Catharsis: GCSE English Definition

What is catharsis?

In GCSE English Literature, catharsis is an audience’s release of strong emotions. At the end of a tragedy, the final scenes might result in the audience feeling fear or pity. The idea is that releasing these negative emotions ultimately leaves the audience feeling relieved and restored.

Why do writers use catharsis?

Writers use catharsis to enable an audience to connect emotionally to the characters in a play. It also allows the audience to be “cleansed” of all the negative emotions they might feel when watching a play, or a character within a play, because after the usually bloody and death-filled end of a tragedy, there usually comes a restoration of order and peace.

Examples of catharsis

In Shakespeare’s play Macbeth, catharsis comes when Macbeth — knowing he is finally doomed — fights Macduff and is ultimately killed. The audience sympathises with Macbeth because his bravery in the face of certain death reminds them of the noble warrior he once was.

In Romeo and Juliet, the moment of catharsis comes after the deaths of both Romeo and Juliet. The despair the audience feel at the self-inflicted deaths of these innocent characters (a technique called the “tragic waste”) is offset by the fact that their deaths help end their families’ feud.

Revision resources to ace your exams

Learn how to explore a writer’s use of catharsis, and other techniques used in tragedies, by using our detailed GCSE revision notes.

GCSE English Literature Revision Notes 

For more literary techniques, check out our list of 127 top literary devices, complete with student-friendly definitions.