Any literary work contains a certain emotional mood that is transmitted to the reader. Some works make the reader sad, others make him laugh, others make him feel proud, as if the reader, and not the hero of the work he read, had committed the deeds described in the book. The feelings that arise when reading force the reader to evaluate everything that happens in the artistic world of a literary work from a special angle, determine his interest, personal participation in the fate of the characters, and empathy. This feature of literary works is called the pathos of the work.
The term “pathos” covers the area of ideological and emotional assessments, the sphere of the writer’s evaluative relations to the objective reality reproduced and comprehended by him. Most embodied in pathos value orientation writer in one or another socio-cultural situation” 1, emphasized A. B. Esin.
1 Esin A. B. “Literary work: typological analysis.” - M., 1992.
Pathos is the main emotional tone, the main emotional mood of the work, as well as the emotional and evaluative coverage of a particular character, event, phenomenon by the author. From this definition it immediately becomes clear that pathos is directly related to the author’s position and the ideological sound of the work. Pathos helps the writer to animate what he creates. art world, and sets the reader up for one or another emotional perception of the characters and events occurring in the artistic world of a literary work.
The general mood, the emotional “atmosphere” of the work organizes the reader’s perception, concentrates his attention on the accents placed by the author when describing his characters and events.
Pathos arises as a result of a complex combination of the author's assessment of the events described and the portrayal of the characters. To identify it, the author’s position and the system of ethical values affirmed in the work are very important, which means that pathos is formed not only by emotions, but also by the thoughts and rational constructions of the author. The rational and emotional in pathos are inextricably fused, determining and supporting each other. M. M. Bakhtin drew attention to this: “Non-evaluative understanding is impossible. It is impossible to separate understanding and assessment: they are simultaneous and constitute a single integral act” 1 .
1 Bakhtin M. M. Aesthetics verbal creativity. - M., 1979.
In a literary work, pathos itself always plays an evaluative role, expresses approval or disapproval, compassion or ridicule, admiration or horror, therefore the feeling and understanding of pathos largely contributes to the understanding of the author’s position in relation to the artistic world created by the writer. Pathos conceals the creator’s biased and interested attitude towards his creation.
There are several main types of pathos: heroism, tragedy, romance, sentimentality, drama, humor, satire, invective. Before paying attention to the characteristics of each of these types, it should be noted that sometimes (this happens infrequently) the author consciously and diligently hides his personal attitude to what is being described and seeks to avoid emotional coloring, putting on the mask of a disinterested, outside observer. So, for example, I. A. Bunin’s short story “On the Way to Rome” was written. There is nothing accidental in art; such “neutrality” of the narrative is a special artistic device. Here we are not dealing with the absence of pathos, but with a special variety of it, which can be called zero pathos.
Heroics, or heroic pathos, is associated with the active, effective affirmation of lofty ideals, in order to achieve which heroes have to overcome very serious obstacles, risk their own well-being, and often their lives. M. Yu. Lermontov’s ballad “Borodino” is permeated with heroic pathos. This is the pathos of a feat, but it prerequisite is not a personal, but a socially significant goal and life affirmation.
Tragedy, or tragic pathos, expresses suffering, unbearable sorrow. As a rule, it is associated with situations in which any decision of the hero will inevitably lead him to misfortune, and his choice is a choice “of two evils.” Tragic pathos is based on a conflict that does not have a successful resolution (such is the conflict between Danila Burulbash and the Sorcerer in N.V. Gogol’s “Terrible Vengeance”). I. A. Bunin’s short story “Lapti” is characterized by tragic pathos.
Romance, or romantic pathos, in its manifestations is very similar to heroic pathos, since it conveys a strong emotional experience, aspiration towards a sublime and significant ideal. But romantic pathos is not based on the active implementation of a set goal, but on the experience of a dream (often unattainable), on the search for means of translating this dream into reality. M. Yu. Lermontov’s poem “Mtsyri” is based on romantic pathos.
Here we need to make an important clarification: romance (pathos) should in no case be confused with romanticism ( creative method), which sometimes leads to external resemblance two terms.
Sentimentality, or sentimental pathos, occurs when in a work the author deliberately emphasizes his emotional attitude to what is depicted and persistently strives to evoke similar emotions in the reader. This type of pathos is present, for example, in the poem “Peasant Children” by N. A. Nekrasov.
Drama, or dramatic pathos, manifests itself in works where the relationships of characters or the character’s relationship with the outside world are characterized by particular tension and conflict, but unlike tragic situations, a favorable outcome is possible here, although it requires the characters to accept right decisions and activity, decisive action. Drama is clearly manifested in V. G. Rasputin’s short story “French Lessons.”
We feel humor, or humorous pathos, in works that present us with comic characters and situations. This pathos is usually accompanied by a good-natured smile from the reader. Remember the vaudeville by A.P. Chekhov “The Bear”, permeated with sparkling humor, and you can easily imagine the power of influence of this type of pathos on the reader.
But satire, or satirical pathos, is not at all harmless, although it is also based on the presence of comic elements in the work. Satire is directed against vices that are “scourged” with laughter, causing not so much fun as indignation of the reader. Let us turn once again to the work of A.P. Chekhov. His short story “Chameleon”, of course, amuses us, but it is unlikely that any of the readers will sympathize with Ochumelov, who evokes only contempt and obvious rejection.
Invective as a type of pathos involves the frank expression of accusations against people or events. Here is one of the poems by A. S. Pushkin:
Desert sower of freedom,
I left early, before the star;
With a clean and innocent hand
Into the enslaved reins
Threw a life-giving seed -
But I only lost time
Good thoughts and works...
Graze, peaceful peoples!
The cry of honor will not wake you up,
Why do the herds need the gifts of freedom?
They should be cut or trimmed.
Their inheritance from generation to generation
A yoke with rattles and a whip.
Here the poet clearly expresses his indignation towards people endowed with a slave psychology, deprived of the concept of honor.
Sometimes in literature there is a type of pathos that is called lyrical. Lyrical pathos involves the creation of a special atmosphere in a work, setting the reader up to display a subjectively interested attitude towards what is described by the author. You can achieve a similar atmosphere with the help of lyrical landscapes, lyrical digressions and comments, lyrical portraits, etc. Its task is to create in the reader a mood that would help him feel (not understand, not realize, but just feel) state of mind the author at the time of creation of the work (A. S. Pushkin “K***” “I remember a wonderful moment ...”).
It should be borne in mind that often several types of pathos can be combined in one work. For example, in A. S. Pushkin’s novel “Dubrovsky,” tragic pathos (the death of Andrei Dubrovsky), satirical pathos (the image of Shabashkin), romantic pathos (the theme of “noble robbery”), etc., etc., are manifested in certain episodes, but the main one that runs through everything the work, of course, is of dramatic pathos.
The ability to change the reader’s mood, to compare characters who evoke different attitudes towards themselves, is also effective remedy immersion in the artistic world of a work that writers willingly use. Changing pathos, its variation in the process of narration helps the reader to feel author's position, to penetrate deeper into his creative concept.
The most important
Pathos is the main emotional tone, the main mood of the work, as well as the emotional and evaluative coverage of a particular character, event, or phenomenon by the author. There are several main types of pathos: heroism, tragedy, romance, sentimentality, drama, invective, humor, satire, irony, lyricism.
Meaning of the word PAPHOS in the Dictionary literary terms
PATHOS
- (from the Greek pathos - passion, feeling) - the writer’s emotional and evaluative attitude to the reality he depicts, the emotional mood of the work, which determines its overall tone. There are different types of P.: heroic, tragic, comic.
Dictionary of literary terms. 2012
See also interpretations, synonyms, meanings of the word and what PAPHOS is in Russian in dictionaries, encyclopedias and reference books:
- PATHOS in the Dictionary-Reference Book of Myths of Ancient Greece:
- daughter of the king of Cyprus Pygmalion and Galatea, the statue animated by Aphrodite. A city in Cyprus, which was a center of veneration, was named after her... - PATHOS in the Literary Encyclopedia:
see “Aesthetics... - PATHOS in the Pedagogical Encyclopedic Dictionary:
(from the Greek pathos - suffering, passion, excitement, inspiration), 1) in ancient aesthetics - passion, mental experience associated with suffering. P.... - PATHOS in the Big Encyclopedic Dictionary:
(from the Greek pathos - suffering, passion, excitement, inspiration), 1) in ancient aesthetics - passion, mental experience associated with suffering. Pathos... - PATHOS in Bolshoi Soviet encyclopedia, TSB:
(from the Greek pathos - suffering, feeling, passion), inspiration, enthusiasm, ... - PATHOS V Encyclopedic Dictionary Brockhaus and Euphron:
(Paphos) is the name of two ancient cities on the island of Cyprus: old Paphos is a Phoenician colony on the western coast of the island, 10 ... - PATHOS in the Modern Encyclopedic Dictionary:
- PATHOS
(from the Greek pathos - suffering, passion, excitement, inspiration), in ancient aesthetics passion, mental experience associated with suffering. Pathos is usually contrasted... - PATHOS in the Encyclopedic Dictionary:
a, pl. no, m. 1. Passionate inspiration, inspiration. P. struggle. Speak with pathos.||Cf. PATETIC. 2. The main idea, the meaning of something... - PATHOS in the Encyclopedic Dictionary:
, -a, m. (book). Inspiration, enthusiasm, enthusiasm. Speak with pathos. P. creative work. II adj. pathetic, oh... - PATHOS in the Big Russian Encyclopedic Dictionary:
PAPHOS (from the Greek pathos - suffering, passion, excitement, inspiration), in antiquity. aesthetics - passion, mental experience associated with suffering. P.... - PATHOS in the Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedia:
(Paphos) ? the name of two ancient cities on the island of Cyprus: old P. ? Phoenician colony on the western coast of the island, at 10 ... - PATHOS in the Complete Accented Paradigm according to Zaliznyak:
pa"fos, pa"fosy, pa"phos, pa"fosov, pa"fosu, pa"fosam, pa"phos, pa"fosy, pa"fosom, pa"fosami, pa"phos, ... - PATHOS in the Popular Explanatory Encyclopedic Dictionary of the Russian Language:
-ah, only food. , m. 1) Passionate inspiration, elation, rise. Speak with pathos. Bathos. Thought in poetic creations - ... - PATHOS in the New Dictionary of Foreign Words:
(gr. pathos feeling, passion) passionate inspiration, ... - PATHOS in the Dictionary of Foreign Expressions:
[passionate inspiration, ... - PATHOS in Abramov's Dictionary of Synonyms:
cm. … - PATHOS in the Russian Synonyms dictionary:
excitement, inspiration, heat, island, pathos, elation, ardor, ardor, passion, ecstasy, emotion, ... - PATHOS in the New Explanatory Dictionary of the Russian Language by Efremova:
m. 1) Passionate inspiration, elation. 2) Inspiration, enthusiasm caused by something. 3) Inspiring, creative source, main idea, main focus... - PATHOS in Lopatin's Dictionary of the Russian Language:
p'afos, ... - PATHOS in the Complete Spelling Dictionary of the Russian Language:
pathos... - PATHOS in the Spelling Dictionary:
p'afos, ... - PATHOS in Ozhegov’s Dictionary of the Russian Language:
inspiration, enthusiasm, enthusiasm Speak with pathos. Revolutionary pathos. P. creative...
Not everything in the content of a literary work is determined by themes and ideas. The author expresses an ideological and emotional attitude to the subject with the help of images. And, although the author's emotionality is individual, some elements are naturally repeated. IN different works similar emotions and similar types of illumination of life appear. The types of this emotional orientation include tragedy, heroism, romance, drama, sentimentality, as well as the comic with its varieties (humor, irony, grotesque, sarcasm, satire).
The theoretical status of these concepts is subject to much debate. Some modern scientists, continuing the traditions of V.G. Belinsky, call them “types of pathos” (G. Pospelov). Others call them “modes of artistry” (V. Tyupa) and add that these are embodiments of the author’s concept of personality. Still others (V. Khalizev) call them “worldview emotions.”
At the heart of the events and actions depicted in many works is conflict, confrontation, the struggle of someone with someone, of something with something.
At the same time, contradictions can be not only different strengths, but also of different content and character. A kind of answer that the reader often wants to find can be considered the author’s emotional attitude to the characters of the characters portrayed and to the type of their behavior, to conflicts. Indeed, a writer can sometimes reveal his likes and dislikes for a particular type of personality, while not always clearly assessing it. So, F.M. Dostoevsky, condemning what Raskolnikov came up with, at the same time sympathizes with him. I.S. Turgenev examines Bazarov through the lips of Pavel Petrovich Kirsanov, but at the same time appreciates him, emphasizing his intelligence, knowledge, and will: “Bazarov is smart and knowledgeable,” Nikolai Petrovich Kirsanov says with conviction.
It is on the essence and content of the contradictions exposed in a work of art that its emotional tone depends. And the word pathos is now perceived much more broadly than a poetic idea; it is the emotional and value orientation of the work and characters.
So, different types pathos.
A tragic tone is present where there is a violent conflict that cannot be tolerated and cannot be safely resolved. This may be a contradiction between man and non-human forces (fate, God, the elements). This could be a confrontation between groups of people (war of nations), and finally, internal conflict, that is, the collision of opposite principles in the minds of one hero. This is the awareness of an irreparable loss: human life, freedom, happiness, love.
The understanding of the tragic goes back to the works of Aristotle. The theoretical development of the concept relates to the aesthetics of romanticism and Hegel. Central character- this is a tragic hero, a person who finds himself in a situation of discord with life. This is a strong personality, not bent by circumstances, and therefore doomed to suffering and death.
Such conflicts include contradictions between personal impulses and supra-personal restrictions - caste, class, moral. Such contradictions gave rise to the tragedy of Romeo and Juliet, who loved each other, but belonged to different clans of Italian society of their time; Katerina Kabanova, who fell in love with Boris and understood the sinfulness of her love for him; Anna Karenina, tormented by the awareness of the gap between her, society and her son.
A tragic situation can also arise if there is a contradiction between the desire for happiness, freedom and the hero’s awareness of his weakness and powerlessness in achieving them, which entails motives of skepticism and doom. For example, such motives are heard in the speech of Mtsyri, pouring out his soul to the old monk and trying to explain to him how he dreamed of living in his aul, but was forced to spend his entire life, except for three days, in a monastery. The tragic fate of Elena Stakhova from the novel by I.S. Turgenev “On the Eve”, who lost her husband immediately after the wedding and went with his coffin to a foreign country.
The height of tragic pathos is that it instills faith in a person who has courage, remaining true to himself even before death. Since antiquity tragic hero you have to experience a moment of guilt. According to Hegel, this guilt lies in the fact that a person violates the established order. Therefore, works of tragic pathos are characterized by the concept of tragic guilt. It is in both the tragedy “Oedipus the King” and the tragedy “Boris Godunov”. The mood in works of this type is sorrow, compassion. Since the second half of the 19th century, the tragic has been understood more and more widely. It includes everything that causes fear and horror in human life. After the spread of the philosophical doctrines of Schopenhauer and Nietzsche, the existentialists gave universal meaning to the tragic. In accordance with such views, the main property of human existence is catastrophicity. Life is meaningless due to the death of individual beings. In this aspect, the tragic is reduced to a feeling of hopelessness, and those qualities that were characteristic of a strong personality (affirmation of courage, perseverance) are leveled out and not taken into account.
In a literary work, both tragic and dramatic principles can be combined with heroic ones. Heroism arises and is felt there and then when people take or perform active actions for the benefit of others, in the name of protecting the interests of a tribe, clan, state, or simply a group of people in need of help. People are ready to take risks and face death with dignity in the name of realizing lofty ideals. Most often, such situations occur during periods of national liberation wars or movements. Moments of heroism are reflected in “The Tale of Igor’s Campaign” in Prince Igor’s decision to enter into the fight against the Polovtsians. At the same time, heroic-tragic situations can also occur in peacetime, in moments of natural disasters arising due to the “fault” of nature (floods, earthquakes) or man himself. Accordingly, they appear in the literature. Events in folk epic, legends, epics. The hero in them is an exceptional figure, his actions are a socially significant feat. Hercules, Prometheus, Vasily Buslaev. Sacrificial heroism in the novel “War and Peace”, the poem “Vasily Terkin”. In the 1930s and 1940s, heroism was required under duress. From Gorky’s works the idea was instilled: there should be a feat in everyone’s life. In the 20th century, the literature of struggle contains heroics of resistance to lawlessness, heroics of defending the right to freedom (stories by V. Shalamov, novel by V. Maksimov “The Star of Admiral Kolchak”).
L.N. Gumilyov believed that the truly heroic could only exist at the origins of the life of the people. Any process of nation formation begins with heroic deeds small groups of people. He called these people passionaries. But crisis situations that require heroic and sacrificial achievements from people always arise. Therefore, the heroic in literature will always be significant, lofty and inescapable. An important condition Heroic, Hegel believed, is free will. A forced feat (the case of a gladiator), in his opinion, cannot be heroic.
Heroics can also be combined with romance. Romance is an enthusiastic state of personality caused by the desire for something high, beautiful, and morally significant. The sources of romance are the ability to feel the beauty of nature, to feel part of the world, the need to respond to someone else's pain and someone else's joy. Natasha Rostova’s behavior often gives reason to perceive it as romantic, because of all the heroes of the novel “War and Peace”, she alone has a lively nature, a positive emotional charge, and dissimilarity from secular young ladies, which the rational Andrei Bolkonsky immediately noticed.
Romance for the most part manifests itself in the sphere of personal life, revealing itself in moments of anticipation or the onset of happiness. Since happiness in people’s minds is primarily associated with love, the romantic attitude most likely makes itself felt at the moment of the approach of love or hope for it. We find images of romantically minded heroes in the works of I.S. Turgenev, for example, in his story “Asya”, where the heroes (Asya and Mr. N.), close to each other in spirit and culture, experience joy, emotional uplift, which is expressed in their enthusiastic perception of nature, art and themselves, in joy communication with each other. And yet, most often, the pathos of romance is associated with an emotional experience that does not turn into action. Achieving a sublime ideal is impossible in principle. Thus, in Vysotsky’s poems, it seems to young men that they were born too late to participate in wars:
And in basements and semi-basements
The kids wanted to see the tanks,
They didn’t even get a bullet...
The world of romance - dream, fantasy, romantic ideas are often correlated with the past, exoticism: “Borodino” by Lermontov, “Shulamith” by Kuprin, “Mtsyri” by Lermontov, “Giraffe” by Gumilyov.
The pathos of romance can appear together with other types of pathos: irony in Blok, heroism in Mayakovsky, satire in Nekrasov.
The combination of heroism and romance is possible in cases where the hero accomplishes or wants to accomplish a feat, and this is perceived by him as something sublime. Such an interweaving of heroism and romance is observed in “War and Peace” in the behavior of Petya Rostov, who was obsessed with the desire to personally take part in the fight against the French, which led to his death.
The predominant tone in the content of the vast majority of works of art is undoubtedly dramatic. Trouble, disorder, dissatisfaction of a person in the mental sphere, in personal relationships, in social status - these are the real signs of drama in life and literature. The failed love of Tatyana Larina, Princess Mary, Katerina Kabanova and other heroines famous works testifies to the dramatic moments of their lives.
Moral and intellectual dissatisfaction and unrealized personal potential of Chatsky, Onegin, Bazarov, Bolkonsky and others; social humiliation of Akaki Akakievich Bashmachkin from the story by N.V. Gogol's "The Overcoat", as well as the Marmeladov family from the novel by F.M. Dostoevsky’s “Crime and Punishment”, many heroines from the poem by N.A. Nekrasov’s “Who Lives Well in Rus'”, almost all the characters in M. Gorky’s play “At the Lower Depths” - all this serves as a source and indicator of dramatic contradictions.
Emphasizing romantic, dramatic, tragic and, of course, heroic moments in the lives of heroes and their moods in most cases becomes a form of expressing sympathy for the heroes, a way of supporting and protecting them by the author. There is no doubt that V. Shakespeare worries together with Romeo and Juliet about the circumstances that impede their love, A.S. Pushkin takes pity on Tatyana, who is not understood by Onegin, F.M. Dostoevsky mourns the fate of such girls as Dunya and Sonya, A.P. Chekhov sympathizes with the suffering of Gurov and Anna Sergeevna, who fell in love with each other very deeply and seriously, but they have no hope of uniting their destinies.
However, it happens that the depiction of romantic moods becomes a way of debunking the hero, sometimes even condemning him. So, for example, Lensky’s vague poems evoke slight irony A. S. Pushkin. F. M. Dostoevsky's depiction of Raskolnikov's dramatic experiences is in many ways a form of condemnation of the hero, who conceived a monstrous option for correcting his life and became confused in his thoughts and feelings.
Sentimentality is a type of pathos with a predominance of subjectivity and sensitivity. In mid. In the 18th century, it was dominant in the works of Richardson, Stern, and Karamzin. He is in “The Overcoat” and “Old World Landowners”, in the early Dostoevsky, in “Mu-mu”, Nekrasov’s poetry.
Much more often, humor and satire play a discrediting role. Under humor and satire in in this case another variant of emotional orientation is implied. Both in life and in art, humor and satire are generated by such characters and situations that are called comic. The essence of the comic is to discover and reveal the discrepancy between the real capabilities of people (and, accordingly, characters) and their claims, or the discrepancy between their essence and appearance. The pathos of satire is destructive, satire reveals socially significant vices, exposes deviations from the norm, and ridicules. The pathos of humor is affirming, because the subject of the humorous sensation sees not only the shortcomings of others, but also his own. Awareness of one's own shortcomings gives hope of healing (Zoshchenko, Dovlatov). Humor is an expression of optimism (“Vasily Terkin”, “The Adventures of the Good Soldier Schweik” by Hasek).
A mocking and evaluative attitude towards comic characters and situations is called irony. Unlike the previous ones, it carries skepticism. She does not agree with the assessment of life, situation or character. In Voltaire’s story “Candide, or Optimism,” the hero with his fate refutes his own attitude: “Everything that is done is for the better.” But the opposite opinion “everything is for the worse” is not accepted. Voltaire's pathos lies in his mocking skepticism towards extreme principles. Irony can be light and not malicious, but it can also become unkind and judgmental. Deep irony, which causes not a smile and laughter in the usual sense of the word, but a bitter experience, is called sarcasm. The reproduction of comic characters and situations, accompanied by an ironic assessment, leads to the appearance of humorous or satirical works of art: Moreover, not only works of verbal art (parodies, anecdotes, fables, stories, short stories, plays), but also drawings and sculptural images can be humorous and satirical , facial performances.
In the story by A.P. Chekhov's “The Death of an Official”, the comic is manifested in the absurd behavior of Ivan Dmitrievich Chervyakov, who, while in the theater, accidentally sneezed on the general’s bald head and was so frightened that he began to pester him with his apologies and pursued him until he aroused the general’s real anger that and led the official to death. The absurdity lies in the discrepancy between the act committed (he sneezed) and the reaction it caused (repeated attempts to explain to the general that he, Chervyakov, did not want to offend him). In this story, the funny is mixed with the sad, since such fear of a high-ranking person is a sign of the dramatic position of a small official in the system of official relations. Fear can give rise to unnaturalness in human behavior. This situation was reproduced by N.V. Gogol in the comedy "The Inspector General". The identification of serious contradictions in the behavior of heroes, giving rise to a clearly negative attitude towards them, becomes a hallmark of satire. Classic designs satire comes from the creativity of M.E. Saltykov-Shchedrin (“How a man fed two generals”) Esalnek A. Ya. S. 13-22..
Grotesque (French grotesque, literally - whimsical; comical; Italian grottesco - whimsical, Italian grotta - grotto, cave) - one of the varieties of the comic, combines in a fantastic form the terrible and the funny, the ugly and the sublime, and also brings together the distant, combines incompatible, interweaves the unreal with the real, the present with the future, reveals the contradictions of reality. As a form of the comic, the grotesque differs from humor and irony in that in it the funny and amusing are inseparable from the terrible and sinister; As a rule, images of the grotesque carry a tragic meaning. In the grotesque, behind the external improbability and fantasticness, lies a deep artistic generalization important phenomena life. The term “grotesque” became widespread in the fifteenth century, when excavations of underground chambers (grottoes) revealed wall paintings with intricate patterns that used motifs from plant and animal life. Therefore, distorted images were originally called grotesque. How artistic image The grotesque is distinguished by its two-dimensionality and contrast. Grotesque is always a deviation from the norm, a convention, an exaggeration, an intentional caricature, therefore it is widely used for satirical purposes. Examples literary grotesque may serve as N.V. Gogol's story "The Nose" or "Little Tsakhes, nicknamed Zinnober" by E.T.A. Hoffmann, fairy tales and stories by M.E. Saltykov-Shchedrin.
To define pathos means to establish the type of attitude towards the world and man in the world.
Everyone today has at least general idea about what pathos is and in what situations one may encounter this phenomenon. But the concept itself is several thousand years old and everything may turn out to be a little more complicated than a “everyday” explanation.
How to “sell” using emotions?
Emotions have an impact on people's lives:
- The most important decisions were made under the pressure of feelings;
- Only strong emotions can make you change your decision;
- Your own perception of the world may run counter to the logic and opinion of the majority;
- Strong feelings leave an indelible mark on people's lives.
In most cases, no logical arguments will help convince a person acting in a fit of passion. That is why in art and politics they pay attention special attention manipulation of other people's feelings:
- This allows you to achieve greater favor towards your political party or leader;
- It makes people take new movies and books seriously;
- This brings us back to the contemplation of a new picture;
- This forces you to think about the eternal.
It would seem that there is nothing wrong with this. The consumer receives emotions, the politician or creator receives his economic benefit. But it all comes down to the exploitation of human feelings, to the use of clichés and, against this background, lobbying for not the most sensible ideas and not the most high-quality projects. Something truly worthwhile does not need emotional advertising.
What does pathos mean?
Pathos is a Greek concept. If we use the translation of the word we get several options that are similar in meaning:
- Passion;
- Suffering;
- Inspiration;
- Excitation.
If we turn to the generally accepted concept - appealing to the emotions of the audience. Pathos is all those feelings that a person puts into his creations, hoping for empathy from readers, viewers or listeners. If you replace it with one word - emotionality.
It’s clear that no one could invent or invent sensuality, but there is one person who systematized and introduced the concepts. It was Aristotle, and this happened long before our era. So the definition is not one thousand years old. Aristotle himself, in to a greater extent, was an orator, so the term referred exclusively to oratory. It was after some time that he found his way into literature, and then “leaked” into everyday life.
By and large, there is nothing wrong with pathos. Yes, he plays on the feelings of the audience, but at least he tries to touch something in the soul of the reader or viewer. The main problem is that over the past few thousand years, humanity has played out all the main plots that can touch the “strings of the soul” many times. And today everything seems secondary or a good restoration, for a sophisticated connoisseur.
Pretentious people - who are they?
Pathos also takes place in everyday life. But here we are no longer talking about any emotions, passion or sensuality.
As a rule, people who are called pretentious are:
- They try to “elevate” themselves without any reason;
- Suffer from an increased sense of self-importance;
- Everyone is treated with leniency;
- They try to pretend that they understand things about which they understand nothing.
If a person is called pretentious, in the vast majority of cases this will be a negative characteristic. Nobody likes people with whom it is impossible to communicate normally. After all, the whole dialogue boils down to the fact that the interlocutor is trying to demonstrate how ideal he is. Not always successful, by the way.
It is better to stop such acquaintances immediately:
- It is almost impossible to “re-educate” an acquaintance or acquaintance - in front of you is an already formed personality;
- Achieving even just a respectful attitude towards one’s own person is an impossible task;
- The likelihood of receiving an emotional return is extremely low.
But such individuals do not like to be rejected. You can watch a show that will include emotional outbursts, attempts to prove something, and extra attention. But it all depends on the specific case.
What is pathos in literature?
There is no single concept, but most often it means all the emotions that the author put into his literary work, hoping to get a return and evoke some emotions in its readers.
Under the concept " the pathos of the work"mean:
- Emotions invested by the author;
- Experienced sensations when reading the creation;
- The general mood set by the printed word.
A book does not have to be soaked from the first to the last page strong emotions. But in any creation there is a particle of the author:
- What he put in from himself;
- What I was trying to convey to my audience;
- Something that will have an impact on the reader;
- Something that could appear in the work completely unconsciously.
If in oratory they try to make the final part of a speech the most pathetic, in literature the situation is somewhat different. The entire story or story can be saturated with emotions. Some part of the poem or poem may be additionally “highlighted”.
What do you mean by pathos?
To break it all down:
- The concept of "pathos" first appeared in Ancient Greece;
- Aristotle introduced and used the term regarding the art of rhetoric;
- This “leaked” into literature much later;
- Pathos means increased emotionality and passion, everything that the author put in to excite the audience.
If you are practicing rhetoric, the final part of your speech should be the most emotional. Imbue it with pathos, within acceptable limits, and you will get a good response from your listeners.
For writers, everything works a little differently. You can make any passage of your work the most emotional, or you can not reduce the degree of intensity throughout the entire narrative.
In everyday life everything is even simpler, pretentious people:
- They are trying to “increase their worth”;
- They exalt themselves at the expense of non-existent talents;
- They treat others condescendingly, hoping that this will put them “a step higher”;
- They are rarely interesting conversationalists.
You shouldn’t destroy the world of pretentious people, because only people who are completely insecure about themselves could create this whole atmosphere around them.
Even if you are sure that you can determine the meaning of a particular term, take a dictionary or reference book, this can save you from shame or just an unpleasant situation.
Video: very pretentious speech
In this video, Timur Zhelvakin will tell you what pretentious phrases are sometimes heard from bodybuilders:
1. (Greek suffering), a passion that causes an action that entails suffering, as well as the suffering itself experienced fundamentally. waste element in antiquity. If P. is in the middle of a tragic actions, then this is pathetic. tragedy (as opposed to ethical, in which character and its development are more important). P.'s effect in tragedy intensifies when P. appears unexpectedly. P. belongs to the emotional elements of tragedy and creates in it, as in pathetic. music (playing the flute), creatures, the premise of catharsis. P.'s action in poetry and music is not aimed at educating the listener, but is associated with pleasure. Plato therefore argues with tragedy, while Aristotle justifies it.
2. city on zatt. coast of Cyprus, colonized in Mycenaean times by the Arcadians. Place of veneration of Aphrodite.
Excellent definition
PATHOS
from Greek pathos – suffering, inspiration, passion), emotional content work of art, feelings and emotions that the author puts into the text, expecting the reader’s empathy. In modern literary criticism, the term is used in combination with “pathos of a work” - for example, pathos “ Dead souls" and "The Inspector General" by N.V. Gogol (according to the author himself) - “laughter visible to the world through tears invisible to him.” In the history of literature, the term "pathos" had different meanings: in ancient theory, pathos is passion as a property of the soul, its ability to feel something. In German classical aesthetics, pathos is a set of passions that determines the content of human behavior. For the German philosopher G. W. F. Hegel, pathos is the essential content of the human “I” (for example, the pathos of Romeo is his love for Juliet). V. G. Belinsky for the first time shifts the emphasis from the properties of a person to the properties of the text: pathos is characteristic not of the writer or his hero, but of the work or creativity as a whole. Contemporary literary criticism close to Belinsky's interpretation. Sometimes the word “pathetic” is used to mean “too emotional, too tragic.”