THE POETICS OF ARISTOTLE

A TRANSLATION BY S. H. BUTCHER




[Transcriber's Annotations and Conventions: the translator left intact
some Greek words to illustrate a specific point of the original
discourse. In this transcription, in order to retain the accuracy of this
text, those words are rendered by spelling out each Greek letter
individually, such as {alpha beta gamma delta ...}. The reader can
distinguish these words by the enclosing braces {}. Where multiple words
occur together, they are separated by the "/" symbol for clarity. Readers
who do not speak or read the Greek language will usually neither gain nor
lose understanding by skipping over these passages. Those who understand
Greek, however, may gain a deeper insight to the original meaning and
distinctions expressed by Aristotle.]




Analysis of Contents

I 'Imitation' the common principle of the Arts of Poetry.
II The Objects of Imitation.
III The Manner of Imitation.
IV The Origin and Development of Poetry.
V Definition of the Ludicrous, and a brief sketch of the rise of
Comedy.