Document Type : Original Article
Authors
1 PhD Student of Philosophy, Central Tehran Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran
2 Associate Professor, Department of Philosophy, Central Tehran Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran
3 Professor of Art Research Department, Faculty of Art, Central Tehran Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran
Abstract
Catharsis is one of the most controversial ideas presented in the realm of aesthetics and the philosophy of art. Aristotle's lack of a precise definition of this concept in "Poetics" is one of the reasons for its ambiguity. This issue has led critics and philosophers to speculate about this idea and offer various interpretations of it. In this article, we will attempt to address the most prominent interpretations that have emerged regarding this idea. From this perspective, we will examine three significant interpretations of this concept that have been proposed in three different domains: ethical (purification), psychological (refinement), and epistemological (clarity). Alongside this, we will also explore the relationship of this idea with other aesthetic concepts, including tragic pleasure, tragic flaw, and tragic knowledge. Additionally, we will review the views of some philosophers, such as Nietzsche and Hume, who have had concerns about tragedy and have written extensively on the subject—particularly those passages that have contributed to the clarification of the concept of catharsis. Ultimately, we will demonstrate that the idea of catharsis is one characterized by uniqueness and plurality, which cannot be reduced to abstract concepts of thought and cannot be confined within the framework of a singular grand narrative. Instead, it finds its meaning and specific functionality depending on the perspective from which it is viewed or the context in which it is employed.
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