Glossary Terms Flashcards
(175 cards)
1
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Act
A
An act is the major division of the action in play. smaller divisions within acts are called scenes.
2
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Afterword
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The afterword is a final passage or seen following the conclusion of the story or play, also called an epilogue. The afterword often presents the narrator’s assessment of the overall meaning of the story.
3
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Alienation Effect
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An effect, such as a mask or a surreal setting, designed to prevent audiences from becoming emotionally involved in the play. This technique was used by the German dramatist Bertolt Brecht to move audiences to political action.
4
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Allusion
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A reference, often to a historical figure, myth, or artwork, that exists OUTSIDE the literary work. Allusions to the Bible are common in Western literature
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Ambiguity
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A deliberate use of language to suggest multiple meanings. For example, Young Goodman Brown’s Adventure in Nathaniel Hawthorne’s story of the same name may have been a dream, or may have actually occurred.
6
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Amphitheater
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Originating in classical Greece, a theater designed with the stage surrounded by tiers of seats arranged in a semi circle
7
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Analogy
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A comparison between two apparently unlike things that share some common features; reference to the familiar order to help readers understand the unfamiliar
8
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Antagonist
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The character who opposes the lead character, or protagonist. Occasionally, when a conflict is internal, the antagonist is actually another side of the protagonist’s OWN Personality
9
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Anticlimax
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A failure to achieve the anticipated high point in the narrative is the anticlimax, usually resulting in disappointed expectations
10
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Antihero
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The antihero is the main character who does not possess than normal positive qualities are hero; antiheroes appear primarily in modern works
11
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Antistrophe
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With strophe and epode, a stanza in Greek ode. The antistrophe represents the reverse of the strophe
12
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Apron stage
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It was popular in Elizabethan Theatre, the April stage is a stage that extends towards the audience beyond the arch of the stage
13
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Archetype
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A character place or event that represents a universal truth, and it is often of mythic proportions. The art tape appeals to what this psychologist Carl Jung called “collective unconscious” - sublimated memories of the entire race
14
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Arena stage
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The arena stage is surrounded on every side by the audience actors enter and exit through the aisles
15
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Aside
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In drama this side is a monologue spoken by an actor directly to the audience, outside the hearing of other characters on stage. Common in Elizabethan drama, it was used to express a character’s inner thoughts - in modern drama can be used for humorous effect
16
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Atmosphere
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Atmosphere is the general feeling evoked through setting or dialogue. I.e. Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s the yellow wallpaper - description of the narrator’s house creates a sense of foreboding
17
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Augustan age
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The period of English literature encompassing the first half of the 18th century, featuring such writers as Jonathan Swift and Alexander Pope - they wrote like Romans Virgil and Horace
18
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Blank Verse
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unrhymed verse written in iambic pentameter. Blank verse is considered as a poetic for the closest to normal speech patterns - Shakespeare uses it for low characters and using John Milton’s Paradise lost
19
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Blocking
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Blocking is the positioning of actors on the stage, including movements in physical interaction. The director is in charge of blocking
20
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Box set
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A stage design to represent the room realistically with three walls and invisible fourth wall facing the audience
21
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Burlesque
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Burlesque is a comedy presented in the style of a lofty and serious work BUT features gross exaggeration and distortion
22
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Casting
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The selection of actors to play specific roles in drama
23
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Catastrophe
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The conclusion of the tragic drama, in which the protagonist often dies. Based on Grustav Freytag’s Analysis of typical five act plays, catastrophe follows introduction, rising action, climax, and falling action
24
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Catharsis
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According to Aristotle the purging of the emotions at the end of the tragedy is catharsis. During the play audience experience Pitie and fear they identify with the tragic hero; a successful tragedy reaffirms traditional human values in the end so the audience experiences catharsis (RELEASE FROM THE PLAY)
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Character
A person presented in either fiction or drama whose behavior contributes to the plot and the personality add meaning to the narrative
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Characterization
Message by which the writer brings a character to life is he with the characters words and actions reaction other characters and narrators commentary
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Chorus
In classical Greek drama the cars is a group of actors apart from the main action of the play they comment on the implications of the action. The chorus performs ritualized dance movements as they chant
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Chronology
The arrangement of timing to the work. some works follow linear chronology story goes from beginning to end - some in medias res middle of action going back and forth
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Closet Drama
A play written primarily to be read rather than performed onstage
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Climax
The high point or greatest point of tension, in the plot. Climax is sometimes referred to as the turning point
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Comedy
Comedy is drama featuring a happy ending so it is designed to amuse the audience
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Comedy of manners
Popular in late 17th century England, drama that satirizes behaviour with sophisticated high society characters
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Comedy of The absurd
A type twentieth Century drama rooted in existentialism portraying humans as isolated creatures been a meaningless existence. They dismiss conventional plot setting and characterization
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Comic relief
comic relief is a humorous character or scene - in a serious play - break from the tension - Comment Directly on absurdity of protagonists dilemma - ie porter in Macbeth
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commedia dell’arte
improvised drama - italy - 14th century - flourished 16th/17th centuries “comedy of profession” = professionals - stock scenes - embellishment required to be interesting
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Complication
from Aristotelian model of narrative - occurs after introduction of character’s problem - interferes with planned return to status quo - push plot & heighten audience tension
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conflict
Struggle between two forces the drives a narrative plot two forces in conflict can be person verse person character versus world for groups vs group - can also be internal
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Crisis
Peak of a narrative tension - critical turning point of action - lead to climax
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denouement
resolution of the narratives action - from the French word unwinding - it is the portion after the narratives climax - status quo is restored
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Deus Ex Machina
Literally god from the machine - it's a device used to resolve Greek drama - that God is Lord of the stage to bring a divine end to the place conflict - nowadays it means an improbable or unrealistic solution
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Dialogue
Dialogue are the lines spoken by a character in a workers fiction or drama and particularly a conversation between two characters
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Documentary Theater
A recent mode of theatrical production bringing together ethnographic research with performance - the play is factual and dramatic - the genre implies that the dialogue is been taken from verbatim interviews - it was started in depression by the federal theater project and the 1960s German theater of fact - examples are Smith’s fires in the mirror & and the tectonic feeder projects the laramie project
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Double plot
To interwoven plots contained in one narrative - often one plot it Is treated more centrally then the other–main plot and sub-plot - example King Lear plot and Gloucester subplot
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drama
a genre of literary work written in either prose or verse in which characters enact and narrate through dialogue and pantomime performed on stage– Closet drama is read instead
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Dramatic irony
A dramatic device in which the reader or spectator knows something about a situation that the character does not know-the result is the character behaves in the wrong way or expects an outcome it is not going to happen - examples are Sophocles Oedipus Rex - Oedipus curses the murder = himself
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Dramatic poetry
Drama written in verse is dramatic poetry - it's also poetry that presents a character speaking directly to the audience
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Dynamic character
This is a round character a complex character with psychological depth - develop some changes over the course of the narrative
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Environmental Theatre
a form of political theater - related to performance art - moves out of restricted space to public streets/parks - blurs lines between performance/audience & reality/illusion
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Epic theatre
Bertholt Brecht - style of acting, mulitmedia, rational arguments SHOCK audience - uses alienation effect - distances viewer from play's characters so we know its unreal - hopes to encourage intellectual speculation
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Epitaph
instcription on a gravestone - Epitaph also used to describe a brief poem in memory of dead person - final words spoken by character before death
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exodus
last piece of greek tragedy - following choral ode
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exposition
characters/situations introduced @ beginning - also parts that provide background info
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falling action
rises to a particular point - then falls toward conclusion - 4th part of plot structure
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farce
crude action - horseplay/sexual humaour - speak colloquially - knock each other around
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Flashback
interuption in narrative - past remebered vividly - used in novels/film to enhance storyline - memory explains something in current action/character motivation
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Flat character
carries action without emotional insight - describes character with few traits - ie sherriff merely faciliatiting scene
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Flexible theatre
aka experimental theatre - BLACK BOX THEATRE
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Fly-on-the-wall narrator
tells what is seen from a distance - not thoughts - reader follows with inferences
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Foil
contrasts with another character serving as foil or opposite
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fourth wall
proscenium "wall" between curtain and orchestra in experimental theatre - reates space outside stage for movement and action
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frame narrative
the oustide story of a story-within-story - ie Midsummer Night's Dream,
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Freytag's Pyramid
5 parts of classical drama suggest a pyramid - peaks @ climax then falling action: 1 exposition 2 complication 3 climax 4 catastrophe 5 restolution - 1863 Gustav Freytag
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Hamartia
The Greek word for error - in drama has a fatal connotation ie Hamlet too hesitant to think clearly about his political situation = death - personality cannot be evaded so = impending disaster
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Hero/Heroine
Greek epics - leading warriors called by term from which hero is derived - now means lead character who saves the day - hero works for both genders now
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High Comedy/Verbal Comedy
comedy that derives its humor from witty/satirical expressions of characters. comic it is at expense of human foibles - in REstoration = comedy of manners where romantic alliances played out in wityy exchanges
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Hubris
From greek drama - describes character who is laid low by pride/ignorance - makes anyone unable to see his/her own ignorance
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In Media Res
"in the middle of the circle" - epic tale that begins in middle of the story and then reveals previous incidents ie Star Wars series
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Line
words spoken by a particular character (in poetry refers to the specific line)
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Local Colour
Use in fiction of distinctive though superficial regional material intended to provide realistic background - ie specific types of setting, dialect, dress, custom
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low comedy/physical comedy
boisterious activity/clownish behaviour iwthout intellectual appeal - jokes - slapstick
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malapropism
mistaken, comic use of a word in place of another which shares a close resemblance - confusion between the two - from Mrs. Malaprop in The Rivals (1775) by Richard Brinsley Sheridan
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melodrama
popular form of theatre featuring stereotyped characters ie villains-heroes-young lovers - sensational, intriguing events - suspenseful plots centeer on exaggerated conflicts - often used pejoratively to connote lack of physiological depth/excess of emotional excitement
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Metaphor
figure of speech - not factually true - on thing is compared or substituted for something else. - 2 things are not identical - but associated in language to emphasize similarity
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metonymy
figure of speech- substitues name of one thing of another - ie White House/Oval Office refers to US presidency
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Mime
a non-literary performance that involves acting with movement and gesture, but without any words
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mimesis
imitation or miciry intended to represent or reproduce reality
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Monologue
A long speech by one person. In drama, the monologue provides the spoken thoughts of a single character. In fiction, an interior monologue can similarly represent the thoughts, not the actual spoken words, of a character
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Mise en Scene
french term referring to the elements of a dramatic production including costume, scenery, lighting, etc. In cinema, the term refers more specifically to the arrangement of action in front of the camera
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mood
atmosphere or tone of a literary work - conveyed through diction/characterization/setting
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morality play
form of religious drama popular 15th/16th centuries Europe - MORAL ALLEGORIES. a variety of personalities - showcases struggle for the christian soul - communicates simple messages of salvation
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motif
any element that is repeated/developed through a narrative - also refers to element that recurs in many literary works
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motivation
explicit or implicit reason provided for the actions of a character - motivation defines what a character desires
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multiculturalism
attention to work produced by/about cultural minorities
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mystery play
popular religious medieval play on biblcial themes
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myth
traditional anonymous story derived from oral tradition - involving supernatural or heroic figures - a cosmic perspective - accounts of origins of human, soical, natural phenomena - beleived that myths embody beliefs of cultures that create them
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mythopoeic
term employed to describe writing that uses myth as a source or that bears strong resemblance to myth - especially in subject matter
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narrative
ordered account of a true or fictitious event - or connected events - seleects and arranges recounting of the events in a particular sequence
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narrator
character who relates the story of the narrative - narrator is different than the author - type of narrator varies though they all provide info/commentary on characters and events
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naturalism
an extreme, deliberate form of realism - human characters are inevitable products or passive victims of the natural or social environment or of a particular genetic inheritance - writers promoting naturalism strove for precise, objective recording of reality capable of demonstrating laws of causality - aspired to sceintific status for their researched, detailed accounts of behaviour
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neoclassical period - same as "augustan age"
The period of English literature encompassing the first half of the 18th century, featuring such writers as Jonathan Swift and Alexander Pope - they wrote like Romans Virgil and Horace
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new comedy
in ancient greece, a form of comedy developed between 400-300 BCE - associated with Menander - witty and offers unexpected plot twists
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objective correlative
external expression of an interior mood or felling by the deliberate use of a specific object, scene, event ot evoke a particular emotion
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objective point of view
dramatic third persion POV - when the narrator reports on events & speech - does not comment on the thoughts of other characters
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oedipus complex
child's attraction to parent of the opposite sex - mostly male children to mother figure includes overtones of jealousy towards the father
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one act play
a shorter dramatic work - a single location - focus on a limited number of characters - depicts a single powerful incident. characterization, setting and themes presented efficiently - one sometimes seems less subtle than longer plays
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Orchestra
in classical greek drama, orchestra was space separating the audience and the players on the stage - chorus would perform in this space
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organic form
concept that equates literature to living organisms becuase both are created by a natural growth process. - value placed on the entire literary work itself- whole exceeds sum of its parts
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organic unity
beleif in the indissoluble synthesis of form and content in a literary work
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oxymoron
a condensed paradox combining two contradicotry terms ie bittersweet
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pantomime
dramatic entertainment employing gesture, posture, facial expression without speech to convey meaning, mimic action, express feeling
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parados
classical greek drama - section of the play that allowed the chorus to enter and comment on the events described in the prologue
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paradox
a statement or expression playing on words - seems self-contradictory - but provokes reflection on ways or contexts in which it might seem valid - also called oxymoron
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parallelism
arrangement of words, phrases or clauses/sentences in sequence or in a similar grammatical or tructural way that suggests a recognizable correspondence between them
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paraphrase
restatement of the meaning or sense of a passage in different words often with the intention of clarification
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parody
mocking or exaggerated imitation of distinctive features of a literary work, author, or style for comic humourous effect
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participatory drama
a form of drama in which audience members are encourage to join in the action -ie Tony and Tina's Wedding
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pastoral
derived from the latin word for shepherd - pastoral is a literary mode that celbrates virtues of rural agrarian life and love - also called "idylls"
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pathos
greek word for "passions" - today desiignates element of a text that evokes sympathetic feelings in the reader/audience
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peripeteia
as defined by aristotle in Poetics - perepetaia or "peripety" denotes a sudden, often tragic reversal in the fortunes of a protagonist
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persona
derived from latin word for mask - refers to any speaker or narrator of a literary text
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personification
also called "anthropomorphism" - personification is the attribution of human characteristics to an inanimate object or phenomenon
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pidgin
derived from chines pronunciation of english word "business - pidgin is a language heuristically developed by speakers of mutually unintelligible languages for purposes ie commerce
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play
a literary text intended for dramatic performance
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plot
the series of events unfloded throughout the course of a narrative - conventional plot is organized in terms of conflict - climax - resolution - denouement
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point of view
perspective from which a story is told - third-person omniscient and first-person narration are most common
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Propoganda
Any literature written with the intention of recruiting its readers to a given social, political, or religious cause
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prologue
any literature written with the intention of recruiting its readers to a given social, political , or religious cause
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props
a shortened form of the word "properties" - the physical objects used to create the setting or mise en scene of a stage drama
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protagonist
main character - hero or antihero - of any given literary text
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pun
a kind of word-play that depends upon identical or similar sounds among words with different meanings
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realism
originating in 18th century europe - mode promotes faithful representation of human life/experience - reallist texts reject idealistic and fantastic subject matter in favor of detailed accurate descriptions and frank treatment of pessimistic themes
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red herring
distraction meant ot divert the reader from a central point or issue - tactic is particularly relevant for mystery fiction - the writer often frustrates the reader's attempt to arrive at a solution
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regionalism
attention to the ways in which geographical location influences or emerges from a given literary text or set of texts
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resolution
outcome or conclusion of a narrative conflict - literary work that withholds clear resolution may be termed an open-ended narrative
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restoration period
interval between 1660-1700, following restoration of the british monarchy. 1649 - oliver cromwell rebelled against charles I - monarchy restoried 1699 - king charles II reopens England's theatres - gives rise to the bawdy "restoration comedy"
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revenge tragedy
originating in england during elizabethan and jacobean periods - revenge tragedy is a dramtic genre that concers the protagonist's self-destructive attempts to avenge the death of a loved one - notable examples = Kyd's The Spanish Tragedy - Shakespeares Hamlet - Webster's duchess of malfi
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reversal
radical change in the situation of a literary character - like "peripeteia"
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rhetoric
a term used to describe the collective techniques of persuasive writing
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rhyme scheme
pattern of repeated words-sounds throughout the course of an entire stanza
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rhythm
sound-patters created by organization of stressed and unstressed or long and short syllables (in drama)
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rising action
(in drama structure) describes the series of events that build tension and lead to a climax
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romance
originally applied to medieval narratives of courtly love - now designates any adventure story that concerns fantastic situations and exotic settings
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Round characters
Realistic literary characters distinguished by depth, psychological complexity, and even self-contradiction
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romanticism
19th century artistic movement that stresses individualism, personal spiritual developemnt, human interactions with nature. - favours lyric poetry - intintame autobiographical themes and even self-contradiction
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satire
a literary text that uses comedy toward the end of derision
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scansion
process of determining a poem's rhythmic pattern through recognition of stressed and unstressed syllables
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scene
either the physical set of a play or one of the discrete narrative unites that comprises an act in a play
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Selection
A literary text or an excerpt of a literary text that appears in an anthology
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Self-reflexivity
Most pronounced in metafiction, the quality of self-awareness in a literary text - undrscores and celebrates its own status as a work of fiction
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Sentimentality
Writing style that appeals to human sympathya d emotion rather than reason - originated in 18th century England
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Set
The physical elements that represent the setting of a dramatic production
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Setting
the time and place in which a narrative takes place
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Signifyin'(g)
Represents practice in some african-american communities of appropriating, parodying, and otherwise transforming cultural elements of the dominant or main stream group - particularly slaves
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Situational irony
A type of irony in which action differs markedly crom audience expectations - results in surprise and sometimes discomfort - ie Reality is completely opposite of audience's expectations
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Skene
A wooden structure used by actors in 5th century BCE. Dramas 1 represented a palace or temple - located at back of stage so allows actors to change costumes when switching roles
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Soliloquy
A speech given by a character revealing the character's state of mind or emotion
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Speaker
The voice of the poem - the self or persona created by the author
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Spectacle
A scene often in luded for its spectacular effect
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Stage business
Any non-verbal action intended to capture the audience's attention and revealthe feelings of a character
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Stage directions
Directions that represent the playwright's view of the positions kf the qctors on the stage and their physical expressions
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Stereotype
Unrealistic character based on assumptions about common traits of a certain group ie the slave in Uncle Tom's Cabin
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Stock character
One dimensional - appears regularly in certain genres ie fantasy the fairy godmother
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Structure
Pertaining to any genre, the arrangement of elements in the work
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Style
Term used to capture an author's way of expressing through language ie different diction/syntax/metaphor
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Subject
Refers to what a literary work is about - distinct from its meaning
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Summary
Captures the main idea and subtopics that develop the idea
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Surrealism
Movement in art and literature founded by Andre Breton 20th century - attempted to capture deepest recesses of unconscious/dreams through disordered reason imagery - ie "chicago trams that make noise like doughnut batter //dropped in oil"
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Suspense
Tension and anticipation that develops in the audience with regard to plot - usually focussing on what will haplen to the main character
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Symbol
An element that stands for something beyond its literal meaning
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Theme
In essays - hhesis represents author's main idea/attitude towards the subject of writing
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Thesis
In essay - the writer's main idea or attitude toward the subject of the writing
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Thrust stage
Audience seatig on three sides of the acting area
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Tone
Signifies mood - mood may be ironic, sad, happy etc
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Tragedy
Main characters sucfer a catastrophic end for the purpose of arousing pity on the lart if the audience - often involves downfall of person of great signifigance
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Tragic flaw
In tragedies - the defect in the hero that is the cause of his downfall
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Tragic irony
That whichConspires against the hero in spite of his best efforts to avoid his fate
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Tragicomedy
Play that uses elements of a tragedy, but ends happily ie The Merchant of Venice
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Trilogy
Long literary work in three parts ie The Snopes Trilogy
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Understatement
Figure of speech making something appear less important or true than it really is - used to intensify meaning of a statement, as well as for pirposes of irony, sarcasm, or humor - the opposite of hyperbole
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Unities
The unities refer to the qualities of good plots, which possess unity of action, time, and place. Unity of action adheres to a sense of cause and effect inevitability. Unity of time adheres to the natural cycle of twenty-four hours. Unity of place adheres to consistency of location.
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Universal Symbol
The notion that a literary work may have some organizing principle, by virtue of its symbolism, to which all parts are related
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Utopia
From greek word meaning "no place", a type of fiction that describes an ideal - or utopian - world
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Verbal Irony
A figure of speech in which the implied meaning of something differs from the literal meaning, such as in a sarcastic remark
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Versimilitude
Pertains to the qualities that make a work of fiction true to life. A work achieves verisimilitude when evetns, characters, situation, and places are plausible to the reader
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Well-made play
A term that applies to the logical inevitability within so-called problem plays, farces, or comedies of manners
