Drama 1

Question 1

characteristic of the Genre

Answer 1

• in contrast to other literary genres, drama is marked by immediacy (Unmittelbarkeit)
• there’s no narrator - the action is presented without a mediator –> instead, we witness + experience what is happening in a direct way
• there can be narrative elements on drama as well, though, the Greek chorus, for instance, a group of non-individualized performed who comment a collective voice

Question 2

What defines the secondary text (Nebentext)?

Answer 2

- consist of all textual elements that do not belong to the primary text 
   ° play's title + subtitle 
   ° list of roles 
   ° historical notes 
   ° stage directions

Question 3

What defines the primary text (Haupttext)?

Answer 3

• direct communication of characters
• in dialogue
• monologue/soliloquy
• prologues/epilogues

Question 4

dramatic text vs. theatrical performance

Answer 4

• theatrical performance: the individual reader’s imagination is replaced by how the producer, director, technicians + actors realize the dramatic text
• dramatic text: own imagination while reading the drama
• a performance always exceeds the text by turning it into a multimedia even adding sound, light, stage props, mask, costume etc. to a text

Question 5

internal vs. external communication

Answer 5

• internal communication: refers to the communication between the characters on stage
• external communication: refers to the communication between the whole performance + the audience (if you just read the dramatic external communication is between author + reader)

Question 6

What defines the dramatic history?

Answer 6

• refers to a discrepancy between the internal + external communication when the audience is aware of the implications + consequences of an act or an utterance that the character on stage is unaware of
• refers to the instances when the words or acts of a character in a play carry a meaning unperceived by himself but understood by the audience

Question 7

What defines the verbal communication?

Answer 7

• Talking in turns by two or more speakers (dialogue or polylogue) characterizes drama + serves the function to
  ° present a figure directly to the audience
  ° characterize other figures
  ° exchange information
  ° plan or perform actions
  ° create a particular mood or atmosphere
  ° negotiate relationships
• we can analyze –> the content (what), the manner (who), the function (why)

monologue:

• expresses the character’s inner life to the audience –> isn’t addressed to someone on stage but the other characters can hear it
• is called soliloquy if speaking character is alone on stage
• in addition to expressing emotions, it serves to provide audience w/ information about off-stage characters, past or future events + intentions

Question 8

Aristotelian drama vs. epic drama

Answer 8

Aristotelian drama:
- defined by the immediate presentation of characters in speeches + coherent sequence of action

epic drama:

• uses narrative techniques, e.g. a narrative figure that introduces characters
• makes use of epic devices

–> both may use epic devices such as prologue + an epilogue

Question 9

prologue vs epilogue

Answer 9

• spoken by character ex parte (outside his acting part, his or her role) or by a chorus
• frame the dramatic world + lead the spectators into + out of the dramatic illusion

Question 10

asides and reports

Answer 10

• either overheard by audience or actor addresses the audience directly to provide them with extra information
• similar to soliloquy in that other characters on stage cannot hear it but is a much shorter comment

Question 11

What defines the characters?

Answer 11

• drama constructs the character as a complex interplay of external appearance, speech, action, relationship to other characters
• conception of a character + styles of acting influence how we perceive the figure
• a fictional character in drama, in other words, isn’t only constructed verbally but through non-verbal communication such as gestures, mimic, body language
• when we analyze characters –> we have to watch out for wether the actions + verbal utterances of a character match or differ
• have to compare how she/he acts to what she/he says to whom in which manner + style
• have to watch out for dialect + sociolect, for verbal idiosyncrasies

Question 12

What defines the acting?

Answer 12

• actor either impersonates a character + identifies with the role
• shows the character, maintaining a distance to the role
• these different styles of acting are related to the different functions of a character in a certain genre + specific production

an actor’s perforce is marked by:

• Manner + timing of entrances and exits
• his appearance: stature, costume, makes, hairstyle
• body language: facial expressions, gesture, movement
• vocal qualities: timbre, pitch, volume, pace in delivering speeches, rhythm, emphasis, tone

Question 13

What defines the character constellations?

Answer 13

• a performance reveals the character’s relationship to others
• often characters appear in pairs revealing similarities + differences between them such as master and servant, husband and wife
• a character can serve as a mirror or foil for another
• central conflict is revealed between the protagonist + antagonist

Question 14

Who is Ministrel Snow?

Answer 14

• an American form of entertainment which became popular in the 1830s before the Civil War + lasted till the return of the century
• was performed by white people in blackface + later by black people in blackface
• burlesque comedy with stock characters that lampooned blacks as ignorant, dumb, lazy, superstitious and musical
• included a lot of dancing + singing and was replaced by the vaudeville