La tragédie comme poème héroïque Influences de l’épopée sur la figuration cornélienne de l’héroïsme

In Corneille’s tragedies, the inclusion of epic devices in a tragic frame, on structural and thematic levels, qualifies the epic obviousness of heroisation, of the link between glory and happiness. However, the use of the epic’s ethical model modifies the generic purpose of the works, which add to the pathetic effect the arousal in the spectator of an epic admiration, further increased because heroism is set in a realistic and painful context.