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Introduction to Playwriting - Basic Terms
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Dialogue
The written conversation between two or more characters.
Plot
The sequence of events that make up a story in a play.
Stage Directions
Instructions in the script that tell actors how to move or speak their lines.
Monologue
A long speech by one character to other characters or to the audience.
Climax
The most intense or important point of the plot, where the main conflict reaches a peak.
Protagonist
The main character of a play, often considered the hero or the central figure.
Setting
The time and place where a play's action occurs.
Foreshadowing
A literary device where the writer gives an advance hint of what is to come later in the story.
Act
A major division within a play, similar to a chapter in a book.
Resolution
The portion of a play where the conflict comes to an end and loose ends are tied up.
Theme
The central idea or message that a play seeks to convey.
Conflict
A struggle between opposing forces that drives the plot.
Subplot
A secondary story line that runs parallel to the main plot and enriches it.
Scene
A division of an act in a play during which the action takes place in a specific setting without a break in time.
Exposition
The part of a play that introduces the main characters, setting, and basic situation.
Denouement
The final part of the play, where the strands of the plot are drawn together and matters are explained or resolved.
Dramatic Irony
A situation in which the audience knows more about the circumstances or future events in a story than the characters within it.
Antagonist
The character who opposes the protagonist, creating conflict.
Aside
A short remark by a character towards the audience that other characters on stage are not supposed to hear.
Character
A personage in a play whose actions and dialogue contribute to the story.
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