Poetics

by

Aristotle

Ajax Character Analysis

Ajax is hero in Greek mythology and a character in Homer’s Iliad and Sophocles’s Ajax. Aristotle doesn’t mention a specific poem featuring Ajax; however, he does claim that any poetry that features Ajax will have plenty of suffering. As the story goes, Ajax loses Achilles’s armor to Odysseus and subsequently kills himself with a sword given to him by Hector.
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Ajax Character Timeline in Poetics

The timeline below shows where the character Ajax appears in Poetics. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 8. Other Aspects of Tragedy
Tragedy vs. Epic Poetry  Theme Icon
Fear, Pity, and Catharsis Theme Icon
Component Parts and Balance  Theme Icon
...tragedy: complex tragedy, which relies on reversal and recognition; tragedy of suffering, like plays about Ajax; tragedy of character, like Women of Phthia; and simple tragedy, like Prometheus and plays about... (full context)