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II. Relevant Concepts of Tragic Aesthetics
Tragic aesthetics belongs to one of the principle categories of aesthetics. It is defined as the affirmation towards the beauty in dramatic conflicts and tragic artistic expressions. Usually, it is related to loftiness and magnificence which stirs up in people strong emotional resonance and heart-shaking experience. Because of its great artistic appealing, we obtain encouragement and inspiration as well as aesthetic feelings at deep level.
Tragedy refers to the destruction of good or positive characters or object. Conflict, struggle and destruction constitute the three core elements of tragedy. As a form of aesthetics, Tragedy possesses three characteristics that will be discussed in the following parts. The reason that tragedy can produce aesthetic pleasure will also be discussed and we will learn the significant value of tragic aesthetics. When we look at tragedy from the aesthetic perspective rather than pessimistic point of view, it will lead people in the real life to be courageous enough to move ahead in the long journey full of ups and downs.源!自`优尔~文)论(文]网[www.youerw.com
2.1 Tragedy and Tragic Aesthetics
Tragedy has been a type of drama from the beginning of western literature or theater, It is usually ended with the destruction of characters or objects in irreconcilable conflict between man and nature or society. We may get an understanding of the essence of tragedy from the words that Tragedy destroys the valuable treasure in the face of human being to stimulate grief, indignation and reverence to cultivate the moral sentiments of the general public(Lu 132). Tragedy, not like comedy which focuses on entertainment and superficial happiness, aims at revealing the truth of world, the real meaning of life to touch us in the deepest level and enrich our spiritual world.
Conflict, struggle and destruction constitute the three core elements of tragedy. Engels thinks that the essence of tragedy is the contradiction between historical necessity and the requirements that cannot be met. Conflicts are the essence of social existence. Suffering, misfortune or death of the tragic figure is not caused by pure accident, but the result of social conflicts, thus it acquires inherently social necessity under certain historical conditions. Tragic conflict is deeply rooted in two social forces in sharp contradiction, two historical trends, and this contradiction cannot be settled in certain historical periods, which will inevitably lead to failure and perishing of the tragic character required by history. Therefore, suffering of the tragic character arising out of the death, misery, sorrow, fear inevitably accompanied by rational thought in depth will promote the people to understand the necessity of history and law. When people appreciate the tragedy, a deep sense of rationality and a strong sense of emotion as well as the unity of aesthetic activity of psychology will be provoked, awareness of truth is combined with the elevation of spirit, thus a pleasure in tragedy will be provoked.
While appreciating the tragedy, readers can not only feel sad for the suffering of the tragic hero, misery, death and sadness, fear, but at the same time they are amazed at the tragic heroes’ struggle for justice, noble character and strong will caused by surprise, admiration and reverence(Su 9). British scholar Smart said that If a person who were struck by distress accepted it with resignation, that is not the real tragedy. Only when he set to struggle against the misery, even if what he shows is instant vitality, passion or inspiration that makes him surpass himself in usual life, tragedy will be produced in that sense. The charm of tragedy to large extent lies in the struggle or fight (Tao 41). Fight comes along with tragedy, so we always say that without fight, without tragedy (Zhu 82). It is the struggle and fight of the tragic protagonists that contributes to one of the fundamental reasons for the tragedy to be a kind of aesthetic form.