This is the strongest indication of a tragic and most certainly a bloody ending, especially when Alfieri says that he was ‘powerless’ to stop it. This is a clear indication that this is classic tragedy because of the evident influences of Shakespeare and most importantly Aristotle. The Aristotelian influence here is that Aristotle said that once the tragic events unfold, they couldn’t be stopped. There are also Shakespearian elements to the play as well. The fist of which is the prologue. This was used by Shakespeare to create a sense of destiny. The audience new what was going on before anybody else but were also powerless to do anything, hence the creation of suspense in the audience.
The creation of tension is shown in two ways. The first one is what the characters say, either with hidden meanings or with meanings behind words. The second, which is the subtext or stage directions, show what the characters actions are. Most of the time the tension is created in the subtext because of the body language and the expression on peoples faces often say more than words ever can. This is shown when in the subtext Marco lifts a chair by the bottom of one of the legs with one hand over eddies head and gives a glare of warning to Eddie.
Catharsis is an Aristotelian element of tragedy. It is produced in the play when the level of tension and suspense reach a climatic stage, and finally lead to a tragic outcome. Catharsis is a purging of emotions and this is achieved when the tension and suspense is over, and the audience feel an emotional release because the tense moments are over and done with. This shows the influence of classic Aristotelian elements in the play.
The opening description of the house/flat show that’s it’s a small flat with two bedrooms and a living room and a kitchen. They are all in a crammed in a claustrophobic space where temper and aggression can be allowed to be built up and so leading to an outburst of emotions through violence, which can often be the tragic element in the play. Because of the increasing tension in Eddie the main character, he is propelled along his tragic course. The confined space of the flat and the tightly packed community of Italian immigrants lead him to his own downfall, which also involves family members and members of the community.
The teachings of the play are still very important today because the concepts in the lay aren’t specific to the time in which it was written. The concepts in the play are about human experience and human nature. The themes brought up in the play include, law and natural justice (street law), family relationships, love, revenge, jealousy, community and very day life. These are no new concepts to us, and will never disappear from our communities. Alfieri also makes this point but in a more subtle way. He says; “ it has happened when our fore fathers were in Sicily, it’s happening now, and will go on happening for many more years”.
This is another indication that it is a classic tragedy because it contains the basic elements that create drama and tragedy. The raw instincts and emotions, as well as the fatal flaw are what cause the hero to start the process of his own destruction and there is the feeling that this potential is wasted.
I learned a lot from the play. I learned that tragedies are usually structured around Aristotelian ideas. His teachings from centuries ago are still being communicated through film and theatre. I learned that envy, greed, lust, and revenge are what make tragedies compelling and dramatic. The point of a tragedy is to have a character who important and liked by the audience but can be corrupted by natural/primitive human emotions that lead to event foreseen by an outside observer. These inform events and involve the audience in the play and the plot. When conflict is involved in the play it usually creates tension and aggression. When Marco is released from jail and meets Eddie on the street, the audience’s attention is totally captured by the obvious inevitability of the event about to unfold before them. They struggle and fight, and than Eddie pulls out a knife on Marco. We the audience are led to believe that Marco will die due to eddies irrational state of mind. Marco uses his superior strength to turn the knife around and kills Eddie.
Immediately I learned that the death that the death of the main character is the best way to end a play because all the chaos and turmoil is all over and everything is brought into perspective. Tragedies like this one often have didatic element to them, (they have a moral and teach the audience). The audience go away with a purging of emotions, as well as something to ponder about when they go home.
I would class ‘A View From The Bridge’ as a classic because the main character dies at the end in tragic events. But that alone is not enough to be able to call this play a classic tragedy. There are many element of Aristotelian tragedy in this play, also used by Shakespeare. Many would argue that this isn’t a classic tragedy because it isn’t in the right time period and that the play is predictable. But I do not think that a tragedy has to happen in a specific time period because tragic events happen every day and will go on happening for many years to come. Tragedies tend to teach us about our own nature and teach us about basic universal truths. This play deals with universal qualities of the human experience. This play has dealt with all the key themes of the human experience that would rather not be acquired by most men such feelings as anger, greed jealousy, and lust. But this is the human experience that cannot be avoided so therefore tragedies cannot be avoided.
In conclusion I personally view ‘A View From A Bridge’ as a classic tragedy.
