{"product_id":"decoding-the-tragic-in-aristotle-dana-lacourse-munteanu-9780197836804","title":"Decoding the Tragic in Aristotle: From Involuntariness in the Ethics to the Puzzles of the Poetics","description":"\u003cem\u003eDecoding the Tragic in Aristotle\u003c\/em\u003e posits that a specific form of involuntary action lies at the heart of Aristotle's conception of the tragic-a point that remains unexplained in the \u003cem\u003ePoetics\u003c\/em\u003e. This key insight is illuminated through Aristotle's ethical works, particularly the\u003cem\u003e Nicomachean Ethics \u003c\/em\u003eand \u003cem\u003eEudemian Ethics\u003c\/em\u003e, where the philosopher discusses a type of counter-voluntary error (\u003cem\u003ehamartia\u003c\/em\u003e) rooted in ignorance of particulars. These references clarify the tragic mechanisms behind the most celebrated dramatic structures in Poetics chapters 13 and 14, which have long appeared inexplicably contradictory. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eAristotle's notion of involuntariness is distinct from mere accident, chance, or misfortune. It represents the highest tragic degree when fully integrated into the action that tragedy depicts, evoking the most profound pity, fear, and a sense of wonder. While the ethical treatises help clarify Aristotle's aesthetic theory, they do not-as is sometimes claimed-impose a moral or didactic framework onto tragedy in response to Plato's critique. The \u003cem\u003ePoetics\u003c\/em\u003e remains focused on the structural conditions that best produce the tragic effect, understood as simultaneously emotional, cognitive, and psychologically compelling. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eElsewhere, Aristotle does engage with moral dilemmas--such as Neoptolemus' in Sophocles' \u003cem\u003ePhiloctetes\u003c\/em\u003e--and with ethical and rhetorical problems embedded in drama, aligning more closely with traditional philosophical approaches to tragedy. Yet he carefully distinguishes between what makes a tragedy effective in the \u003cem\u003ePoetics\u003c\/em\u003e and what tragedies are ethically good for in other contexts. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eUltimately, \u003cem\u003eDecoding the Tragic in Aristotle\u003c\/em\u003e reveals Aristotle's concept of the tragic as both singular and forward-looking-anticipating contemporary insights from cognitive theory and neuroaesthetics, which sets it apart from other philosophical and literary accounts.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Dana Lacourse Munteanu\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-10:\u003c\/b\u003e 0197836801\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780197836804\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Oxford University Press\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003e English\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 03\/30\/2026\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 248\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat:\u003c\/b\u003e Hardcover\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 1.13lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 9.37h x 6.58w x 0.85d","brand":"Dana Lacourse Munteanu","offers":[{"title":"Hardcover","offer_id":48447148622079,"sku":"9780197836804","price":105.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0662\/2982\/9887\/files\/img_2ca59baf-7eb5-4766-86f2-3bab061d8f09.jpg?v=1777229162","url":"https:\/\/www.whiterainbookhouse.com\/products\/decoding-the-tragic-in-aristotle-dana-lacourse-munteanu-9780197836804","provider":"WR Book House","version":"1.0","type":"link"}