What is pathos in literature: definition and examples

2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 05:25

A reader of any genre of literature sooner or later thinks about what pathos is. This phenomenon occurs quite often, and therefore it is important for people to know detailed information about it. An explanation of the terminology with the history of occurrence and division into varieties can be found in the article.

Old terminology

If we translate what pathos is, literally from the Greek language, then the term will mean passion, suffering or inspiration. Aristotle was the first to give a correct explanation of this literary device. This is the transfer of a feeling of fear or other strong emotions through a powerful act of the hero. Most often, these are tragic events that introduce the reader into a state of catharsis, where what happened can be rethought. The suffering of the protagonist is caused by his own actions and the sequence of events that happens after them. A strong passion or inspiration always pushes a character to such actions, and therefore strong experiences for readers or viewers of creation are guaranteed. Modern writers speak of pathos as the emotional tone of a work or mood, which is where the varieties came from.

First Applications

What ispathos, was unknown until speakers began to actively use this technique. The skill of speaking well was not given to everyone, because it was difficult to deliver speeches to a large crowd of people. That is why the basic concepts were created, which could be guided by. The term "logos" denoted all the knowledge and ideas of the speaker, which he will be able to use during the proclamation of the speech. "Ethos" is a set of personal qualities of a person and their use in front of a group of listeners to awaken moral ideals. In turn, the concept of "pathos" was the exact opposite of the second term. These are the emotions conveyed from the author's lips, which should set a certain tone for the mood of the listeners. They may not always be positive, because everything depends on the goals pursued by the speaker. For example, for indignation, pathos should be used as an indication of certain vices, maliciously ridicule something, have completely negative features.

Sacrifice of heroes

Every reader knows what the pathos of the heroic style is, where the main characters are great warriors, fighters for a just cause and other types of this kind. The central character seeks to commit an important act, and therefore necessarily takes risks for himself or loved ones. Without this important feature, heroic pathos cannot exist. The same role can be played by some important human values or moral principles. The second prerequisite for using the technique is the needact freely. Taking risks with possible victims under someone's coercion will no longer be heroic. Only a powerful free urge to change the world or create one's own ideals can give the reader an accurate sense of what heroic pathos is. Vivid examples of this technique are most of the heroes of Greek mythology. This list includes Hercules, Achilles, Hector, Perseus and others who are remembered for their risky exploits in order to achieve the goal.

Dramatic Narrative

The meaning of the word "pathos" can be understood by the example of a dramatic style, where the technique is used in most cases. In works with its presence, the author tries to convey as accurately and emotionally as possible all the spiritual anxieties and suffering of the characters. In this case, there is no orientation towards the main character, because each person on the pages of the book can experience an internal struggle, misunderstandings in his personal life, a general misunderstanding of innermost ideas. These problems are considered under the prism of detail, so that the reader can better understand the whole point. It is not uncommon for writers to use this technique along with condemning the characters for their actions, the wrong way of thinking, or the negative tendencies that led to the issue. There are times when drama arises under the pressure of external factors that can even split a person into parts. Then the drama already fully develops into a tragedy, which Bulgakov perfectly showed in the novel "Running".

Tragedy on the pages

Tragic pathosin literature is far from uncommon and is used in a wide variety of styles. It is determined by the full awareness of their losses, which can no longer be returned back. This loss must necessarily be weighty in order to show the whole tragedy of the events taking place. These can be life values, the collapse of moral principles, the demonstration of the falsity of ideology, the obsolescence of cultural trends, and most often just a death. It can be one of the central characters or someone close to you. Such losses must necessarily be natural in the course of a conflict. If this is not the case, then the meaning of the word "pathos" in its main form will be lost. Another important feature of the tragic style of applying the technique is the obligatory resolution of the problem that has happened, but with the losses described above. Vivid examples in this case are the narratives "The White Guard" by Bulgakov or "Thunderstorm" by Ostrovsky.

Ridicule

It is sometimes difficult to understand what pathos is in literature, using the example of a satirical style. All because the author indignantly ridicules the various vices of people, their existence in everyday life, different ideologies and other things. Most often, a certain type of character that the character in the plot has becomes a model for the use of satire. Such a person does not represent anything, but objectively tries to be incredibly important, smart, insightful. To endow oneself with other properties that are not at all inherent in it is the main message for the emergence of satirical pathos. Whena person begins to emotionally rethink such a character, then he will most often be angered by such a contradiction or cause laughter. Gogol perfectly showed the application of the technique in a deceitful laudatory tone, which he used to describe the upper strata of society in the capital of his time. Irony and satire in this case are designed to show a paradox, from which an ordinary thinking person wants to laugh. Often satire shows the absurdity of a person, which leads to disgust in readers.

Direct feelings

Types of pathos in literature are different, and sentimental takes its place among them. This technique is used by the authors quite skillfully, because sensitivity is inherent in every person. This word translated into French and denotes the name of the style. The reception is often portrayed to show sympathy for a person with his troubles, but no action is provided here. Sentimentality plays the role of a psychological substitute for real physical help. Such experiences within themselves can be experienced even by a lonely character who is upset for certain reasons. This can be seen in Goethe's "The Sufferings of Young Werther", where the protagonist, a young boy, sought to get into the society of nobles. When he managed to do this, he was stunned by the principles by which they live. In order to somehow heal this wound, the guy is looking for himself in the simplicity of rural life, helping poor people, admiring nature. Hopeless love was added to the general sentimental emotions, which led to suicide.

Romance

The rise of civil liberty in its actions for the romantic personality is directly related to the pathos style of the same name. The protagonist dreams of certain ideals in a characteristic manner, which causes a state of delight within himself. Characters who show examples of romantic pathos are always spiritually rich, but they fail to show this trait. Life always puts spokes in their wheels, does not allow them to fully open up, which brings notes of tragedy. For society, romantic individuals with a characteristic manifestation of feelings are always outcasts and are not accepted into the ranks of ordinary people. There is a conflict between a bright romantic personality and society, which does not want to understand the desire of a spiritually rich person for ideals.