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** spoiler alert ** The title is misleading; Aristotle discusses in this treatise not poetry but drama, and in particular the tragedy. The confusion rises from the fact that Classical Greek plays used to be written in metred verse. Aristotle's analysis is so lucid and systematic that it is hard to believe that this book was written more than two thousand years ago. Scholars believe that it was originally compiled by Aristotle's students as lecture notes, and many of them surmise the existence of a second volume, devoted to comedy - now long lost (this missing volume has a major role to play in the storyline of Umberto Eco's The Name of the Rose).

Aristotle cites many examples from Classical Greek plays, and sadly I was not familiar with most of them. Even with my partial understanding I found this book to be an outstanding testament for an exceptional intellect.