Drama Elements and Literary Devices PDF

Drama - (or play) is a narrative or verse meant to be performed onstage. It presents a story which reveals human conditions and circumstances. Elements of Drama: 1. Characters A character is a person created by the playwright to carry the action, language, ideas, and emotion of the play. Developing...

Drama - (or play) is a narrative or verse meant to be performed onstage. It presents a story which reveals human conditions and circumstances. Elements of Drama: 1. Characters A character is a person created by the playwright to carry the action, language, ideas, and emotion of the play. Developing a character requires familiarity and awareness of human nature. A well-developed character is one that has been thoroughly characterized, with many traits shown in the narrative. 2. Conflict The conflict is a struggle between two opposing people or forces. 3. Events (Plot) The plot of the story is made-up of a series of related events that include the conflict, the climax, and the resolution. It deals with the incidents encountered by the characters. a. Exposition b. Rising Action c. Climax d. Rising Action e. Denouement 4. Theme Theme is the main idea that the play dramatizes about its subject. 5. Dialogue Dialogue is the conversation between characters in a drama or narrative. It is the line or passages in the story which are intended to be spoken. Techniques and Literary Devices A literary device is any specific aspect of literature, or a particular work, which we can recognize, identify, interpret and/or analyze. Both literary elements and literary techniques can rightly be called literary devices. Literary techniques are specific, deliberate constructions of language which an author uses to convey meaning. An author's use of a literary technique usually occurs with a single word or phrase, or a particular group of words or phrases, at one single point in a text. Unlike literary elements, literary techniques are not necessarily present in every text. Alliteration. The repetition of consonant sounds within close proximity, usually in consecutive words within the same sentence or line. Anthropomorphism. Where animals or inanimate objects are portrayed in a story as people, such as by walking, talking, or being given arms, legs and/or facial features. (This technique is often incorrectly called personification.) Blank verse. Non rhyming poetry, usually written in iambic pentameter. Much of Shakespeare's dialogue is written in blank verse, though it does occasionally rhyme. Creative license. Exaggeration or alteration of objective facts or reality for the purpose of enhancing meaning in a fictional context. Dialogue. Where characters speak to one another; may often be used to substitute for exposition. Dramatic irony. Where the audience or reader is aware of something important, of which the characters in the story are not aware. Exposition. Where an author interrupts a story in order to explain something, usually to provide important background information. The first chapter consists mostly of exposition, running down the family's history and describing their living conditions. Figurative language. Any use of language where the intended meaning differs from the actual literal meaning of the words themselves. There are many techniques which can rightly be called figurative language, including metaphor, simile, hyperbole, personification, onomatopoeia, verbal irony, and oxymoron. The poet makes extensive use of figurative language, presenting the speaker's feelings as colors, sounds and flavors. Foreshadowing. Where future events in a story, or perhaps the outcome, are suggested by the author before they happen. Foreshadowing can take many forms and be accomplished in many ways, with varying degrees of subtlety. However, if the outcome is deliberately and explicitly revealed early in a story (such as by the use of a narrator or flashback structure), such information does not constitute foreshadowing. Hyperbole. A description which exaggerates. lambic pentameter. Poetry written with each line containing ten syllables, in five repetitions of a two-syllable pattern wherein the pronunciation emphasis is on the second syllable. Imagery. Language which describes something in detail, using words to substitute for and create sensory stimulation, including visual imagery and sound imagery. It also refers to specific and recurring types of images, such as food imagery and nature imagery. Irony (a.k.a. Situational irony): Where an event occurs which is unexpected, and which is in absurd or mocking opposition to what is expected or appropriate. Metaphor. A direct relationship where one thing or idea substitutes for another. Onomatopoeia. Where sounds are spelled out as words; or, when words describing sounds actually sound like the sounds they describe. Oxymoron. A contradiction in terms. Paradox. Where a situation is created which cannot possibly exist, because different elements of it cancel each other out. Parallelism. Use of similar or identical language, structures, events, or ideas in different parts of a text. Personification. Where inanimate objects or abstract concepts are seemingly endowed with human self-awareness; where human thoughts, actions and perceptions are directly attributed to inanimate objects or abstract ideas. (Not to be confused with anthropomorphism.) Repetition. Where a specific word, phrase, or structure is repeated several times, to emphasize a particular idea. Simile. An indirect relationship where one thing or idea is described as being similar to another. Similes usually contain the words "like" or "as," but not always. Symbolism. The use of specific objects or images to represent abstract ideas. This term is commonly misused, describing any and all representational relationships, which in fact are more often metaphorical than symbolic. A symbol must be something tangible or visible, while the idea it symbolizes must be something abstract or universal. Verbal Irony. Where the meaning is intended to be the exact opposite of what the words actually mean. (Sarcasm is a tone of voice that often accompanies verbal irony, but they are not the same thing.) Additional Techniques and Literary Devices A. Aside Words spoken by an actor directly to the audience, but not heard by the other characters on the stage during a play. Example: lago voices his inner thoughts number of times as asides" for the audience. (Shakespeare's Othello) B. Soliloguy A speech in a play that is meant to be heard by the audience but not by other characters on the stage. Example: Hamlet's "To be or not to be" speech is an example. C. Monologue A speech by the single character without another character's response. Shakespeare's plays abound with characters talking with no one responding. D. Dramatic Irony A device in which the character holds a position or has an expectation reversed or fulfilled in a way that the character did not expect but the audience or readers have anticipated because their knowledge of events or individuals is more complete than the character's. Example: In Shakespeare's Othello, Othello blames Desdemona for cheating on him. The audience knows that she is faithful and lago deceived him. E. Act A major division in a play. An act can be subdivided into scenes. F. Fourth Wall The imaginary wall of the of the box theater setting, supposedly removed to allow the audience to see the action. Example: Lorraine Hansberry's A Raisin in the Sun, Wendy Wassertein's Tender Offer, and August Wilson's Fences. Types of Play: 1. Tragedy - imitates a serious action and includes events that evoke fear and pity Example: Shakespeare's Hamlet, Othello, Macheth 2. Comedy - either romantic or satirical in context. It also reveals the nature of man, but in a humorous manner. Example: Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing, Twelfth Night 3. Melodrama - features a clash between good and evil. It is known for its extreme sentimentality, exciting and stimulating action, and overstated feelings. Example: Anton Chekov's The Brute; Augustin Daly's Under the Gaslight 4. Farce - shows violent conflict, and crude humor. Its purpose is to produce bursting laughter which is achieved through raw approaches