Aristotle’s Poetics

Aristotle's Poetics is best known for its definition and analysis of tragedy
and comedy, but it also applies to truth and beauty as they are manifested in
the other arts. In our age, when the natural and social sciences have
dominated the quest for truth, it is helpful to consider why Aristotle
claimed: "poetry is more philosophical and more significant than history."
Like so many other works by Aristotle, the Poetics has dominated the way we
have thought about all forms of dramatic performance in Europe and America
ever since. The essence of poetry lies in its ability to transcend the
particulars of everyday experience and articulate universals, not merely what
has happened but what might happen and what ought to happen.