Drama Elements

Prepared by:
Eiram Amjed
a few popular types of drama:
• Comedy – Comedies are lighter in tone than ordinary works, and provide a
happy conclusion. The intention of dramatists in comedies is to make their
audience laugh.
• Tragedy – Tragic dramas use darker themes, such as disaster, pain, and
death.
• Farce – Generally, a farce is a nonsensical genre of drama, which often
overacts or engages slapstick humor.
• Melodrama – Melodrama is an exaggerated drama, which is sensational
and appeals directly to the senses of the audience.
• Musical Drama – In musical dramas, dramatists not only tell their stories
through acting and dialogue, but through dance as well as music.
Symbolism
• An object, concept, or word does not have to be limited to a single
meaning. When you see red roses growing in a garden, what comes to
mind?
• For e.g.: by :William Wordsworth
She dwelt among the untrodden ways
Beside the springs of Dove,
A Maid whom there were none to praise
And very few to love:
Suspense
• No matter what type of story you’re telling, suspense is a valuable
tool for keeping a reader’s attention and interest. Building suspense
involves withholding information and raising key questions that pique
readers’ curiosity.
• for example, if a character’s desire is not fulfilled by the end of the
book, the story will not feel complete for the reader.
Personification
• (giving human characteristics to objects and non-humans)
• For e.g.:
• The page stared back at me, taunting me with its big words.
• The door groaned as it swung open.
Paradox
• “This sentence is a lie.” This self-referential statement is an example
of a paradox—a contradiction that questions logic.
• paradoxes can elicit humour, illustrate themes, and provoke readers
to think critically
• E.g.:
• Save money by spending it.
• If I know one thing, it's that I know nothing.
• This is the beginning of the end.
Irony
• Irony is an oft-misunderstood literary device that hinges on opposites:
what things are on the surface, and what they end up actually being.
• For e.g.:
• The Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling
Throughout the books, Harry Potter is expected to kill Voldemort, but
he eventually realizes he must allow Voldemort to kill him instead.
This is a major reversal in what was expected throughout the books.
Foreshadowing
• Foreshadowing, or indicating a future event, is one technique a writer
can use to create and build suspense.
• “I told myself this is the end of my trouble, but I didn't believe
myself.
Flashbacks
• Flashbacks interrupt the chronological order of the main narrative to
take a reader back in time to the past events in a character’s life.
• For e.g.:
• The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald: “In my younger and more
vulnerable years my father gave me some advice that I’ve been
turning over in my head ever since.” So begins Fitzgerald’s novel The
Great Gatsby. He uses a flashback in the first scene of the first
chapter to kick off his story.
Cliffhanger
• It’s a familiar feeling: You’re on minute 59 of an hour-long television
episode, and the protagonist is about to face the villain—and then
episode cuts to black.
• Known as a cliffhanger, this plot device marks the end of a section of
a narrative with the express purpose of keeping audiences engaged in
the story.
ALLEGORY
• Allegory is a literary device used to express large, complex ideas in an
approachable manner. Allegory allows writers to create some distance
between themselves and the issues they are discussing, especially
when those issues are strong critiques of political or societal realities.
• One example of Biblical allegory is:
C.S. Lewis’ The Chronicles of Narnia. The lion, Aslan, represents a Christ
character, who is the rightful ruler of the kingdom of Narnia. Aslan
sacrifices himself for Edmund, the Judas figure, and is resurrected to
rule over Narnia once again.
 Take out the drama devices :
• I heard the owl scream and the crickets
cry. Did not you speak?’
• ‘When?’
• ‘Now.’
Line 1: symbolism, personification,
1st person point of view.
Line2 & 3: Setting(time)
Line6: Allegory ( change in scene)
Line9: Paradox

• ‘As I descended?’
• ‘Ay.’
• ‘Hark! Who lies in the second chamber?’
• ‘Donalbain.’
• ‘This is a sorry sight.’
• ‘A foolish thought, to say a sorry sight.’