Starter quiz
- Which of the following is the definition of a tragedy play?
- a play with a light or humorous tone that often features amusing incidents
- a play dealing with sad events and which has an unhappy ending ✓
- a play based on a historical event, usually set sometime in the past
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- Which of the following could be considered a supernatural element in a play or text?
- ghosts ✓
- the weather
- a hidden treasure
- a curse ✓
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- Match the word with the definition.
- pride⇔having an excessively high opinion of oneself or one's own importance ✓
- ambition⇔desire and determination to achieve success ✓
- jealousy⇔unhappiness and anger because someone has something you want ✓
- Which of the following Shakespeare plays is a tragedy?
- 'Macbeth' ✓
- 'A Midsummer Night's Dream'
- 'Much Ado About Nothing'
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- 'Of or situated on the inside' is the definition of which word beginning with 'i'?
- 'internal' ✓
- 'The development of events outside a person's control, regarded as predetermined by a supernatural power' is the definition of which word beginning with 'f'?
- 'fate' ✓
Exit quiz
- Shakespeare's 'Romeo and Juliet' is an example of a ...
- comedy play.
- history play.
- tragedy play. ✓
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- Which of the following are conventions of a Shakespearean tragedy?
- mistaken identity
- supernatural elements ✓
- conflict ✓
- ending with a marriage
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- In Shakespeare's 'Romeo and Juliet', the conflict between the Montagues and Capulets is an example of __________ conflict in the play.
- internal
- external ✓
- psychological
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- 'A fatal flaw leading to the downfall of a tragic hero or heroine' is the definition of which of the following?
- anagnorisis
- catharsis
- hamartia ✓
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- In Shakespeare's 'Romeo and Juliet', Romeo's hamartia is arguably his...
- pride
- jealousy
- impulsiveness ✓
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- Which of the following is the definition of catharsis?
- a moment in a play or other work when a character makes a critical discovery
- the reversal from one state of affairs to its opposite
- the process of releasing strong emotions ✓
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Lesson Details
Key learning points
- A tragedy is a play dealing with tragic events and often ends with a death.
- Shakespearean tragedies conventionally involve a tragic hero with a hamartia.
- Conventionally, Shakespearean tragedies involve supernatural elements and fate which can add discomfort.
- Shakespearean tragedies also involve internal and external conflict as well as a battle of good vs. evil.
- At the end of a tragedy the audience experiences a release of pent up emotions called catharsis.
Common misconception
That good vs. evil is easy to recognise in characters when reading stories or watching plays.
In tragedies, sometimes a character can embody both good and evil or there could be different perceptions of a character's nature.
Keywords
Tragedy - a play dealing with tragic events and often ends with a death
Conventions - a way in which something is usually done
Catharsis - the process of releasing, and thereby providing relief from, strong or repressed emotions
Tragic hero - the central character of a play, film, etc., depicted as a noble figure who experiences a tragic downfall
Hamartia - a fatal flaw leading to the downfall of a tragic hero or heroine
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