Analysis of Ars Poetica, part 13

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According to Horace, there are artists who write tragedies but very soon start writing wild satires with coarse jests. They tempt their audience by making them believe that they will get to see something original. The audience enjoy their plays. Horace says that these playwrights may carry on making such plays. However he says that the Gods or the heroes presented in the plays must not be a really eminent character at one point of time and then suddenly downtrodden at the other. He further says that a person should select a very common theme of his play. The other playwrights may believe that it would be very easy to imitate such work, however according to Horace when a person tries to do so he fails in his efforts because a common theme does not mean that it is a very simple work. The vulgar and the low minded people are not the correct judge of a play. The scenes which make them applaud loudly may appear a disgust for the knights, the free born and the rich.

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