Shakespeare Drama Terms

> Keep these terms in a safe place. We will

add to them as we read the play. You will
seem them on a test/quiz in the future!

Act

One of the main divisions of a

play (similar to a chapter in a
book).

Scene

Smaller division in a play occurs

within the act that indicates
new time and/or place.

Dialogue

Spoken conversation between

characters in fiction or
nonfiction.

Stage Directions

Notes that describe how a play should

be performed, describing scenes,
lighting, sounds & character actions.

Characterization
Characterization is the process by which
the writer reveals the personality of a
character.
Characterization is revealed through direct
characterization and indirect
characterization.

Paradox

Contrary to expectations, existing belief or

perceived opinion. It is a statement that
appears to be self-contradictory or silly
but may include a latent truth.

Oxymoron

A figure of speech in which apparently

contradictory terms appear in conjunction
(e.g., faith unfaithful kept him falsely
true ).

Act II Terms

Blank Verse

Form of poetry that uses

un-rhymed lines

Imagery
Imagery means to use
figurative language to
represent objects, actions and
ideas in such a way that it
appeals to our physical
senses.

Puns
A play on words, sometimes on
different senses of the same
word and sometimes on the
similar sense or sound of
different words.

Act III Terms

Monologue
An extended, uninterrupted
speech by a character.

Soliloquy
Speech that the character gives
when he or she is alone on
stage. Allows the audience to
know what he/she is thinking.

Aside
Character's remarks either to the
audience or another character
that others on stage are not
supposed to hear. It reveals
private thoughts/feelings.

Foil
A character whose characteristics
and personality serve as a sharp
contrast to another character
within the same story.
*A foil could be an enemy or a friend
and it helps to emphasize the qualities
within the characters.

Act IV Terms

Dramatic Irony
The audience knows something
that the character does not.

Comic Relief

Humorous scene, incident or

speech that relieves the overall
emotional intensity.

Act V Terms

Tragedy

Drama that ends in

catastrophe. Death usually
occurs for important characters.

Tragic Hero
A main character in a play who
is sometimes nobly born & has
great influence in society, but
has a fatal flaw that leads to
his/her downfall.

Tragic Flaw
A serious error in judgment.
Found within the Tragic Hero.