Key Terms in Drama and Plot Structure

aside

A short comment or speech delivered by a character directly to the audience, unheard by other characters on stage.

blank verse

Unrhymed poetry written in iambic pentameter, often used in Shakespearean drama.

catastrophe

The final action or unravelling in a tragedy, leading to the resolution of the plot and usually the downfall of the protagonist.

characterization

The process by which an author reveals the personality, traits, and qualities of a character in a story or play.

chorus

A group of performers who comment on the main action of a play, often speaking or singing in unison.

climax

The turning point or moment of greatest tension in a story or play, after which the action moves toward resolution. Traditionally in act three of a five-act play.

comic relief

A humorous scene, incident, or speech in a serious drama intended to provide relief from emotional intensity.

comedy

A dramatic work that is light and humorous in tone, typically ending in peace, reconciliation, or marriage.

conflict

The central struggle between opposing forces in a story or play, driving the plot.

foil

A character who contrasts with another character, usually the protagonist, to highlight particular qualities of the main character.

foreshadowing

A literary device in which hints or clues suggest events that will occur later in the story.

humor

The quality of being amusing, or comic, especially as expressed in literature or speech.

irony

A literary technique in which the intended meaning is opposite to the literal meaning, or when there is a discrepancy between expectation and reality.

drama

A genre of literature intended for performance, characterized by dialogue and action.

dialogue

Conversation between two or more characters in a play or story.

monologue

A long speech by one character in a play, usually addressed to other characters or the audience.

soliloquy

A speech in which a character speaks their thoughts aloud, usually alone on stage, revealing inner feelings and thoughts.

alliteration

The repetition of initial consonant sounds in neighboring words (e.g., 'She sells sea shells').

allusion

A brief, indirect reference to a person, place, event, or literary work with which the reader is expected to be familiar.

antithesis

A rhetorical device in which two opposite ideas are put together in a sentence to achieve a contrasting effect.

classical allusion

A reference to classical literature, mythology, or history, especially from ancient Greece or Rome.

figurative language

Language that uses figures of speech, such as metaphors, similes, and personification, to be more effective, persuasive, and impactful.

hyperbole

Exaggerated statements or claims not meant to be taken literally.

imagery

Descriptive language that appeals to the senses (sight, sound, smell, touch, taste) to create vivid mental pictures.

metaphor

A figure of speech that compares two unlike things by stating one is the other (e.g., 'Time is a thief').

paradox

A statement that seems self-contradictory or absurd but in reality expresses a possible truth.

personification

A figure of speech in which non-human things are given human characteristics.

repetition

The repeated use of words or phrases for emphasis or effect.

inverted (reverse) thought

A rhetorical device where the second part of a statement is the reverse of the first, often to emphasize contrast.

inverted (reverse) sentence construction

A sentence structure in which the normal word order is reversed, often for emphasis or poetic effect.

inverted (reverse) word order

The reversal of the normal order of words, typically for emphasis or to fit a rhyme or meter.

rhyme

The correspondence of sounds between words or the endings of words, especially at the ends of lines of poetry.

simile

A figure of speech comparing two unlike things using 'like' or 'as' (e.g., 'as brave as a lion').

exposition

The introduction of a play or story, usually found in Act One of a five-act play, where characters, setting, and basic conflict are introduced.

rising action

The series of events in a play or story, typically in Act Two of a five-act play, that build tension and develop the conflict.

falling action

Events following the climax that begin to resolve the conflict, usually in Act Four of a five-act play.

tragedy

A type of play that typically begins calmly and ends in violence or disaster, often involving the downfall of the main character.