Dramatic terms Flashcards
Antagonist
Counterpart to the protagonist and a story’s main source of conflict.
Aside
when the character speaks to the audience. By convention, the audience realises that the character’s speech is unheard of by the other charaters on stage. Short sentence rather than a speech.
Climax
turning point of a story, inevitable results. The dramatic high of a story. Where something suddenly goes wrong.
Conflict
a sudden struggle between opposing forces which is the driving force of a story. The outcome of a story should provide a resolution for the story.
Divine right
The divine right of kings/ theory of kingship. It asserts that a monarch is subject to no earthly authority, deriving his right to rule directly from the will of god.
Dramatic Irony
a situation where only the reader knows something about the present or future circumstances that the character doesn’t know.
Foreboding
sense of feeling something bad will happen.
Natural Order
commonly held belief in a strict hierarchy that cannot be changed
Plot
Sequence of events in a story
Soliloquy
a character talking to themselves on stage. Allows the audience to gain insight on a character. Gives the audience a deeper insight to the plot and the character.
Theatrical props
objects actors used on stage or screen.
Theme
main message conveyed by the piece.
Tragedy
when a story ends with an unfortunate/ negative outcome. Usually caused by a flaw in the central character’s personality.
Tragic hero/figure
A protagonist who dies as a result of his own behaviour.usually caused by a character flaw.
Tragic flaw
The single characteristic that caused the downfall of the protagonist.
