View source for Metabasis, desis, and lusis

[[Aristotle]] says in the [[Aristotle's 'Poetics'|''Poetics'']] that the plot of a tragic drama must concern a change in the protagonist's fortunes, either from good to bad fortune or from bad to good fortune (ch. 7, 1451a11-15; ch. 13, 1452b28-1453a17) . (His conception of [[tragedy]] clearly differs from contemporary conceptions in not requiring that events turn out badly for the protagonist, though he does argue (ch. 13, 1453a7-17) that in the best plots the change is from good to bad fortune. For [[Aristotle]] the crucial difference between [[tragedy]] and [[comedy]] lies in the kinds of characters with which each is concerned, [[tragedy]] dealing with 'superior' characters, i.e., those of high social status with ability and ambition, and [[comedy]] dealing with 'inferior' characters, i.e., those of lower social status with faults which make them ridiculous (ch. 5, 1449a32-37).) Since a tragic plot involves a change in the protagonist's fortunes, there must be a point in the plot at which his or her fortunes change, the outcome of events becomes certain, and the action of the drama moves to its inevitable conclusion. [[Aristotle]] uses the [[Greek]] words μετάβασις ('''''metabasis''''') and  μεταβολή (''metabole''), both of which mean 'change', as technical terms for this point of transition in the plot. (See also ''[[peripeteia]]''.)

In ''Poetics'' ch. 18 [[Aristotle]] divides the plot of a tragic drama into two parts: the '''''desis''''' (δέσις) or 'complication' and the '''''lusis''''' (λύσις) or 'resolution'. The '''''desis''''' is defined as the part of the plot which comes before the '''''metabasis''''', and the '''''lusis''''' as the part which comes after the '''''metabasis''''' (1455b26-29). [[Aristotle]] recognises that some or perhaps all of the events which form part of the '''''desis''''' may be external to the action of the drama itself: they may, for example, have taken place before the action begins and merely be referred to in the drama. The '''''lusis''''', he implies, lies entirely within the drama (1455b24-26). It follows that the '''''metabasis''''', the point of transition, may come earlier or later in the drama: if the '''''desis''''' lies wholly outside the action of the drama, it may come at the very beginning and the entire drama will consist of '''''lusis''''' or, at the opposite extreme, it may come late in the drama, if, for example, the change is brought about by an intervention at the last minute by a god or goddess.

The distinction between '''''desis''''' and '''''lusis''''' is not discussed at length in the ''Poetics'', though there is a reference to it later in ch. 18 (1456a7-10), when it is suggested that tragedies are particularly susceptible of comparison in respect of their plots and the way they are handled, and in this connection the distinction between '''''desis''''' and '''''lusis''''' is relevant, since many playwrights handle the '''''desis''''' well but the '''''lusis''''' badly.

The terms '''''desis''''' and '''''lusis''''' are still occasionally used in literary theory and literary criticism. Their use is not confined to the discussion of tragic drama and so is not quite the same as [[Aristotle]]'s use of them in the ''Poetics''. They may be used, e.g., in the discussion of a novel to distinguish what precedes the critical point in the plot from what follows it.

The [[Greek]] word δέσις ('''''desis''''') - it is pronounced with a short 'e' as in 'deck' or 'den' - literally means 'tying together in bundles', and is a [[noun]] from the [[verb]] δέω (''deo'', I bind or  tie). Later in ''Poetics'' ch.18 (1456a9) the word πλοκή (''ploke''), which literally means 'twisting or twining', is used as an alternative to '''''desis'''''. The word λύσις ('''''lusis'''''), which literally means 'loosing or releasing', is a noun from the [[verb]] λύω (''luo'', I loose, loosen, or untie).


[[Category:Literary theory]]
[[Category:Literary criticism]]
[[Category:Technical terms]]
[[Category:Classical Greek literature]]
[[category:Greek words]]