Aristotle and Hegel on Tragedy

"Tragic drama, for Aristotle, reveals the vulnerability of human virtue. It shows how human beings can go wrong, even if they are "like ourselves" and of basically good (if not excellent) character. For Hegel, by contrast, such drama shows us the tragedy inherent in situations that are specific to art. Of course, human life outside art can take on a form meant for art alone and thereby also give rise to tragedy. Such tragedy will not, however, be an irreducible feature of human life as such, but will result from aestheticizing life. Tragic drama thus teaches us not that tragedy is unavoidable, but that it stems from confusing life with art." Stephen Houlgate, "Hegel's Theory of Tragedy."