The book builds on richard jankos aristotle on comedy 1984, which argued that the supposed abstract or epitome of poetics book two. Tractatus coislinianus is an ancient greek manuscript outlining a theory of comedy in the. Aristotles poetics is the earliest surviving work of dramatic theory and first extant philosophical. The lost second book of aristotles poetics by walter watson. Its discoverer suggested that it derived from the lost second book of aristotles poetics, which inaugurated the systematic study of comedy, but it was soon condemned as an ignorant compilation verging on forgery, and thus matters stood until the first publication of aristotle on comedy in 1984. This form was derived through a combining of prior forms. A document known as the tractatus coislinianus, first recovered in the biblioteque nationale in paris in 1839, appears to be a summary of aristotle s second book.
Core terms edit mimesis or imitation, representation, or expression, given that, e. Finally, more than two millennia after it was first written, and after five hundred years of scrutiny, aristotles poetics is more complete than ever before. In the poetics, aristotle writes that he will speak of comedybut there is no further mention of comedy. Walter watson brings a deep perspective steeped in aristotles entire philosophy to the study of aristotles view of comedy and. Aristotle writes also that he will address catharsis and an. Preliminary discourse on tragedy, epic poetry, and comedy, as the chief forms of imitative poetry. Read download the lost second book of aristotles poetics. Now, philosopher walter watson offers a new interpretation of the lost second book of aristotle s poetics. The lost second book of aristotles poetics is a core plot element in umberto ecos bestseller novel, the name of the rose. The lost second book of aristotles poetics bryn mawr classical.
Of all the writings on theory and aestheticsancient, medieval, or modernthe most important is indisputably aristotles poetics, the first philosophical treatise to propound a theory of literature. Here, at last, aristotle s lost second book is found again. Such scholars fail to appreciate the achievements of robertellus, bernays, and lane cooper, who have shown us how much can be done with the extant text of the poetics in terms of uncovering a solid basis for a theory of comedy. Of all the writings on theory and aestheticsancient, medieval, or modernthe most important is indisputably aristotles poetics, the first philosophical treatise to.