DRAMA NOTES

Basic requirements of the genre called drama:  A play is written to be acted out not read.  It is to be presented in a limited time.  It must appeal to a wide audience.  It cannot be reexamined.

Plot Elements:  Protagonist- hero or central character  Flashback- background material to enrich a character, clarify the situation, or provide motivation  Deus ex machina- “god from machine”—an event which solves a conflict but cannot be explained  Poetic justice- the good rewarded, the evil punished  Climax- turning point in the action—highest point

SETTING Aristotle’s dramatic unities: action time place Setting can: reveal character influence the actions of characters provide atmosphere

DIALOGUE AND VERSE It must advance the action. It must be to the point with no words wasted. Blank verse-unrhymed verse written in iambic pentameter, or ten (10) syllable lines, in which every second syllable is stressed. Iambic pentameter- the most common verse line in English poetry

CHARACTER Characters are revealed through other characters’ conversation physical appearance speech and action

THOUGHTS ARE REVEALED THROUGH: confidant- a character who has understanding with the main character and “draws him out” aside- a speech directly to the audience in a “stage whisper”; other characters on stage soliloquy- a speech delivered by a character alone on the stage and who is supposedly unaware of the audience dramatic monologue- speech made by one character while several other characters are on stage prologue- introduction to a poem, sets the scene, basic idea of the poem or play, introductory lines or verses spoken (written in sonnet form)

POETIC TERMS  Prose- language without metrical structure  Verse-poetic language and style  Verse will correspond with station: Rich people speak in rhyme - Poor people don’t.  Look out for: Similes, metaphors, personification, foreshadowing, irony, puns, oxymorons. --it’s ALL deliberate!

OTHER POETIC TERMS Couplet- two consecutive lines of rhymed poetry “There I’ll come when I’m a man with a camel caravan.” Conceit- a kind of metaphor which makes a comparison between two startling different things—provides the framework for the entire poem. Dramatic irony- audience perceives something that a character in the story or play does not know The audience knows that Juliet is not dead, but Romeo believes that she is. Chiaroscuro- a deliberate contrast of light and dark to highlight movement or intensify a particular figure or setting Round character- realistic being who possesses a complex or multifaceted array of traits Romeo is a round character who is dazed, inconsistent, hot-blooded, sensible, resourceful, and rash.

TYPES OF PLAYS Tragedy Comedy Melodrama (related to tragedy) Farce (related to comedy)

TRAGEDY it is serious demonstrated a universal truth a character faces a moral issue the main character is defeated

COMEDY pictures life accurately mocks human nature

MELODRAMA related to tragedy the hero has a serious struggle he usually wins

FARCE related to comedy paints a ridiculous picture of life simple, absurd.

CHARACTERISTICS OF A SHAKESPEAREAN TRAGEDY Fall from prosperity of a person of high rank. Tragedy ends with death of main character Death changes something vitally Main character drags some lesser characters down with him when he falls Death of tragic character result of tragic flaw in one’s character bad choice of the tragic hero Action is shown all the way through –from beginning to end. (Greek tragedy-action begins in the middle and has flashbacks.)

“ROMEO AND JULIET”  Tragedy  Written in 1595  Set in Verona, Italy  Themes: parental control vs. rebellious teens; fate vs. free will; impulsive behavior vs. self-control

PLAY’S SOURCE  Borrowed from a poem by Arthur Brooke, “The Tragical Historye of Romeus and Juliet” (1562)  Shakespeare gave the story new life and beauty

QUESTIONS TO PONDER  1. Is the play truly a tragedy?  2. How powerful is the role of fate?  3. How much of your destiny can you control?  4. Does love really conquer all? Is love enough?  5. How do my decisions affect others and am I responsible for that?