Anagnorisis was described by Aristotle in Ancient Greece.
According to its etymological root, anagnorisis is associated with an act of recognition . It is a rhetorical resource that leads a character to discover and recognize their identity or the identity of a third party , an event that modifies their subsequent behavior. Anagnorisis is also linked to what happens when two characters meet again after a long time .
It can be said that anagnorisis is the transition from ignorance to truth : a fact that was hidden from the character's eyes suddenly comes to light. The revelation alters the way of thinking of the individual in question and his actions, therefore changing the course of history .
Anagnorisis according to Aristotle
Anagnorisis was first described by Aristotle . The Greek philosopher maintained that, in classical tragedy, the moment of peripeteia was the key instance for anagnorisis. In this context, we understand by adventure a circumstance or fact that is characterized by bringing to the reader certain facts related to a story or a particular character, and this is found in many works of various genres.
Returning to Aristotle 's theory, he assured that in the adventure, the hero accessed the truth and experienced the consequences of said knowledge. The plot , from then on, adjusted to this new vision of the protagonist.
The Englishman William Shakespeare resorted to anagnorisis in several of his works.
The resource in the Odyssey
It is possible to find anagnorisis in various classic stories of universal history. An example occurs in the Odyssey . On Ulysses ' return to Ithaca , the different characters recognize him little by little.
The last to accept the revelation is Penelope , Ulysses ' wife, who makes him take a test in order to confirm his identity .
Other examples of anagnorisis
Anagnorisis is a resource frequently found in Greek comedy , with which we can place ourselves at least four centuries before the birth of Christ. For example, it is common to find in the comedies of the Greek Menander , as well as those who imitated him to create works in Latin, many characters who have suffered abandonment by their mothers when they were children to leave them in the care of families of a social class. lower.
This decision when creating the story makes it difficult for these characters to unite with people of nobility, and it is not until the anagnorisis takes place that they can tear down the false walls that distance them from their loved ones. In order for the characters to discover their true origin , it is possible to use endless resources, such as a birthmark or a precious object that the mother left them when she abandoned them, such as an earring or bracelet.
We can also appreciate agnorisis in a large number of Spanish works, both in baroque theater, as well as chivalric novels and romantic dramas . William Shakespeare also took advantage of this resource in some of his dramas, especially in tragedies; In this particular case, the characters' access to the truth does not lead to the resolution of the problems in a positive way, but rather the stories usually end badly.
Its current use
Much closer in time , the main character of “Fight Club” (a work translated as “Fight Club” or “Fight Club” ) experiences anagnorisis when he discovers that Tyler Durden is his other self (i.e. , Durden does not exist but is himself).
In video games of genres such as adventure and RPG, anagnorisis is also very common, and marks a turning point in which an apparently ordinary character discovers that the future of his land depends on him, for example.