Dramatic Devices Flashcards
(37 cards)
Basically the speaking of the actors throughout the play.
Dialogue
Usually italicized and put within brackets scattered throughout the text.
Stage Directions
A playwright will often describe the placement of furniture; the size, shape, and colour of the props even the style and colour of the costumes worn by the characters. (Basically the background and where the story takes place)
Setting
The use of irony, sarcasm, ridicule, or the like, in exposing, denouncing, or deriding vice, folly, etc. It is usually a mockery on trivial issues or people.
Satire
People must be able to interpret the satire used in the play, mocking tone. It is a way for the author to make fun of characters and their faults. It is how the author sets the mood.
Satirical Tone
Refers to the way the play is put together-the sequencing and pacing of the action. The playwright is concerned first and foremost to hold the audience’s interest.
Dramatic Form
Must be placed so the members of the audience quickly develop interest in both characters in the play and the situation itself.
Action
The structure of a play usually follows a basic structure. One act plays usually have one main one in comparison to longer plays which have a main one and many suborns.
Plot
Is a secondary arrangement of incidents involving secondary characters who are involved in a situation that poses dramatic questions.
Subplot
It is the section that begins the play, introduces the characters, and provides the background information.
Exposition
The incident that provides the starting point for the main action of the play. Dilemma or problem is presented to see what needs to be solved quickly.
Dramatic Incitement
The question that must be answered such as in a murder mystery. ‘Will the murderer be discovered?”
Dramatic Question
Usually forms the main action of the play. The characters respond to the dramatic incitement and other developments that may stem from it. Can also be referred toas the ‘rising action.’
Complication
Usually occurs late in the play. The moment in the play when the dramatic question is answered.
Climax/Crisis
It is the final section of the play, in which things are worked out and the conclusion is reached. Can also be referred to as the denouement.
Resolution
Is a serious play that dramatizes disastrous downfall of the central character.
Tragedy
Tragedies must achieve a purification in the audience by presenting incidents that arouse both fear and pity.
Catharsis
The downfall of the protagonist is the result of his or her own tragic flaw, which takes the form of the hands of the gods or fate.
Hubris
A source of harm or ruin, and cannot be beaten or overcome.
Divine Retribution/Nemesis
Is a play chiefly to amuse and entertain the audience members by allowing them to feel a sense of superiority over the characters. Usually represents common human frailties.
Comedy
It is a play that combines the elements of tragedy and comedy. The play provides a happy ending to a potentially tragic story or it may contain serious and light moods.
Tragicomedy
It is a form of sensational drama that first became popular in the 1800s and that we now often see in television and movies. Provide the audience with larger-than-life, one-dimensional characters of pure innocence or great villainy, The conflict is emotionally exaggerated and often simplistic.
Melodramas
It has an enormous impact on the audience’s understanding of the character, as well as on the mood and pace of the play.
Language
When writing or speaking, we choose the words which seem most suitable to the purpose and audience. In academic writing we use formal language, avoiding the use of slang and colloquial language.
Formal Language
