Midterm 2 Flashcards
Golden Mean
the ideal moderate position between two extremes
Raisonneur
a character in a play, novel, or the like who voices the central theme, philosophy, or point of view of the work.
Neo-Classicism
is the name given to Western movements in the decorative and visual arts, literature, theatre, music, and architecture that draw inspiration from the “classical” art and culture of Ancient Greece or Ancient Rome.
Deus ex Machina
an unexpected power or event saving a seemingly hopeless situation, especially as a contrived plot device in a play or novel.
Three Unities
unity of action: a play should have one action that it follows, with minimal subplots.
unity of time: the action in a play should occur over a period of no more than 24 hours.
unity of place: a play should exist in a single physical space and should not attempt to compress geography, nor should the stage represent more than one place.
Metafiction
fiction that discusses, describes, or analyzes a work of fiction or the conventions of fiction.
Incongruity
the state of being incongruous or out of keeping.
Superiority Theory
Why do people tend to laugh when someone slips over a banana skin or has a custard pie slapped into their face?
Psychic Release Theory
Relief theory maintains that laughter is a homeostatic mechanism by which psychological tension is reduced.
The Mechanical Encrusted on the Living
“The laughable is something mechanical in something living.” According to Bergson, “comedy combines events so as to introduce mechanism into the outer forms of life.” “What is essentially laughable is what is done automatically.”
Satire
the use of humor, irony, exaggeration, or ridicule to expose and criticize people’s stupidity or vices, particularly in the context of contemporary politics and other topical issues.
The Well-Made Play
is a dramatic genre from nineteenth-century theatre that French dramatist Eugène Scribe first codified. Dramatists Victorien Sardou, Alexandre Dumas, fils, and Emile Augier wrote within the genre, each putting a distinct spin on the style.
Dramatic Convention
A dramatic convention is a set of rules which both the audience and actors are familiar with and which act as a useful way of quickly signifying the nature of the action or of a character.
Soliloquy
an act of speaking one’s thoughts aloud when by oneself or regardless of any hearers, especially by a character in a play.
