Elements of Drama

1. Elements of Drama

2. Characters and Characterization • A character is a perston presented in a dramatic or narrative work. • Characterization is the process by which a writer makes that character seems real to the reader

3. Characters and Characterization • Protagonist – the hero, central character who engages the reader’s interest & empathy • Antagonist – the “bad guy” , the character or force(S) that stands directly opposite to the Protagonist - gives rise to the the conflict of the story

4. Characters and Characterization Static character – a literary character who remains basically unchanged throughout the work Dynamic character – someone who undergoes an important, internal change because of the action of the plot Round character – a major character in a work of fiction that encounters conflict and is changed by it. These are fully developed

5. Characters and Characterization • Flat character – minor characters who do not undergo substantial change or growth in the course of a story. Sometimes called supporting characters. • Stock character – a stereotyped character easily recognized by audiences. Ex – absent minded professor, country bumpkin, damsel in distress

6. Comedy – a work intended to interest, involve, and amuse the audience in which no terrible disaster occurs and ends happily for the main characters. Tragedy – a story that presents courageous individuals who confront powerful forces within or outside themselves within a dignity that reveals the breadth and depth of the human spirit in the face of failure, defeat, and even death. Tragedies recount an individual’s down fall; they usually begin high and end low

7. Aside – an actor’s speech directed to the audience and not heard by other actors on the stage, allows audience to hear what the character is thinking Conflict – struggle within the plot between opposing forces Flashback – a narrated scene that marks a break in the narrative to inform the audience about events that took place prior to the opening scene

8. Foreshadowing – introduction early in a story of hints that suggest what is to come later • Hyperbole – a boldly exaggerated statement that adds emphasis without intending to be literally true. An overstatement used for serious, comic, or ironic effect • Oxymoron – a form of paradox in which two contradictory words are used together, “original copy”, “jumbo shrimp:

9. Irony-a literary device that uses contradictory statements or situations to reveal a reality that is different from the truthEx – a firehouse burns down, a police station gets robbed • Verbal irony – the speaker says the opposite of what they mean – sarcasm • Dramatic irony- creates a discrepancy between what the character believes and what the audience knows to be true. • Situational irony – an incongruity is created between what is expected to happen and what actually happens due to forces beyond control

10. Parody – a humorous imitation of another • Soliloquy – a character, alone onstage, utters his or her thoughts aloud • Suspense – anxious anticipation about the outcome of a story • Confidant – a person to whom secrets are confided or with whom private matters are discussed

11. Foil – the prevent the success of, frustrate, balk • Aside – a part of an actor’s lines supposedly not heard by others, intended only for audience