<P> Anagnorisis (/ ˌænəɡˈnɒrɪsɪs /; Ancient Greek: ἀναγνώρισις) is a moment in a play or other work when a character makes a critical discovery . Anagnorisis originally meant recognition in its Greek context, not only of a person but also of what that person stood for . Anagnorisis was the hero's sudden awareness of a real situation, the realisation of things as they stood, and finally, the hero's insight into a relationship with an often antagonistic character in Aristotelian tragedy . </P> <P> In his Poetics, as part of his discussion of peripeteia, Aristotle defined anagnorisis as "a change from ignorance to knowledge, producing love or hate between the persons destined by the poet for good or bad fortune" (1452a). It is often discussed along with Aristotle's concept of catharsis . </P>

What is the term that refers to a sudden awareness