Elements of Drama Categories
1. Literary Elements
Aristotle 's Six Elements
1. Plot refers to the action; the basic storyline of the play.
2. Theme refers to the message that is intended to be expressed through the story. In other
words, it is the main idea or the lesson to be learned from the play.
3. Characters and Actors- the people (sometimes animals or ideas) portrayed by the
actors.
Example
Characters
TROY MAXSON GABRIEL, Troy's brother
JIM BONO, Troy's friend ROSE, Troy's wife CORY, Troy and Rose's son RAYNELL, Troy's
. LYONS ,.Troy's oldest son by daughter
Characterization is the way the playwright/ author presents a character
Types of Character
1. Protagonist is the main character of a story.
2. Antagonist is the opposite of a Protagonist. Usually the villain or opponent of the
main character
3. Round character are complex and undergo development.
4. Flat character are relatively uncomplicated and do not change throughout the
whole story.
4. Dialogue refers to words written by the playwright and spoken by the characters in the
play.
Forms of Dialogue :
It is the conversation between two or more characters is referred to as:
dialogue (usually the majority of speech in plays consists of dialogue).
monologue is when one character delivers a speech to convey his or her thoughts,
although other characters may remain on stage in scene.
soliloquy is a speech made by one character but delivered when he or she is alone on
stage.
5. Music/ Rhythm referring to the rhythm of the actors' voice as they speak
6. Spectacle - refers to the visual elements of a play: Set, Costumes, special effects
2. Technical Elements
1.1 Scene (Set) refers to the theatrical equipment
1.2 Costumes refers to clothing and accessories used by actors to portray characters
1.3 Properties any movable object that appears on stage
1.4 Sound refers to the effects an audience hears during the performance
1.5 Lights
1.6 Make-up includes costumes, wigs, and body paints used to transform characters
Other Elements :
l. Playwright- the author of a play (script)
2. Script- the written pages of a play. Scripts are divided into Acts and Scenes. Acts- long sections of a
play, made up of multiple scenes, usually designed to separate the play into its main parts and to give
the audience a "break" from the performance.
Scenes- shorter sections of a play, usually each scene occurs in one location at a specific time.
Multiple scenes make up an act. It is often signaled by the entrance or exit of a character or
change in setting or focus of the action
Example from August Wilson's Fences
Act I Scene 2
The LIGHTS come up on ROSE hanging up clothes. SHE hums and sings softly to herself.
It is the following morning.
ROSE. ( Sings.)
Jesus, be a fence all around me every day
Jesus, Iwant you to protect me as Itravel on my way. Jesus, be a fence all around me every day.
( TROY enters from the house)
Setting - the place, together with other conditions, such as time and the environment,
involved in which the events occur. The setting in the drama can be presented through
the visual element deals with the scenes, costumes and special effects used in it. The
setting can as well be enhanced by using viewable elements, sound effects, and music.
Conflict - the internal or external struggle that creates dramatic tension. Internal Conflict
Person vs Society Person vs. Nature Person vs Technology
Person vs Self Person vs Supernatural Person vs Person
Person vs. Fate/ God
Techniques in Drama
1. Vocal Dynamics - actors need to expand their vocal toolbox and learn about the ways that range,
pitch, and pronunciation which affect performance
2. Body Language and Mannerisms - actors bring their characters to life by moving, reacting, and even
standing in nuanced ways that are natural for their character.
3. Use and Awareness of Space - actors need to be aware not just of your "marks" on stage, but also
of the actors who must interact with or move past you
4. Improvisational Techniques - refers to the on-the-spot creativity of the actors.
Common Literary Devices Used in Drama
• Figures of speech - words that goes its literal meaning
Metaphor - are one of the most extensively used literary devices. A metaphor refers to a meaning or
identity ascribed to one subject by way of another. In a metaphor, one subject is implied to be another
so as to draw a comparison between their similarities and shared traits.
For example:
a rose (object) is substituted for love (feeling) "Henry was a lion on the battlefield."
Similes are one of the most commonly used literary devices; referring to the practice of drawing
parallels or comparisons between two unrelated and dissimilar things, people, beings, places and
concepts. Similes are marked by the use of the words 'as' or 'such as' or 'like'
For example:
He is like a mouse in front of the teacher.
• Imagery - the author's attempt to create a mental picture in the mind of the reader. It appeals
to the senses.
For example:
Visual imagery - It was dark in the forest...
Olfactory Imagery (smell) - She whiffed the sweet aroma of his drink Tactile Imagery (touch) - She
held it with her rough hand the soft pillow.
• Symbolism - when an object is meant to be representative of something or an idea greater
than the object itself or it is the frequent use of words, places, characters, or obje cts that
mean something beyond what they are on a literal level.
For example: a writer uses the word 'blood' once its meaning will be confined to that instance in
which it is used.
But if the word is used repeatedly, as it is in plays like Macbeth and Romeo and Juliet it expresses
some profound ideas. By using a word repeatedly in different contexts it expresses several
interlocking themes. In Romeo and Juliet 'blood' refers to all the following and more themes:
violence, youth, passion , family ties.
• Dramatic Irony - involves the reader (or audience) knowing something about what's
happening in the plot, about which the character(s) have no knowledge.
For example:
From Romeo and Juliet
"Alack, there lies more peril in thine eye / Than twenty of their swords! Look thou but sweet, / And
I am proof against their enmity" (act 2, scene 2).
Romeo tries to reassure Juliet by claiming he is invincible to her family's hostility, but the audience
knows that the young lovers are doomed to die as a result of the feud.
• Foreshadowing refers to the use of indicative words/ phrases and hints that set the stage for
a story to unfold and give the reader a hint of something that is going to happen without
revealing the story or spoiling the suspense. Foreshadowing is used to suggest an upcoming
outcome to the story
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