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ocus on Craft an cl Stru cture

Elements of Drama
In drama, dialogue and action work together to develop
characters and tell a story.

Drama is a genre of literature that is move forward, and the action builds
meant to be performed. It incl udes until it reaches a climax, the point
plays, or stories meant to be performed when the conflict reaches its peak. As
by actors on stage. the play comes to a close, the conflict
The playwright, or dramatist, is is usua lly settled. This part of the play is
the author of th e script, the written ca lled the resolution.
version of a play. The script conta ins A successfu l play presents the reader
dialogue, the words spoken by the or audience with believable, well-
cha racters, and stage directions, rounded characters. Such characters
which provide instructions on how the remi nd us of people we know in
play should be performed. real life. Pl aywrights portray well-
A play takes place at a particula r rou nded characters through the carefu l
time and location, cal led the setting. development of dialogue that reveals
As a play develops. we learn about not on ly what the characters say but
the characters and the struggle, or how and why they say it.
conflict, they face. Events in the plot
Elements of Droma

Element I Function
Dialogue • reveals th e nature of characters
• advances the plot
• establishes theme, the work 's central message about life or human nature

Characters • have qualities, or traits, and motivations shown through their words
and actions
• face one or more con fli cts
• develop theme through their words and actions

Plot • may be organized to develop suspense

• focuses on a conflict, or struggle between opposing forces
• builds to a climax, or turning point-the point of maximum interest
• shows relati onshi ps between cha racters' actions and events
• expresses theme

Stage Directions • describe scenery, lig hting, and sou nd effects

• tell how characters behave

Setting • is th e tim e and p lace in w hich the action occurs

• creates mood

526 UNIT 4 • Is it our differences or our similarities that matter mast?

Types of Drama
Two general categories of drama
are comedy and tragedy.
A comedy usually deals with
a light subject or handles a
dark subject in an upbeat way.
Comedies often present everyday
characters in amusing situations.
They are humorous in tone and
end happily.
In a tragedy, events lead to the
downfall or death of the main
character. This character can be
an average person but is often a
heroic figure who displays a tragic
flaw, a human trait such as pride
or greed, that brings about his or
her destruction. A tragedy may
teach a powerful lesson about
human nature.
A playwright may combine
elements of both comedy and
tragedy in a sing le work. For a Common Core
State Standards
example, some comedies use
Reading Literature
humor to express a serious 3. Analyze how particular
message about life or human lines of dialogue or incidents
in a story or drama propel
nature. Likewise, a tragedy might the action, reveal aspects of a
include comic relief-a scene or character, or provoke a decision.
6. Analyze how differences
an incident that provides a break in the points of view of the
from the otherwise serious events characters and the audience or
reader (e.g., created through
of the play. the use of dramatic irony) create
such effects as suspense or
The Changing World of humor.
Drama
For centuries, plays we re intended
to be viewed by a live audience
or read in script form. Today,
technology has changed the ways
in which we experience plays.
We can still watch a play with live
actors onstage, but we can also
watch a performance onscreen in a
movie theater or at home in front
of our te levisions or computers.

Types of Droma Today

Live Theater Film/ Movies Television Drama Radio Drama

• performed live fo r • recorded on film or • recorded or • recorded or

an audience digital medium and performed live perform ed live
• follows a w ritten shown in theaters • fo llows a script • follows a script
script or streamed online ca lled a teleplay called a radio play
• is divided into acts • follows a script • uses long and short • uses long and short
and scenes called a screenplay scenes scenes
• uses dialogue to tell • is often made up of • like film, uses a • uses dialogue and
the audience what many short scenes camera ta direct sound effects ta tel l
is happening • uses a camera to audience's attention the audience what
• uses scenery and di rect audience's • may be streamed is happening
lighting far visua l attention to certa in an line over the
effects detai ls Internet

PART 2 • Focus on Craft and Structure 527

Analyzing Dramatic Elements
In drama, conflict, dialogue , and stage directions make the characters
and their actions come alive.

Drama has the power to reveal Character Motivation When a

important truths about life and human playwright writes a play, he or she must
nature. Whether you are reading a decide who the characters are and
play or watch ing it, real istic characters what their persona lities are like. The
can rem ind you of yourself or people playwright must also determine how
you know. Even if just for a moment, each character wi ll respond to events
you may feel as strongly about their in the plot. For example, a character
situations as you do about real life. It is might respond to an event by tell ing
through the play's action, conflict, and how he or she feels. A character might
dialogue that this magic takes place. also respond by making a decision
that moves the plot in a new direction.
Action and Conflict In most plays,
By showing a character's response
characters face a conflict, or struggle
to events, a playwright develops
between opposing forces, that drives
character motivation-the reasons
the action.
why a character feels or behaves
• An external conflict involves a a certain way. The fol lowing chart
character confronting an outside demonstrates how character motivation
force, such as a physical obstacle, works.
an enemy, nature, or society.
• An internal conflict is a struggle
that occurs within a character. Character Shown by the
It often involves the character's Motivation Resulting Action
feelings, beliefs, and values. Anno likes Mox, 0
Anna's friend Jenna
new boy at school,
is having a party.
Dialogue and Character and wonts to meet
At Anna's request,
Development In drama, most of him.Jenna invites both
what you learn about characters comes Anno and Mox to
from dialogue . Playwrights use dialogue L -_ _ _ _ __J__th_e_.:p_o_rty_._ _ _____,
in the following ways: A man must get The man sleeps at
• to show a character's personality; on the lost train the station the night
out of his war-torn before to guarantee
• to express a character's thoughts country. his spot on the train.
and feelings about events and
other characters.

528 UNIT 4 • Is it our differences or our similarities that matter most?

Character motivation typically sets
up a cause-and-effect relationship
between events in a play. In the first
examp le from the chart on page 528,
Anna's desire to get to know the new
boy causes her to ask Jenna to invite
them both to a party. The resulting
action is the effect.
Complex Characters To create plays
that audiences care about, playwrights
strive to develop complex characters.
These cha racters display strengths and
weaknesses and exhibit a fu ll range
of emotions. Sometim es, comp lex
characters have multiple mot ivations.
Characters in Written Drama
In a live performance, the actors use
facial expressions, body language, and
tones of voice to help the aud ience
und erstand the characters. W hen you
read a play, however, you must gather
clues to fully understand the characters
and their motivations and conflicts. Here
are questions to ask yourself:
• Do the stage directions ca ll
for certa in movements, facial
expressions, or voca l intonations?
(Examp le: She nods in agreement.)
• Do punctuation marks in a speech
express a character's mood or
feelin g? (Examp le: That's amazing I I
had no idea! )
• Do the characters use certai n words
that reveal their relationships?
(Example: Honey, why didn 't you
ca ll me?)
Dramatic Irony Sometimes the
aud ience or readers of a play know
more than the characters know. Such
situations are examples of dramatic
irony, a technique that can create
humor or bui ld suspense. The chart
shows an example of dramatic irony
and two possible ways that the situation
might be revealed to the audience but
hidden from the other characters.
Situa~an: The aud ience knows a char-
acter work s on a farm , w hile th e other
characters believe she is a queen .
Dramatic Irony: The other characters ask
11 11
the queen to punish the farm worker;
the aud ience knows th e "queen" and
fa rm wo rker are the sa me person.
Possibility 1: Th e character puts on a
d isguise during a scene in w hich th e
other characters are not present.
Possibility 2: Th e character reveals she is
in disguise by delivering a speech called
an aside. An aside can be heard by the
audience but not by other characters.
When a playwright uses dramatic irony,
the point of view of the audi ence is
very different from the points of view
of the characters.
Theme in Drama As characters face
conflicts and undergo change, their
actions and attitudes deliver important
messages about life, or themes. To
determine the theme of a dramatic
work, ask yourself these questions:
• How have events caused the
cha racters to change?
• Do events in the play remind me of
my own experiences? If so, what did
t hose experiences teach me?
• What might have been the
playwright's purpose for writin g
t he play?
PART 2 • Focus on Craft and Structure 529