Catharsis : tentative de légitimer la fiction théâtrale au XVIIe siècle en France

The article deals with French views on tragic emotions and their involvement as a means of katharsis as described by Aristotle in the chapter 6 of his Poetics. Although the 17th-century French theorists and dramatists attempt to adopt Aristotle ’s principles, at the same time they progressively move aside from the fearful events which are essential in Aristotle ’s definition of tragic experience. Pierre Corneille openly admits that he finds it hard to acquiesce to the very speculative nature of Aristotle ’s reasoning and hence he pleads for the cathartic value of “admiration”. His arguments serve not only the defence of his personal conception of tragic art but, more importantly perhaps, they enable him to confound the rigorous detractors of theatrical fiction