Drama Terms Quiz

Drama

A type of literature written to be performed by actors, usually through dialogue and action.

Exposition

The part of a play that introduces the characters, setting, background information, and situation the audience needs to understand the story.

Rising Action

The events or complications that build tension and develop the main conflict after the inciting incident.

Climax

The turning point or most intense moment of the play.

Falling Action

Comes after the climax where the tension from the central conflict begins to ease and the narrative moves toward the conclusion.

Denouement - “tying up of loose ends”

The final part of a play, where conflicts are resolved or outcomes become clear

Antagonist

A character, group, or force that opposes the protagonist and creates obstacles in the story

Protagonist

Main character who faces the conflict and drives the story

Conflict

A struggle between opposing forces that creates the central problem of the play

Tragedy

A type of drama in which a serious conflict leads to a disastrous or sorrowful outcome, often involving the does fall of the main character

Aside

A brief remark spoken by a character that is meant to be heard by the audience but not by the other characters on stage.

Soliloquy

A long speech by a character alone onstage, that expresses their private thoughts and feelings aloud for the audience to hear

Stage Directions

Instructions in a play that tell actors how a scene should be performed, such as movements, expressions, entrances, exits, lighting or setting

Inciting Incident

The event that sets the main conflict or central action of the play in motion

Aristotle

An ancient Greek Philosopher who wrote about drama, especially, tragedy, in Poetics. His ideas helped establish important concepts for analyzing dramatic structure and tragedy.