1. What are the differences between comedy and Tragedy?
Aristotle regarded comedy as the reverse of tragedy. The difference between them is a fundamental difference of theme and treatment, characterisation and atmosphere,
- The basic difference between comedy and tragedy is their objects of imitation. Tragedy idealises characters men as better or higher than they actually are comedy on the other hand-caricatures characters- shown men as worse or lower than they actually are.
- A comic character has some defect which produces laughter.A tragic character, on the other hand, has some error in judgement as a result of which he moves from happiness to misery, which arouses pity and fear in the spectators.
- Comedy deals with the basic foibles and follies of human nature. While tragedy is concerned with ennobling the aspects of human nature which deserves to be ennobled, comedy is concerned with those ridiculous aspects pf human nature, which deserve to be ridiculed.
2. Is there any similarity between them?
It may be said that whereas tragedy deals with the unusual but moral; comedy deals with the abnormal but not unusual It is not possible to say with conviction what Aristotle's Views on comedy are. But we can try and make a guess at the possible views Aristotle might have had on comedy.(i) It is clear that like a tragedy, a comedy would have to have a single action.
(ii) It is also clear that the laws of probability and necessity would have to be followed by the poet of comedies as well as by the poet of tragedies.
(iii) Both in tragedy and comedy, plot gains primary importance, The events of tragedy have to be painful and fearful, but the incidents of comedy are ludicrous or ridiculous.
(iv) Like a tragedy, a comedy does not rule out reversal and recognition.
Thus though there are some similarities between tragedy and comedy in construction, they are different from each other.