Catharsis,
the effect of'purgation' or 'purification' achieved by tragic drama, according
to Aristotle's argument in his Poetics (4th century BCE). Aristotle wrote that
a tragedy should succeed 'in arousing pity and fear in such a way as to
accomplish a catharsis of such emotions'. There has been much dispute about his
meaning, but Aristotle seems to be rejecting Plato's hostile view of poetry as
an unhealthy emotional stimulant. His metaphor of emotional cleansing has been
read as a solution to the puzzle of audiences' pleasure or relief in witnessing
the disturbing events enacted in tragedies. Another interpretation is that it
is the protagonist's guilt that is purged, rather than the audience's
feeling of terror. Adjective: cathartic.