Poetics
Summary
Aristotle introduced poetry (not just verse, but including a story) as a form of imitation, of which different forms are the various arts. He touched on the basic history of poetry and its different kinds. He focused primarily on tragedy, and talked about the various parts of a story. He also discussed what makes for a good plot, and then walked his readers through a plot from start to finish, showing them how to construct a good one. Aristotle spent a considerable time on diction, elucidating how to most effectively communicate the story to the audience. He even went into grammar, discussing the different kinds of letters and nouns. Finally, he jumped over to epic poetry and compared it to tragedy, first making the case that epic was superior, and then fulfilling his final goal by debunking that argument. In short, he covers poetry—specifically epic & tragic—and each of their various parts comprehensively.