was by far the most widely revered. In antiquity, her poems were regarded with the same degree of respect as the poems of Homer. [22]
Beowulf is considered an epic poem in that the main character is a hero who travels great distances to prove his strength at impossible odds against supernatural demons and beasts. The poem begins in medias res or simply, "in the middle of things", a characteristic of the epics of antiquity. Although the poem begins with Beowulf's arrival ...
The defining characteristics of the genre are mostly derived from its roots in ancient poetry (epic poems such as Homer's Iliad and Odyssey). An epic is not limited to the traditional medium of oral poetry, but has expanded to include modern mediums including film , theater , television shows , novels , and video games .
Jean-Baptiste Racine (/ r æ ˈ s iː n / rass-EEN, US also / r ə ˈ s iː n / rə-SEEN; French: [ʒɑ̃ batist ʁasin]; 22 December 1639 – 21 April 1699) was a French dramatist, one of the three great playwrights of 17th-century France, along with Molière and Corneille as well as an important literary figure in the Western tradition and world literature.