Literary Terms For Drama \

Front 1

act

Back 1

the major division of a play. From the time of the elizabethans through the 19th century the english play was normally divided into 5 acts. Modern plays are usually divided into 3 acts

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scene

Back 2

a subordinate unit of action within within an act

Front 3

adaptation

Back 3

the rewriting of a for from its original genre to be presented in another.

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apostrophe

Back 4

the direct address to a deceased or absent person as if he or she were present or to an abstract idea or quality as if it could understand you

Front 5

aside

Back 5

in drama lines spoken by an actor in an undertone to himself or aloud directly to the audience.

Front 6

chorus

Back 6

in ancient greek drama a group of actors who comment upon and sometimes participate in the action of the play.

Front 7

climax

Back 7

the point at which the greatest intensity of interest emotion or suspense in drama or fiction occurs

Front 8

comic relief

Back 8

humor inserted into a play to break a serious mood

Front 9

convention

Back 9

in drama that which conforms to established practice or custom.

Front 10

denouement

Back 10

the final unraveling solution

Front 11

epilogue

Back 11

a short section added to a complete play

Front 12

exposition

Back 12

in drama the part of the play in which the audience is given the background information

Front 13

farce

Back 13

any play which evokes laughter by means of ridiculous situation

Front 14

soliloquy

Back 14

an extended speech delivered by a character alone on stage in which he expresses his thoughts directly to the audience