DRAMA

Introduction to Literature
Fall 2021

Dr. Ghada El Emary

 What is Drama?
• Drama is the portrayal of fictional or non-fictional events through
the performance of written dialogue.
• Stories are being brought to life by actors and events on a stage.
• It is a composition of verse and prose
• The person who writes drama is known as a “dramatist” or
“playwright.”
• It is divided into acts and scenes.
 1. Comedy

• Comedies are usually humorous plays. The intention of dramatists

in comedies is to make their audience laugh. Hence, they use
unfamiliar circumstances, unusual characters, and witty remarks.
• Some common elements: Light-hearted tone, clever wordplay,
serious topics addressed in a humorous way, comical
misunderstandings, silly characters, and happy ending (often ends
with a wedding, especially in romantic comedies).
• Example: William Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing (1599).
 2. Farce
• A farce is a type of broad comedy. It depends less on a narrative
storyline and more on physical humour, sight gags, silly jokes.
• Elements in a Farce includes: exaggerated humour, nonsensical
storyline, improbable events, one or two settings, and humour is
often inappropriate.
• Example: Samuel Beckett’s Waiting For Godot (1952).
 3. Tragedy
• Tragic dramas use darker themes, such as disaster, pain, and
death.
• Protagonists often have a tragic flaw— a characteristic that leads
them to their downfall.
• The audience reaches catharsis by witnessing some disastrous
and moving change in the fortunes of the protagonist.
• Example: William Shakespeare’s Othello (1603).
 4. Tragicomedy

• Tragicomedy is a special kind of drama that combines the

features of tragedy and comedy. This means that such play may
be sad but will have a happy ending, or it may be serious with
some elements of humour emerging throughout the whole play.

• Example: Anton Chekov’s The Cherry Orchard (1904).

 5. Melodrama
• Melodrama is an exaggerated drama, which is sensational and appeals
directly to the senses of the audience.

• The main point of a melodrama is not to tell a story but to awaken feelings in
the audience. Melodramas are sometimes love stories with beautiful
heroines, charming heroes, and scary villains. Characters are victims in the
hand of fate.

• Example: Henrik Ibsen’s A Doll’s House (1879).

Study Hard
Best Wishes