An inviting and highly readable new translation of Aristotle's
complete Poetics--the first and best introduction to the art of
writing and understanding stories
Aristotle's Poetics is the most important book ever written for
writers and readers of stories--whether novels, short fiction, plays,
screenplays, or nonfiction. Aristotle was the first to identify the keys
to plot, character, audience perception, tragic pleasure, and dozens of
other critical points of good storytelling. Despite being written more
than 2,000 years ago, the Poetics remains essential reading for anyone
who wants to learn how to write a captivating story--or understand how
such stories work and achieve their psychological effects. Yet for all
its influence, the Poetics is too little read because it comes down to
us in a form that is often difficult to follow, and even the best
translations are geared more to specialists than to general readers who
simply want to grasp Aristotle's profound and practical insights. In
How to Tell a Story, Philip Freeman presents the most readable
translation of the Poetics yet produced, making this indispensable
handbook more accessible, engaging, and useful than ever before.
In addition to its inviting and reliable translation, a commentary on
each section, and the original Greek on facing pages, this edition of
the Poetics features unique bullet points, chapter headings, and
section numbers to help guide readers through Aristotle's unmatched
introduction to the art of writing and reading stories.
