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12 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
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what are some characteristics of melodrama? |
--characters are flat with surface values like morality plays -sharply drawn line between good and evil, no grey area -elaborate mechanical spectacle -happy endings -supernatural elements like ghosts -about the action, characters are subordinate to action -oscillated between humour and highly emotional scenes -lots of sentimental and emotional material, lots of pathos -first popular form is gothic melodrama -melodrama-melos-music drama. lots of underscoring and music -gets started in minor theatres because the censorship didnt realy apply there as it was already illegal (in england) |
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who is pixérérecourt? |
-popular melodrama playwright -wrote tarzan like stories often from novels -wrote 120 melodramas -directed towards illiterate society |
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development of melodrama |
-most popular of the time -many plays translated from german -playwrights hardly paid anything so had to churn them out fast, would stick to formulas and not take risks. best authors went to journalism and novels -1860s melodramatist Dion Boucicault able to arrange royalties -by end on 19th century in the last 30 years authors being paid better |
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types of melodrama |
1. adaptions of novels dickens popular 2. murder melodramas some theatres only did this 3. nautical melodramas subtype about navy 4. military melodramas astley's ampitheatre originally built for circus did big spectacle like battle of waterloo and shakespeare on horseback 5. domestic melodramas at home 6. gentlemanly melodrama upper class only, different from others 7. Labout/worker melodrrama example "factory lad from 1830s |
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Main character types |
1. hero 2. heroine 3. villain 4. comic man |
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Hero characteristics |
- handsome young man of action, eternally devoted to sweetheart, physical prowess -good all the way through -miraculous powers of survival -absolute morality, strict moral code -pretty stupid, always reacting to villain -good at moral speeches, talks a lot -always in trouble -punching bag of villain's intellect |
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villain characteristics |
-initiated the action, alters plans, makes new ones -revenge on hero, stealing money and possessions like the heroine -incarnate violence and darkness -much more able than hero -two types: black (determined, immensely evil, gloomy face) and white (shifty, coward, half comic, not terribly effective, sometimes a woman) -can have black without white but not white without black, white often henchmen |
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extra characters |
1. comic woman 2. villainess, adventuress 3. old man and or woman 4.children 5. dumb (mute) character becomes popular after "a tale of mystery" requires very physical acting which character love to do |
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heroine characteristics |
-villains desire for her sets plot in motion. main job is to seperate her from villain with seduction, violence etc -begins to suffer early in the play -develops pluck and courage, fast runner, always tells the truth, no thought for affect of words on villain -stronger character than hero |
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comic man/woman characteristics |
-not usually a woman w/o a man -function is to provide comic relief -sometimes there is sublot between comic characters that parallels main plot -generally comic man foils villain plans 2 main functions, comic relief from high emotion, carpenter scenes which give time to set up the next big spectacle |
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Gothic Melodrama |
2 types: 1. castle dungeon-gloomy tyrants living in gloomy castles with gloomy halls and gloomy dungeons where rightful heirs and old age unjustly languish 2. dark forest illuminated only by lightening through which exhausted heroine desperately flees tyrant (band of robbers) disshevled with hair flowing |
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Mathew Gregory Lewis |
melodrama playwright -wrote a play called "the monk" which included some infamous sexual content that he tried to live down his whole life -wrote a castle spectre |
