Sofokles’in Oidipus ve Shakespeare’in Macbeth Eserlerinde Aristoteles'in Hamartia Kavramının Karşılaştırmalı Analizi

Abstract

Aristoteles, Poietika adlı eserinde olay örgüsü (mythos), karakter (ethos), düşünce (dianoia), dil (leksis), melodi (melos) ve performansın görsel yönü (opsis) gibi trajedinin temel unsurlarını belirler. Bunlara ek olarak, trajik bir kusur veya yargı hatası olan “hamartia" (ἀμαρτία) kavramını, “peripeteia” (ani bir talih dönüşü), “anagnorisis” (gerçeğin farkına varma veya keşfi) ve “katharsis” (seyircinin acıma ve korku yoluyla duygusal arınması) kavramlarını da ele alır. Bu kavramlardan hamartia hem epistemolojik hem de etik açıdan özellikle önemlidir. Ancak Aristoteles, hamartianın spesifik yapısını veya değerlendirmesini netleştirmez; bu da onun gerçek doğası hakkında süregelen felsefi tartışmalara yol açmıştır. Bazıları onu bir “karakter kusuru” olarak yorumlarken, diğerleri ise bilgisizliğe dayandığını düşünür ve genellikle bunu “trajik hata” olarak değerlendirir. Bu bağlamda, makalenin amacı, Oidipus ve Macbeth’i karşılaştırırken, Sofokles’in Oidipus’unda cehaletten kaynaklanan ve Shakespeare’in Macbeth’inde ise kahramanı derinden etkileyen, şiirsel adalet biçimi olarak karakterle ilişkili Aristotelesçi hamartia kavramını incelemektir.

Keywords

• Hamartia
• Trajik Hata
• Karakter Kusuru
• Bilgisizlik

A COMPARATIVE READING OF ARISTOTELIAN HAMARTIA IN SOPHOCLES’ OEDIPUS and SHAKESPEARE’S MACBETH

Abstract

In his Poetics, Aristotle identifies key elements of tragedy, including plot (mythos), character (ethos), thought (dianoia), language (lexis), melody (melos), and the visual aspect of performance (opsis). He discusses “hamartia” (ἀμαρτία), a tragic flaw or error in judgment, along with “peripeteia” (a sudden reversal of fortune), “anagnorisis” (the recognition or discovery of the truth), and “catharsis” (the audience’s emotional purification through pity and fear). Of these, hamartia is especially significant from both epistemological and ethical perspectives. However, Aristotle does not clarify the specific structure or evaluation of hamartia, which has led to ongoing philosophical debates about its true nature. Some interpret it as a “character flaw”, while others see it as rooted in ignorance, often translating it as “tragic error.” When comparing Oedipus and Macbeth, our aim is to examine the Aristotelian concept of hamartia—rooted in ignorance in Sophocles’ Oedipus—and, in Shakespeare’s Macbeth, how it relates to character as a form of poetic justice that profoundly impacts the protagonist.

Keywords

• Hamartia
• Tragic Error
• Character Flaw
• Ignorance

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