Analysis of Ars Poetica, part 8

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If a poet is following a tradition than he must do it in a proper manner. For instance if he is using an already established character than he must represent his qualities as it is. Hence Achilles must represent a person who is fearless, restless and a passionate person who cannot be shut down in the chains of law. He should assert himself by his sword. Similarly Medea should be haughty and arrogant, Ixion should be perjured and Orestes should be mournful. However if a poet is trying to create a new theme or represent a new character than he should make sure that the first impression of the character must be preserved to the end. Talking about theme, Horace says that it is more challenging to imitate an old theme than to create a new one. A person would be more wiser to produce Iliad in the form of a drama than to produce an original play. The thing which should be kept in mind while using an already established theme is that it should not be imitated as it is. The audience is not interested in watching the copy of a previous work of art. Hence the writer must introduce some new elements in it to make it an original work of art.

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