Final answer:
Catharsis is the term that describes the emotional release provided to citizens through Greek tragedies, which Aristotle claimed helped them return to their civic duties with a clearer focus.
Step-by-step explanation:
Scholars speculate that one purpose for Greek tragedies was to provide emotional release to citizens, this concept is known as catharsis. The idea of catharsis originated with Aristotle, who believed that by experiencing the extreme emotions of characters in a tragedy through a process called catharsis, the audience would undergo a purging of these emotions. Watching a tragedy unfold on stage allowed Athenian citizens to vicariously experience intense feelings, leading them to a state of emotional purification, which in turn would enable them to return to their civic duties with greater focus and rationality.