| A | B |
|---|
| act | a division within a play, much like chapters of a novel |
| aside | lines that are spoken by a character directly to the audience |
| cast of characters | a list of characters presented before the action begins |
| chorus | a person or group of people who act as a narrator, commentator, or general audience to the action of the play |
| comedy | a humorous work of drama |
| dialogue | conversation between two or more characters |
| drama | a work of literature designed to be performed in front of an audience |
| foil | a character who is nearly opposite of another character; the purpose of a foil (or character foil) is to reveal a stark contrast between the two characters, often the protagonist and antagonist |
| monologue | a long speech spoken by a character to himself, another character, or to the audience |
| scene | a division of an act into smaller parts |
| soliloquy | thoughts spoken aloud by a character when he/she is alone, or thinks he/she is alone, revealing the character’s true emotions |
| stage directions | italicized comments that identify parts of the setting or the use of props or costumes, give further information about a character, or provide background information; in Shakespeare‘s plays, stage directions can also appear in brackets, parentheses, and/or half-brackets |
| tragedy | a serious work of drama in which the hero suffers catastrophe or serious misfortune, usually because of his own actions |
| tragic hero | a protagonist with a fatal flaw which eventually leads to his demise or destruction |
| pun | a play on words, such as when a dying character says “Look for me tomorrow and you will find me a grave man.” |
