Drama and Literary Techniques

Vocabulary terms and definitions related to types of drama, Aristotelian elements, character types, and dramatic techniques found in the lecture transcript.

Comedies

Humorous plays which use clever wordplay or turns of phrase.

Farce

A comic dramatic work using buffoonery and horseplay, typically including crude characterization and ludicrously improbable situations.

Melodrama

A dramatic work where the sensational plot takes precedence over detailed characterization and typically concentrates on bombastic or excessively sentimental dialogue.

Tragedy

A genre of story in which a hero is brought down by his/her own flaws, usually ordinary human flaws like greed, over-ambition, or an excess of love, honor, or loyalty.

Musical drama

An opera in which the musical and dramatic elements are equally important, with music appropriate to the action.

Opera

A drama set to music consisting of singing with orchestral accompaniment, an orchestral overture, and interludes.

Drama

In literature, the specific mode of fiction represented in performance where the story progresses through interactions between characters.

Tragicomedy

A literary genre that blends aspects of tragic and comic forms, such as a tragic play with enough comic elements to lighten the mood or a serious play with a happy ending.

Aristotelian elements

The six elements of drama: plot, character, thought, diction, spectacle, and song.

Plot

The order of events occurring in a play that narrates the story.

Dramatic structure

The five primary elements of plot: exposition, rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution.

Linear plot

A plot consisting of a series of events told in chronological order with a clear beginning, middle, and end.

Nonlinear plots

Plots that describe events out of chronological order, potentially using flashback, foreshadowing, subplots, or parallel plots.

Protagonist

A main character who generates the action of a story and engages the reader's interest and empathy.

Antagonist

A character who opposes the protagonist.

Dynamic character

A character who goes through some sort of change and shows character development.

Static character

Those who do not change throughout the course of the story and serve to show contrast to dynamic ones.

Flat character

A two-dimensional character that is relatively uncomplicated and does not change throughout the course of a work.

Round character

A complex character that undergoes development, sometimes sufficiently to surprise the reader.

Thought

Also called the theme, it is the central idea, moral lesson, or philosophy that forms the base of the story.

Diction

The language used to impart information, reveal characters, establish mood, tone, tempo, and rhythm appropriate to character.

Monologue

A long, uninterrupted speech delivered by a character in order to express thoughts and feelings to other characters or the audience.

Soliloquy

An act of speaking one's thoughts aloud when by oneself or regardless of any hearers to convey intimate thoughts and feelings directly to the audience.

Asides

Speeches that are shorter than soliloquies, usually consisting of only one or two lines.

Dialogue

A conversation between two or more characters in a work of literature.

Song (element)

Refers to the sound of the dialog, musicality, rhythm, and pace which helps establish mood and lend variety.

Spectacle

The visual elements of a play, including sets, costumes, special effects, and everything the audience sees during the performance.

Stagecraft

A key element of drama defining how the play is presented, including the use and organization of stage properties and the overall setting.

Body (technique)

A drama technique where character is conveyed through posture, gesture, and facial expression.

Space (technique)

The positioning and relationship between objects and bodies on stage, including grouping, levels, pathways, and personal space.

Movement (technique)

The use of timing, direction, and energy to build a sustained sequence that enhances understanding of character.

Voice (technique)

How actors speak their lines using volume, pitch, pausing, intonation, pace, and accent to influence audience understanding.

Allusion

A reference to a person, place, or event (mythological, biblical, historical, etc.) without explicit identification.

Dramatic device

A convention used in drama as a substitution for reality that the audience accepts as real although they know them to be false.

Dramatic irony

A literary device by which the audience's awareness of the situation differs substantially from that of the characters, giving actions a contradictory meaning.

Symbolism

The use of words, places, characters, or objects that mean something beyond what they are on a literal level to express profound ideas.