Anagnorisis Definition: 5 Examples of Anagnorisis

Anagnorisis is a literary term referring to a moment of recognition or revelation in a story. Storytellers use this literary device to reveal a character’s true identity or uncover the true nature of a narrative situation. Anagnorisis acts as a turning point in the plot of a story and often precedes a moment of peripeteia, meaning a sudden reversal of fortune.

The word “anagnorisis” is a translation of a Greek word meaning “recognition.” Aristotle was the first to use this term in his book on dramatic theory, Poetics (circa 330 BCE). Aristotle described anagnorisis as an essential element of a complex plot with a character transitioning from ignorance to knowledge.

To learn more about how anagnorisis works in storytelling, explore some of these examples.

1. 1. Oedipus Rex by Sophocles (circa 429 BCE): In this ancient Greek tragedy, a moment of anagnorisis occurs when Oedipus discovers his true identity and learns that he unknowingly married his own mother.
2. 2. Great Expectations by Charles Dickens (1861): Dickens uses anagnorisis when the main character, Pip, discovers the true identity of his mysterious benefactor.
3. 3. Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back (1980): Luke Skywalker experiences a moment of revelation when Darth Vadar reveals himself as Luke’s true father.
4. 4. The Winter’s Tale by William Shakespeare (1611): Shakespeare employs anagnorisis when a shepherdess named Perdita discovers she is actually royalty. Shakespeare makes use of anagnorisis as a literary device in many of his plays, including Othello (1603) and Macbeth (1606).
5. 5. The Sixth Sense (1999): During M. Night Shyamalan’s horror film, child psychiatrist Malcolm Crowe experiences anagnorisis when he discovers that he is a ghost.

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