Chapter 15

With regard to character, there are four things one should aim at. The first and foremost is that the characters be good.A character will be present if, as has been said, speech or action reveals a certain moral choice, whatever it may be; and the character will be good if the choice[Bekker 1454a line 20]is good.Goodness is possible in every class: even a woman may be good, and so may a slave, although perhaps the former is inferior and the latter wholly base.The second aim is propriety. A character may be brave, but it is not fitting for a woman to be brave or formidable in the same way as a man.The third is likeness. This is different[Bekker 1454a line 25]from making the character good and fitting, as described above.The fourth is consistency. Even if the person who provides the subject for the imitation is inconsistent, and such a character is assumed, the character must nevertheless be consistently inconsistent.An example of needless baseness of character is Menelaus in Orestes;of[Bekker 1454a line 30]the unbecoming and inappropriate, the lament of Odysseus in Scylla and the speech of Melanippe;and of inconsistency, Iphigenia at Aulis, for the suppliant Iphigenia bears no resemblance to the woman she becomes afterward.In character, just as in the structure of events, one must always seek either necessity or probability,[Bekker 1454a line 35]so that it is necessary or probable for a person of a certain kind to say or do things of a certain kind, and necessary or probable that this event should follow that one.It is therefore clear that the resolutions of plots must also arise from the[Bekker 1454b][Bekker 1454b line 1]plot itself, and not from a machine, as in Medea and in the episode of the departure by ship in the Iliad.A machine should be used for matters outside the drama: either events that occurred before it and that no human being could know, or later events that[Bekker 1454b line 5]require foretelling and announcement; for we grant to the gods the power to see all things.Nothing irrational should occur within the events; but if it does, it must lie outside the tragedy, as does the irrational element in Sophocles’ Oedipus.Since tragedy is an imitation of people better than ourselves, poets should imitate good[Bekker 1454b line 10]portrait painters; for these artists, while rendering the distinctive form and making their subjects recognizable, paint them more beautiful than they are. So too the poet, when imitating people who are irascible, easygoing, or possess other such traits of character, should make them, while remaining such people, noble—†an example of harshness is Achilles, whom Homer too made good†.[Bekker 1454b line 15]These principles, then, must be preserved, and in addition those effects that depart from the perceptions necessarily attendant upon the poetic art; for errors can often be made in these matters also. Enough has been said about them in the published discussions.

As for character, there are four things at which one should aim. The first and foremost is that the characters be good.A work will have character if, as has been said, the speech or action makes some choice evident, whatever that choice may be; and it will have good character if[Bekker 1454a line 20]the choice is good.Goodness is possible in every class of person. A woman can be good, and so can a slave, although perhaps the former is inferior and the latter wholly insignificant.The second thing is appropriateness. A character may be courageous, but it is not appropriate for a woman to be courageous or formidable in this way.The third is likeness. This is different[Bekker 1454a line 25]from making the character good and appropriate, as previously stated.The fourth is consistency. Even if the person who provides the subject for the imitation is inconsistent and such a character is assumed, he must nevertheless be consistently inconsistent.An example of unnecessary badness of character is Menelaus in Orestes;of what is unsuitable and inappropriate, Odysseus’s lament in Scylla and Melanippe’s speech;[Bekker 1454a line 30]and of inconsistency, Iphigenia at Aulis, for the Iphigenia who begs for her life bears no resemblance to the later Iphigenia.In character, just as in the structure of events, one must always seek either necessity or probability,[Bekker 1454a line 35]so that it is either necessary or probable for a person of a certain kind to say or do things of a certain kind, and either necessary or probable that this event should happen after that one.It is therefore clear that the resolutions of plots must also arise from the plot itself,[Bekker 1454b][Bekker 1454b line 1]and not from a stage machine, as in Medea and in the episode concerning the departure by sea in the Iliad.The machine should instead be used for matters outside the drama: either events that happened beforehand and that a human being could not know, or later events[Bekker 1454b line 5]that require prediction and announcement, since we grant to the gods the ability to see everything.There should be nothing irrational in the events; but if there is, it should lie outside the tragedy, as does the irrational element in Sophocles’ Oedipus.Since tragedy is an imitation of people better than ourselves, poets should imitate good[Bekker 1454b line 10]portrait painters. For those painters, while reproducing a person’s distinctive form and making the portrait resemble him, paint him more beautiful. In the same way, when the poet imitates people who are irascible, easygoing, or possess other such traits of character, he must make them, while retaining those traits, decent—† an example of harshness, such as Achilles, good, and Homer †.[Bekker 1454b line 15]These principles, then, must be observed, and in addition the matters contrary to the perceptions that necessarily accompany the poetic art, since errors can often be made in these matters too. Enough has been said about them in the published discussions.