English Literature PDF

# Literature - Literature, in its broadest sense, is any written work. Etymologically, the term derives from Latin *litaritura/litteratura* “writing formed with letters," although some definitions include spoken or sung texts. More restrictively, it is writing that possesses literary merit. ## Def...

# Literature - Literature, in its broadest sense, is any written work. Etymologically, the term derives from Latin *litaritura/litteratura* “writing formed with letters," although some definitions include spoken or sung texts. More restrictively, it is writing that possesses literary merit. ## Definition: - For the creation of a masterwork of literature two powers must concur, the power of the man and the power of the moment, and the man is not enough without the moment (ATTHEW ARNOLD, *The Functions of Criticism at the present*) - Literature is as old as speech. It grew out of human need for it, and it has not changed except to become more needed. (JOHN STEINBECK, Nobel Prize acceptance speech) ## Classification ### Poetry-drama-prose ### Poetry: - A poet is, before anything else, a person who is passionately in love with language. (W. H. Auden) - A poem begins as a lump in the throat, a sense of wrong, a homesickness, a lovesickness. (Robert Frost) - Poetry is the spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings: it takes its origin from emotion recollected in tranquillity. (William Wordsworth) - Immature poets imitate; mature poets steal. (T.S. Eliot) - I wish our clever young poets would remember my homely definitions of prose and poetry; that is prose; words in their best order; - poetry; the best words in the best order. (Samuel Taylor Coleridge) #### Types: * **Subjective-Objective** ##### Subjective Poetry: It is supplied by the poet's own thoughts and feelings. A poet brings it from within, giving expression, that is to say, to the thoughts and feelings it arouses in his mind, his treatment is subjective. ##### Objective Poetry: In objective poetry subject matter is supplied by external objects, such as deeds, events and the things we see around us. In Objective Poetry the poet acts as a detached observer, describing what he has seen or heard. #### Subjective Poetry Types ##### The lyric It is a short poem, characterised by simplicity in language and treatment. It deals with a single emotion which is generally stated in the first few lines. It is musical. Verbal-music is an important element in its appeal and charm. Various devices are used by poets to enhance the music of their lyrics. ##### THE ELEGY The elegy is an expression of the emotion of sorrow, woe, or despair. In short, the elegy is a lament, a lyric of mourning, or an utterance of personal bereavement and sorrow and, therefore, it should be characterised by absolute sincerity of emotion and expression. In common use, it is often restricted to a lament over the dead, but that is an improper narrowing of its meaning. There are laments over places, over lost love, over the past (which is never "dead"), over an individual's misery or failure; there are laments over departed pet animals, and so forth. ##### The Pastoral Elegy The pastoral elegy is a special kind of elegy. The words 'pastoral' comes from the Greek word "pastor", which means "to graze". Hence pastoral elegy is an elegy in which the poet represents himself as a shepherd mourning the death of a fellow shepherd. The form arose among the ancient Greeks, and Theocritus, Bions and Moschus were its most noted practitioners. In ancient Rome it was used by the Latin poet Virgil. In England, countless pastoral elegies have been written down from the Renaissance (16th century) to the present day. Spenser's Astrophel, Milton's Lycidas, Shelley's Adonais and Arnold's Thyrsis and Scholar Gipsy, are the most notable examples of pastoral elegy in the English language. ##### THE ODE The Ode is a special kind of lyric, more dignified, stately and elaborate than the simple lyric. Like the lyric, it also originated in ancient Greece. The Greek poet Pindar was the first to write Odes, and later on the form was practiced with certain modification by the Roman poet, Horace. The word 'ode' is simply the Greek word for 'song'. It was used by the Greeks for any kind of lyric verse, i.e. for any song sung with the lyre or to the accompaniment of some dance. However, as far as English literature is concerned, the term is now applied to only one particular kind of lyric verse. An English Ode may be defined as, 'a lyric poem of elaborate metrical structure, solemn in tone, and usually taking the form of address" very often to some abstraction or quality. It is in the form of an address, often to some abstraction. It is not written about but written to. #### Two Kinds There are two important forms of the ode 1. The Pindaric Ode; and 2. The Horation Ode. ##### (1) The Pindaric Ode Pindar the greatest lyric poet of ancient Greece (6th to 5th century B.C.) was the father of the Pindaric or Choric' Ode. Pindaric Odes were written generally in honour of the gods or to sing the triumphs or victories of rulers or athletes. Hence they are also known as "triumphal" odes. A Pindaric Ode has a fixed stanza-structure or pattern. The number of stanzas may vary, but they are invariably arranged in groups of three, each group being called a triad. The first stanza in each triad is called a 'strophe' - it was chanted by the dancing chorus as it proceeded in one direction. The second stanza in each triad is called an ante-strophe' - it was chanted by the chorus as it returned. The third stanza in each triad is called an 'epode', and it was sung when the chorus was stationary. Just as the total number of stanzas in a Pindaric Ode may vary (Pindar's odes range from one triad to thirteen in length) so also there could be variations in the metrical length of individual lines. Thus the Pindaric Ode has a fixed stanza-pattern but enjoys great rhythmical and metrical freedom. The Poet Cowley (1618-67) was the first poet of England to imitate consciously the Pindaric odes. However, he did not understand the regular structure of the Pindaric and introduced a verse form with long irregular stanzas without any fixed system of metre or rhyme. The true Pindaric in triadic form was written with success by Dryden (Ode to St. Cecilia and Alexander's Feast) and then by Gray (The Bard and the Progress of Poesy). After Gray, Pindaric of the triadic form fell out of fashion. ##### (2) The Horatian Ode This kind of Ode has been named after the Latin poet, Horace, who imitated Pindar but with far reaching modifications. The Horation Ode consists of a number of stanzas with a more or less regular metrical structure but without any division into triads of the Pindaric. It may be rhymed or unrhymed. This kind of Ode is light and personal (not choric) without the elaboration and complexity of the Pindaric. Many of the Finest English Odes are of this lighter sort. Some notable examples are: Wind Wordsworth's Ode to Duty; Shelley's Ode of the West Wind; and Keats' Ode to Nightingale. ### THE SONNET #### The Petrarchan Sonnet The sonnet also is a form of the lyric, and of all its forms it is most carefully ordered and bound by definite, rigid rules. The word "Sonnet" is derived from the Greek word "Sonneto", meaning, "a sound". It is a short lyric of fourteen lines and the Italian poet Petrarch was the first to use this form of the lyric to express his love for his beloved Laura, and its use "became the mark of Petrarchan love-poetry all over Europe in the 16th century." Petrarch had divided his sonnets into two parts, the octave of eight lines and the sestet of six lines, with a pause or ceasura after the eighth line. Its rhyme-scheme was ab, ba, ab, ba, cde, cde. #### The Sonnet in England - Early Sonnetteers Sir Thomas Wyatt was the first to write sonnets in England. It is the Petrarchan form of the sonnet that Wyatt follows. His use of this measure is often rigid and awkward, and he entirely fails to capture the warm, sensuous colour and delicate music of the Italian poet. His great contemporary Earl of Surrey also wrote sonnets in which he expressed his entirely imaginative love for Geraldine or Lady Elizabeth Fitzgerald. ## Objective Poetry and its different forms ### THE BALLAD The Ballad may be defined as a short-story in verse. The word Ballad is derived from the word "Ballare" which means "to dance". Originally a ballad was a song with a strong narrative substance sung to the accompaniment of dancing. The minstrel or the bard would sing the main parts, and the dancers would sing the refrain or certain lines which were frequently repeated. Often it was in the form of a dialogue. Thus the popular ballad had a strong dramatic element. In this way it is possible to divide ballads into two kinds or categories: (a) The "Popular ballad" or the Ballad of growth with its simplicity, its apparent ease and artlessness, and its primitive feeling, and (b) the "literary ballad", the conscious imitation of a later date of the original popular ballad. ### THE EPIC Just as a Ballad is a short story in verse, the epic is a long story in verse. It is a long narrative poem, generally divided into twelve books. Homer's epics are divided into twelve books each, and Milton also divided his Paradise Lost into twelve books. It deals with the military exploits, deeds of valour, of some national hero or of same person of national, even international importance. The epic hero is a man of heroic bulk and dimensions. He is giant among men and has extra-ordinary physical prowess. Because an epic is a story of heroic deeds it is also called a heroic poem. Thus Homer's Iliad narrates the heroic deeds of the Greeks during the war of Troy, and Odyssey those of King Odysessus or Ulysses. Milton's Paradise Lost has a cosmic sweep and range and deals with events of interest to all mankind. In this respect, it stands unique among the epics of the world. The supernatural plays an important part, and frequently intervenes in the action. Thus in Homer's Iliad, the Gods intervence in the war of Troy, and in Spenser's Fairy Queen also a number of supernatural agencies are seen at work. ### THE MOCK-EPIC A Mock-epic is a small narrative poem in which the machinery and conventions of epic proper are employed in the treatment of trivial themes, and in this way it becomes a parody or burlesque of the epic. A mocking, ridiculous effect is created when the grandiloquent epic-style and epic-conventions are used for a theme which is essentially trivial and insignificant. The ancient Mock-epic The Battle of the Frog and Mice, a parody of Homer's Iliad, Swift's Tale of a Tub and Battle of the Books and Pope's Dunciad and The Rape of the Lock are the finest examples of the Mock-epic. ### THE IDYLL By the word "Idyll" is meant a description in prose or verse of some scene or event which is striking, picturesque, and complete in itself. Such an idyll may stand alone, or it may form a kind of interlude in a longer composition. In our literature idyllic passages are commoner than isolated-idylls. Indeed, the actual name is best known to us by Tennyson's Idylls of the King, and Browning's Dramatic Idylls. An Idyll is neither a lyric nor a narrative but partakes of the qualities of both. It derives its name from the Greek word meaning, "a little picture", and so two of its essential characteristics are (a) its brevity, and (b) pictorial effect. ### THE DRAMATIC MONOLOGUE The Dramatic Monologue is the most important kind of that sub-division of objective poetry which we have called dramatic, which is dramatic not because it is to be acted on the stage, but because it gives the thoughts and emotions not of the poet but of some imagined character. The poet's identity is merged with that of the dramatic personage, and the poet speaks through his mouth, so to say. Robert Browning is the most important writer of dramatic monologues in the English language. The dramatic monologues are dramatic because they do not express the thoughts and feelings of the poet but of some imaginary character; they are monologues because in them only one character speaks throughout (Mono means 'one'). ## Drama Drama is a mode of fictional representation through dialogue and performance. It is one of the literary genres, which is an imitation of some action. Drama is also a type of a play written for theater, television, radio, and film. In simple words, a drama is a composition in verse or prose presenting a story in pantomime or dialogue. It contains conflict of characters, particularly the ones who perform in front of audience on the stage. The person who writes drama for stage directions is known as a "dramatist” or “playwright." ### Types of Drama Let us consider a few popular types of drama: #### Comedy Comedies are lighter in tone than ordinary works, and provide a happy conclusion. The intention of dramatists in comedies is to make their audience laugh. Hence, they use quaint circumstances, unusual characters, and witty remarks. #### Tragedy Tragic dramas use darker themes, such as disaster, pain, and death. Protagonists often have a tragic flaw - a characteristic that leads them to their downfall. #### Farce Generally, a farce is a nonsensical genre of drama, which often overacts or engages slapstick humour. #### Melodrama Melodrama is an exaggerated drama, which is sensational and appeals directly to the senses of the audience. Just like the farce, the characters are of a single dimension and simple, or may be stereotyped. #### Musical Drama In musical dramas, dramatists not only tell their stories through acting and dialogue, but through dance as well as music. Often the story may be comedic, though it may also involve serious subjects. ## Prose Prose is a form or technique of language that exhibits a natural flow of speech and grammatical structure. ## Novel A Novel is a long narrative work of fiction with some realism. It is often in prose form and is published as a single book. The word 'novel' has been derived from the Italian word 'novella' which means "new". Similar to a short story, a novel has some features like a representation of characters; dialogues, setting, plot, climax, conflict, and resolution. However, it does not require all the elements to be a good novel. ### Types: #### Realistic Novel: A fictional attempt to give the effect of realism. This sort of novel is sometimes called a novel of manner. A realistic novel can be characterized by its complex characters with mixed motives that are rooted in social class and operate according to highly developed social structure. The characters in realistic novel interact with other characters and undergo plausible and everyday experiences. Examples: Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher, **Looking for Alaska** by John Green. #### Picaresque Novel: A picaresque novel relates the adventures of an eccentric or disreputable hero in episodic form. The genre gets its name from the Spanish word picaro, or "rogue." Examples: Rudyard Kipling's **Kim** (1901), Henry Fielding's **The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling** (1749), #### Historical Novel: A Historical novel is a novel set in a period earlier than that of the writing. Examples: Thackeray's **Vanity Fair**, Charles Dickens's **A Tale of Two Cities,** #### Epistolary Novel: Epistolary fiction is a popular genre where the narrative is told via a series of documents. The word epistolary comes from Latin where 'epistola' means a letter. Letters are the most common basis for epistolary novels but diary entries are also popular Examples: Samuel Richardson's **Pamela** and **Clarissa**, Bram Stoker's **Dracula,** #### Bildungsroman: German terms that indicates a growth. This fictional autobiography concerned with the development of the protagonist's mind, spirit, and characters from childhood to adulthood. Examples: Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte, David Copperfield by Charles Dickens, The Magic Mountain by Thomas Mann, #### Gothic Novel: Gothic novel includes terror, mystery, horror, thriller, supernatural, doom, death, decay, old haunted buildings with ghosts and so on. Examples: Mary Shelley's **Frankenstein**, Bram Stoker's **Dracula,** #### Autobiographical Novel: An autobiographical novel is a novel based on the life of the author. Examples: Charles Dickens' **David Coppefield**, **Great Expectations**, D.H. Lawrence's **Sons and Lovers**, Sylvia Plath's **The Bell Jar**, Ralph Ellison's **Invisible Man**, Maya Angelou's **I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings**, Virginia Wolfe's **The Light House** etc. ### Novella A novella is a short, narrative, prose fiction. As a literary genre, the novella's origin lay in the early Renaissance literary work of the Italians and the French. As the etymology suggests, novellas originally were news of town and country life worth repeating for amusement and edification. Examples: Joseph Conrad's **Heart of Darkness,** ### Stream of Consciousness Novel or Psychological Novel: Psychological novels are works of fiction that treat the internal life of the protagonist (or several or all characters) as much as (if not more than) the external forces that make up the plot. The phrase "Stream of Consciousness" was coined by William James in his Principles of Psychology (1890), to describe the flow of thought of the waking mind. Examples: Virginia Wolfe's **To the Lighthouse**, **Mrs. Dolloway**, James Joyce's **Ulysses**, D. H. Lawrence's **Sons and Lovers**, **The Rainbow**. ### Social Fiction/ Political Novel: The genre focussed on possible development of societies, very often dominated by totalitarian governments. This type of novels must have social and political message. The term generally refers to fiction in Europe and the Soviet Union reacting to Communist rule. Examples: George Orwell's **Nineteen Eighty-Four**, Huxley's **Brave New World** etc. ### Dystopian Novel: A dystopia is an unpleasant (typically repressive) society, often propagandized as being utopian. Examples: **Fahrenheit 451** by Ray Bradbury. ### Short Story: A short story is fictional work of prose that is shorter in length than a novel. Edgar Allan Poe, in his essay *The Philosophy of Composition*, said that a short story should be read in one sitting, anywhere from a half hour to two hours. In contemporary fiction, a short story can range from 1,000 to 20,000 words. Because of the shorter length, a short story usually focuses on one plot, one main character (with a few additional minor characters), and one central theme, whereas a novel can tackle multiple plots and themes, with a variety of prominent characters. ## What is Drama? - Drama comes from Greek words meaning "to do" or "to act." A drama or play is a story acted out. It shows people going through some period in their lives, which can be either serious or humorous. - Drama is a prose or verse composition, especially one telling a serious story that is performed by actors through dialogue and action. - Drama is a literary composition involving conflict, action crisis and atmosphere designed to be acted by players on a stage before an audience. - Drama is the representation of human life presented through dialogue and action. - As in novel, in drama too the plot, characters, theme and dialogues are the key elements of any drama. - Drama is a display of emotions, a representation of relationships and the portrayal of the different phases of human life. - It sketches different personalities and represents a wide variety of emotions through the different characters it portrays. Drama originated twenty-five hundred years ago, in Athens, Greece. The ancient Athenians created a theatre culture whose form, technique and terminology are still considered among the greatest works of world drama. A drama or play is a story acted out. It shows people going through some eventful period in their lives, seriously or humorously. The speech and action of a play recreate the flow of human life. A play comes fully to life only on the stage. On the stage it combines many arts those of the author, director, actor, designer, and others. ### Kinds of Drama Drama is classified into two basic categories: Tragedy and Comedy. The broad difference between the two is in the ending. Comedies end happily. Tragedies end on an unhappy note. - Tragedy involves the ruin of the leading characters. To the Greek Dramatists, it meant the destruction of some noble person through fate, To Shakespeare; it meant in the first place death and in the second place, the destruction of some noble person through a flaw in his character. - Comedy intends to make the audience laugh. When we talk about comedy, we usually refer to dramas or plays that are light in tone, and that typically have happy endings. ### Exercise 1 1. So far we have told you about the definitions of drama and the two main types of drama. Now try to write your own definition of drama in the light of the discussion you have just read. Drama is 2. Write down the salient features of tragedy and comedy which make them distinct from each other. Aristotle, the famous Greek philosopher, scientist, and a student of Plato and teacher of Alexander the Great believed that tragedy is "the imitation of an action that is serious and having magnitude, complete in itself." #### A typical tragedy includes: - The tragic hero who, though not perfect, is certainly in some way morally superior to most of the audience, who is nearly always upper class, and who also show "Hamartia", or the tragic flaw or arrogance. This Hamartia or arrogance causes the hero to believe he can defeat fate or violate a moral law, which leads to some kind of "Catastrophe or calamity, which further results in "Peripeteia" or a complete reversal of fortune from happiness to disaster. - A true tragedy should evoke pity and fear on the part of the audience. According to Aristotle, pity and fear are the natural human response to spectacles of pain and suffering--especially to the sort of suffering that can strike anybody at any time. - The tragic hero must be essentially admirable and' good. As Aristotle points out, the fall of a scoundrel or villain evokes applause rather than pity. Audiences cheer when the bad guy goes down. On the other hand, the downfall of an essentially good person disturbs us and stirs our compassion. As a rule, the nobler and more truly admirable a person is, the greater will be our anxiety or grief at his or her downfall. - In a true tragedy, the hero's demise must come as a result of some personal error or decision. In other words, in Aristotle's view there is no such thing as an innocent victim of tragedy, nor can a tragic downfall be purely a matter of accident or bad luck. Instead, tragedy must always be the product of some fatal choice or action, and the tragic hero or heroine must always bear at least some responsibility for his or her own doom. ### Exercise 2 After reading the characteristics of a typical tragedy, can you define the following terms? * Hamartia * Catastrophe * Peripeteia ## Now let us introduce you to some famous dramatists - Sophocles, born in 495 B.C. in Athens, Greece, is considered as one of the great playwrights. The play "Oedipus Rex" is generally considered his greatest work. A masterful work of plot and suspense, Oedipus Rex is considered as a perfectly structured play which fulfils all the demands of a Greek Tragedy - William Shakespeare was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world famous dramatist. His plays have been translated into every major living language and are performed more often than those of any other playwright As we will go further in this unit we will be learning in detail about one of Shakespeare's great tragedies “Hamlet”. - "Hamlet" is considered as one of the greatest revenge tragedies in the world. The story centres on Hamlet, a thirty-year old Prince of Denmark during the twelfth century, who is mourning the death of his beloved father and the untimely wedding of his mother, Gertrude to his uncle, Claudius. Hamlet sees his mother's sudden re-marriage as a betrayal of her union with his father, but worse news is yet to come. A ghost, appearing in the shape of Hamlet's father, haunts Elsinore Castle, and when Hamlet confronts the ghost, it claims to be the true spirit of the late king, doomed to walk the Earth for a set time. It also states that, by using a fast-acting, deadly poison, Claudius committed murder to claim both queen and crown for himself. Hamlet vows revenge, and thus begins either his slow spiral into madness or his carefully planned act to appear insane. Shakespeare's four other tragedies “Macbeth”, “Othello” and “King Lear” are among the greatest revenge tragedies of the world. - Arthur Miller, the famous American playwright was born in Harlem, New York City; He was a celebrated American playwright who combined in his works social awareness with deep insights into personal weaknesses of his characters. Miller is best known for the play "Death of a Salesman” (1949). The play stunned audiences with its brilliance and is considered as a classic of the modern literature. Arthur Miller has come to be considered one of the greatest dramatists in the history of the American literature. - Tennessee Williams was a famous American playwright who has given plays like “A Streetcar Named Desire", "The Glass Menagerie", and "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof”. In addition to twenty-five full length plays, Tennessee Williams produced dozens of short plays and screenplays, two novels, a novella, sixty short stories, over one-hundred poems and an autobiography ## Now let us tell you about “Comedy". Comedy is a dramatic work that is light and often humorous or satirical in tone and that usually contains a happy resolution or ending of the conflict. At this point let us just mention a famous English writer Oscar Wilde. Born and raised in Dublin, Ireland, Oscar Wilde's rich and dramatic portrayals of the human conditions of that period. Wilde wrote many short stories, plays and poems that continue to inspire millions around the world. One of his famous comedies is "The Importance of Being Earnest” which is one of Oscar Wilde's most acclaimed play. Of all the plays, this is the funniest with witty dialogues, romantic misunderstandings, and laughter-inducing coincidences. ### Comedies can be categorised into at least three sub-genres as follows: - Farce. It is a light dramatic work in which highly unlikely plot situations, exaggerated characters, and often funny elements are used for humorous effect. The characters of farce are typically fantastic or absurd and usually far more ridiculous than those in other forms of comedy. Examples of the genre include Shakespeare's “Comedy of Errors", "Pink Panther" movies, and the film “Three Stooges”. - Romantic Comedy. Perhaps the most popular of all comic forms--both on stage and on screen is the romantic comedy. In this genre the primary feature is a love plot in which two sympathetic and well-matched lovers are united. In a typical romantic comedy the two lovers tend to be young, likeable, and actually meant for each other, yet they are kept apart by some complicating circumstance (e.g., class differences, parental interference; a previous girlfriend or boyfriend) until, overcoming all obstacles, they are finally wed. Wedding-bells, fairy-tale-style happy ending is practically mandatory in a romantic comedy. Shakespeare's “Much Ado about Nothing”, Walt Disney's "Cinderella", are examples of romantic comedies. Romantic comedies tend to be light and end happily. - Satirical Comedy. The subject of satire is human vice and folly. Its characters include criminals, tricksters, deceivers, wheeler-dealers, two-timers, hypocrites, fortune-seekers, and gullible fools. Aristophanes's "The Birds", Ben Jonson's "Volpone” are examples of satirical comedy. - Black comedy. Black comedy is a sub-genre of comedy in which topics and events that are usually regarded as taboo are treated in a satirical or humorous manner while retaining their seriousness. It is a kind of drama in which disturbing or sinister subjects like death, disease, or warfare are treated with bitter amusement, usually in a manner to offend and shock. The purpose of black comedy is to make light of serious and often taboo subject matter. Samuel Beckett's famous play "Waiting for Godot" is considered as one of the biggest black comedy. ### Here is a list of Shakespearean comedies: - All's Well That Ends Well - As You Like It - The Comedy of Errors - Cymbeline - Love's Labour's Lost - Measure for Measure - The Merchant of Venice - The Merry Wives of Windsor - A Midsummer Night's Dream - Much Ado About Nothing - Pericles Prince of Tyre - Taming of the Shrew - The Tempest - Twelfth Night - The Two Gentlemen of Verona - The Winter's Tale ## Elements of Drama We have discussed elements of literature in general, elements of poetry, and elements of novel in the last five units. In this unit too you will come across more or less the same elements such as plot, theme, character, characterisation, etc. Drama is a display of emotions, a representation of relationships and the portrayal of the different phases of human life. It sketches different personalities and represents a wide variety of emotions through the different characters it portrays. There are seven elements of drama as given below: 1. Theme 2. Plot 3. Character 4. Dialogue 5. Music 6. Stage craft 7. Audience Let us now try to understand each of the elements of drama. ### 1. Theme The theme of a drama refers to the central idea of the play. It can either be clearly stated through dialogue or action or can be inferred after watching the entire performance. How can the readers or audience find out the theme of the play? Well, we can understand the theme of the play through images, through characters, through action. When you are reading a drama and analysing it, asking the following questions will help you understand the theme of the drama: - What is the theme or underlying idea? - Is the title of the drama related to the theme? - Is the author trying to show you a new, different or better way of looking at life? - Does he say anything important about life or people? - Does the author tell his ideas directly or must you read between the lines? ### 2. Plot The order of events occurring in a play is referred to as the plot of the drama. It is the basic storyline that is narrated through a play. The entertainment one derives from a play depends largely on the sequence of events that occur in the story. The logical connection between the events and the characters, which enact the story form an integral part of the plot of drama. **There are five essential parts of plot:** * i. Introduction – The beginning of the story where the characters and the setting is revealed. * ii. Rising Action - This is where the events in the story become complicated and the conflict in the story is revealed. * iii. Climax – This is the highest point of interest and the turning point of the story. The reader wonders what will happen next; will the conflict be resolved or not? * iv. Falling action - The events and complications begin to resolve themselves. The readers or audience know what has happened and if the conflict will be resolved or not. * v. Resolution or End – This is the final outcorne or untangling of events in the story. When you are reading a drama and analysing it, asking the following questions will help you understand the plot of the drama: - What happens in the play? - What is the plot line? - Does the story go straight ahead in time or are there flashbacks? - Is more than one story being told? - What conflicts can you find? - What is the climax or turning point of the play? ### 3. Character Characters are the people portrayed by the actors in the play. It is the characters who move the action, or plot of the play forward. The characters that form a part of the story are interwoven with the plot of the drama. Each character in a play has a personality of its own and has a distinct set of principles and beliefs. Actors who play various roles in a drama have the very important responsibility of bringing the characters to life. Writers whether they are novelists or dramatists employ a variety of characters while weaving their tales. Beyond the standard definitions of protagonist (the main character in a literary work) and antagonist (the main character or force that opposes the protagonist in a literary work), recognizing the types of characters and the parts they play while reading an interesting story can add to the experience. #### Characterisation Characterisation is made up of three elements: appearance, which is the way the character looks; personality, which is the way the character thinks or feels; and behaviour, which is the way the character acts and reacts. In any type of story, it is important that readers are able to picture the characters. Character details can take many forms: physical features, clothing, hobbies, and communication. Paying attention to details can provide a lot of information about what a character is like. Characters are the agents who perform the action during the course of the play. In order to analyse their role in the play, it is necessary to know about their different types. Here are some types of characters, few of them followed by examples to make you understand about that particular type of character. #### Types of Characters * **Protagonist:** The protagonist is the central person in a story, and is often referred to as the story's main character. He or she (or they) is faced with a conflict that must be resolved. * **Antagonist:** The antagonist is the character(s) that represents the opposition against which the protagonist must fight or resist. In other words, the antagonist is an obstacle that the protagonist must overcome. * **Major or central characters:** These are vital to the development and resolution of the conflict. In other words, the plot and resolution of conflict revolves around these characters. * **Minor characters:** They serve to complement the major characters and help move the plot events forward. * **Dynamic:** A dynamic character is a person who changes over time, usually as a result of resolving a central conflict or facing a major crisis. Sometimes a dynamic character is called a developing character. Example: Charles Dickens a hugely famous English novelist whose novels "Oliver Twist”, “Tale of Two Cities”, “A Christmas Carol” and many more novels are read by thousands in the world even today. In his novel "A Christmas Carol” there is character "Ebenezer Scrooge”, who was very stingy with his money. He mistreated his employees and made them very hard for very little pay. After his experiences with the ghosts that visited him, he changed his ways, paying his employees fair wages, providing days off work and actually giving gifts. Therefore we can say that the character “Ebenezer Scrooge” is a dynamic character that changed over time and became a different person. * **Static:** A static character is someone who does not change over time; his or . her personality does not transform or evolve, a character that remains primarily the same throughout. Events in the story do not alter a static character's outlook, personality, motivation, perception, habits, etc. Example: There is a clumsy salesman, who is disorganised, never takes the time to organise his files, properly record his sales, or follow up with customers. Finally, his boss gets fed up and fires him. The salesman struggles for two months to find a new sales position, finally finds a new sales position but, before a week passes, he is called by his new boss. The salesman is informed he must get organised or he'll be fired. A week later, the new boss fires him after he fails to follow up with an important customer. In this example the salesman is a static character because he remains what he is and does not change. * **Round:** A round character is anyone who has a complex personality; he or she is often portrayed as a conflicted and contradictory person. Example: She tells her friends that charity and compassion have no place in society. On the other hand, she can never pass by giving charity to beggars, feeding a stray kitten or puppy, and always tries to find a good home for lost or abandoned children. In this example the woman is a round character because she shows.contradictory traits in her personality. * **Flat:** A flat character is the opposite of a round character. In a story, a flat character is a minor character that does not show any type of growth or change till the end of the story. * **Stock:** Stock characters are those types of characters who have become conventional or stereotypical through repeated use in particular types of stories. Stock characters are instantly recognisable to readers or audience. When you are reading a drama and analysing it, asking the following questions will help you understand the characters, characterisation and the theme of the drama: - Who are the characters both major and minor? - What are their relationships to one another? - What kind of people are they? - Are you able to identify with one particular character? ### Exercise 3 1. What is the difference between a round character and a flat character? 2. What is the importance of major characters in the plot of the play? To analyse the character, the following points must be kept in mind. 1. Physical Description 2. What the character says 3. What the character does 4. What the character thinks 5. What others say to or about the character 6. What others do to the character 7. What is the setting in which