Act
a major division of a play
Antagonist
a character or force in conflict with the main character
Aside
a line spoken by an actor to the audience but not intended for others on the stage
Blocking
the planning and working out of the movements of actors on stage
Catharsis
a release of emotional tension
Chorus
a group of characters in Greek tragedy who comment on the action of a play without participation in it
Climax
most exciting moment of the story; turning point
Comic Relief
comic episodes in a dramatic or literary work that offset more serious sections
Denouement
an outcome or solution; the unraveling of a plot
Deus Ex Machina
in literature, the use of an artificial device or gimmick to solve a problem
Dialogue
conversation between characters
Dynamic Character
a character that changes throughout the story
Exodos
final scene
Exposition
background information presented in a literary work
Falling Action
events after the climax, leading to the resolution
Flashback
a method of narration in which present action is temporarily interrupted so that the reader can witness past events
Flat Character
a character who embodies a single quality and who does not develop in the course of a story
Foreshadowing
a warning or indication of a future event
Foil
a character who acts as a contrast to another character
Fourth Wall (breaking the fourth wall)
When a character speaks to the audience
Hubris
excessive pride or self-confidence
In Media Res
in or into the middle of a sequence of events as in a literary narrative
Inciting Incident
event that introduces the central conflict
Monologue
a long speech made by one performer or by one person in a group
Protagonist
main character in a story
Resolution
end of the story where loose ends are tied up
Round Character
a character who demonstrates some complexity and who develops or changes in the course of a work
Scene
a division of an act into smaller parts
Soliloquy
an act of speaking one's thoughts aloud when by oneself or regardless of any hearers, especially by a character in a play
Stage Direction
an instruction in the text of a play, especially one indicating the movement, position, or tone of an actor, or the sound effects and lighting
Static Character
a character who does not change during the story
Theater of the Absurd
plays stressing the irrational or illogical aspects of life, usually to show that modern life is pointless
Tragic Flaw
a weakness or limitation of character, resulting in the fall of the tragic hero
Tragic Hero
a literary character who makes an error of judgment or has a fatal flaw that, combined with fate and external forces, brings on a tragedy
Unity of Time
the action in a play should take place over no more than 24 hours
Utility of Place
the requirement that the play have a single setting
Unity of Action
no subplots