Oedipus: Alas! It comes! And all is true! Light! Let me look last on thee, for I stand naked now. Shamefully was I born: In shame I wedded: to my shame I slew (PG 85) Oedipus has finally accepted tat he murdered his father, Laius and married his mother as his pride falls and he is enlightened to the truth. Not only are all of the necessary elements of the cathartic moment present in Oedipus, which conforms almost perfectly to the true tragic form as outlined by Aristotle, but also, Oedipus, who is the king of Thebes, is of a high social status compared to the average reader. Aristotle's requirement of a single tragic flaw is also present in Oedipus, which adds to the result of a very high level of reader identification. The reader is able to see that if a man of such social status as Oedipus with only one major flaw was able to fall, then they, who have many flaws and are of a lower social status would be able to fall much more easily. The cathartic effect which is presented almost perfectly in Oedipus, is not as effective in Hamlet, as it does not follow all of Aristotle's criteria, although it still possess some reader identification. Hamlet is a story about a prince (Hamlet JR.) who is told by a Ghost (Hamlet Sr.) that his uncle (Claudius) had killed his father and married his mother. Thus, Hamlet seeks to take revenge on his uncle however his procassination resulted in a catastrophic end. Hamlet does not cohere to all of Aristotle's criteria for stage two of catharsis, because there is no actual cathartic moment. Hamlet's falling of shields occur before his highest of suffering and moment of enlightenment. Hamlet's moment of enlightenment and fall of shields occur almost at the end of the play. (Act 5, Sc.
