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Milton's preface to 'Samson Agonistes.' (John Milton)

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From: The Explicator
Date: 19940101
Author:Hale, John K.

John Milton prefaced his dramatic poem, 'Samson Agonistes,' with a reference to Aristotle's definition of tragedy as having the power to purge the mind of passions by tempering and reducing them to 'just measure.' This reference to the cathartic power of tragedy is understood by analyzing the multiple meanings rendered by the words 'temper' and 'reduce.' The words carry mutually reinforcing meanings that metaphorically imply that catharsis is purification in a religious sense, enlightenment in an intellectual sense or homeopathic purging.

"Tragedy, as it was anciently compos'd, hath ever ...

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