Elements Of Drama

Character

• Person who appears in the play
• Basic part of playwright's work
• Conventions of period and author's personal vision affect treatment of character.
• Major and minor characters
• Explanation and development of major characters is essential
• Useful distinction between; 

             -heroes (or heroines) and villains -good and bad guys -virtue and vice
Plot

• Describes the structure of a story
• Shows arrangement of events and actions
• Structured with acts and scenes.

Theme

• Plot is the body
• Theme is the soul
• Conflict between individuals, man and society, man and some superior force or man and himself.
• Events from conflict make up the plot
• Able to state it in general terms and in a single sentence

Dialogue

• Provides the substance
• Each word uttered contributes to its overall effect
• DECORUM must be established, i.e. what is said is appropriate to the role and situation of a character
• Exposition of the play:

                    - often falls on the dialogue
                    - establishes the relationships, tensions or conflicts of later