Elements of Drama and Poetry

These flashcards cover key literary terms related to elements of drama and poetry, helping to understand the various forms and structures within these genres.

Incomplete (sentence fragment)

A sentence fragment that does not contain an independent clause or complete thought, used to create a desired effect, often conveying a character overwhelmed with emotion or mental instability.

Dialogue

Conversation between two or more characters.

Monologue

A speech by a single character.

Soliloquy

A lengthy speech performed by a character alone on stage, speaking to him/herself to reveal inner thoughts such as conflict or motivation.

Aside

A short speech made by a character directly to the audience, while other characters on stage do not hear it.

Verse

Poetry that is divided into lines, which have rhythm and sometimes rhyme.

Rhythm/Meter

A pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables that creates a consistent beat in a line or across lines of verse.

Iambic Pentameter

Verse written in lines of ten syllables, starting with an unstressed syllable, following the rhythm pattern 'unstressed/stressed'.

Rhyme

The repetition of the final sound in two or more words or phrases that are close to each other in verse.

End Rhyme

Rhyming words that occur at the end of two or more lines.

Internal Rhyme

Rhyming words that occur within the same line.

Rhyming Couplet

Two consecutive lines of verse that rhyme.

Prose

All forms of written or spoken expression that do not have a regular rhythmic pattern, unlike poetry.