Transcript StructureOfDrama.odp

Structure of Drama
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Plot – action and events of a play
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Character – person in the play
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Diction – language
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Reasoning – the way speech is used to
present all aspects of the play, including
the production of emotions such as pity,
terror, and anger
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Sound – audible part of a play
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Spectacle – visible part of the play
Exposition of a Play
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The process of making certain aspects of
the play apparent to the audience.
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What kind of play being presented
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Where and when it is taking place
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Who the leading characters are
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Situations and conflicts they find
themselves in
Atmosphere
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The environment of the play
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Created by lighting and staging, tempos of
speech, movements, and choice of
language
Mood: emotional feeling of the play
Setting, character, lighting, and dialogue all
determine mood.
Preliminary Situation/Action
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Clearly defined explanation of events that
have occurred in the lives of the leading
characters before the action of the play
begins.
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Minor characters are often used to bring
the audience up to date.
Prologues, telephone conversations,
narrators
Plot!
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Series of related events that take place before
the audience.
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Development and resolution of the major
conflict
Whether physical, mental, or emotional, the
conflicting elements must give rise to
suspense and then be resolved in some
manner
Stages in the plot structure
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Preliminary situation – the before stuff
Initial incident – first important event from
which the rest of the plot develops
Rising action – series of events following
the initial incident. Goals and obstacles
are revealed
Stages, continued
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Climax- Turning point of the action.
Moment of intense crisis that determines
the outcome of the conflict
Falling action – Series of events following
the climax – incidents must be significant
and help aid the resolution
Conclusion – Logical outcome of the
preceding action – success or failure,
happiness or sorrow of the characters
Different types of Dialogue
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Lines of the play
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Must be appropriate for the time and place
Playwrights must often sacrifice beautiful
words for a more naturalness of speech
Must serve a function
Soliloquies – actors talk alone/think out
loud
Theme
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Basic idea of the play
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Author dramatizes this through the conflicts
of the characters
A moral – lesson or a principle contained
within a play or taught by a play
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Review
Name and define the four narrative essentials of a play.
How are these narrative essentials communicated by the
dramatist?
Who first expressed the principles of traditional drama?
What did he identify as the key elements of a play?
How does some modern drama differ from traditional
drama?
How does mood differ from atmosphere?
What are the five major parts of plot structure that follow the
preliminary situation?
Describe three methods of characterization available to
playwrights.
Application
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Select a movie or play. Identify the four
narrative essentials. Discuss how the
dramatist presents each element.
Describe a play or a movie that made you
think about its theme.