PART A: What does the word "spectacle" most closely mean as it is used in paragraph 2? On tragedy

The answer is tragic hardship or misfortune.

Explanation:

If you read this paragraph from Aristotle's On Tragedy, you will see that he uses the word spectacle to represent a change from a good situation into a bad one.

"It follows plainly, in the first place, that the change of fortune presented must not be the spectacle of a virtuous man brought from prosperity to adversity"

The phrase from prosperity to adversity especially gives us a hint as to what spectacle means. Prosperity is a positive state of being, whereas adversity is its opposite. By using the word spectacle, Aristotle isn't referring to its modern meaning, but rather the state of change towards something negative.