PCC LIT 115 Drama Vocabulary Practice

Question 1

to show incidents occurring before the opening scene because the past impinges upon the present

Accepted Answer

flashback

Question 2

comedy that is generally associated with physical action

Accepted Answer

low comedy

Question 3

the struggle within the plot between opposing forces

Accepted Answer

conflict

Question 4

writers who make plays

Accepted Answer

playwright

Question 5

a french term meaning "unravelling" used to describe the resolution of a plot following climax

Accepted Answer

denouement

Question 6

where plot is divided into three essential parts

Accepted Answer

pyramidal pattern

Question 7

the central character we tend to identify with

Accepted Answer

protagonist

Question 8

a speech directed only at the audience

Accepted Answer

aside

Question 9

the plot point where a complication create conflict for the protagonist

Accepted Answer

rising action

Question 10

comedy that consists of verbal wit

Accepted Answer

high comedy

Question 11

when the meaning of a character's words/actions are understood by the audience/ not character

Accepted Answer

dramatic irony

Question 12

a moment in the story when previously unknown or withheld info is revealed to the protagonist

Accepted Answer

recognition

Question 13

dramatizes stories from the Bible

Accepted Answer

mystery plays

Question 14

dramas based on the lives of saints

Accepted Answer

miracle plays

Question 15

a secondary action that reinforces or contrasts with the main plot

Accepted Answer

subplot

Question 16

the central meaning or dominant idea in a literary work

Accepted Answer

theme

Question 17

dramas that present allegorical stories in which virtues and vices are personified

Accepted Answer

morality plays

Question 18

literature equipped with arms, legs, tears, laughs, and gestures that are alive and immediate

Accepted Answer

drama

Question 19

the further divisions of a play that changes when the location of the action changes

Accepted Answer

scenes

Question 20

an anxious anticipation of a reader or audience as to the outcome of the story

Accepted Answer

suspence

Question 21

the playwright's instructions about how actors are to move and behave

Accepted Answer

stage directions

Question 22

meaning "purgation," it describes the release of the emotions pity and fear by the audience

Accepted Answer

catharsis

Question 23

the author's arrangement of incidents in the play that gives the story a particular emphasis

Accepted Answer

plot

Question 24

the use of a humorous scene or incident to alleviate tension in an otherwise serious work

Accepted Answer

comic relief

Question 25

plays written to be read rather than performed

Accepted Answer

closet drama

Question 26

the main division of a full-length; endings indicated by lowering curtain or turning lights on

Accepted Answer

acts

Question 27

a speech delivered while the actor is alone on the stage

Accepted Answer

solioquy

Question 28

the literary art of ridiculing a folly or vice in order to expose or correct it

Accepted Answer

satire

Question 29

excessive pride or self-confidence that leads a protagonist to disregard a divine warning

Accepted Answer

hubris

Question 30

3rd part of the play where tensions are diminished in the resolution of the plot's conflicts

Accepted Answer

falling action

Question 31

presents courageous individuals who confront powerful forces with dignity in the face of death

Accepted Answer

tragedy

Question 32

the point when the hero's fortunes turn in an unexpected direction

Accepted Answer

reversal

Question 33

a play that takes place in a single location and unfolds as on continuous action

Accepted Answer

one-act play

Question 34

the physical and social context in which action of a story occurs

Accepted Answer

setting

Question 35

the verbal exchanges between characters in a play

Accepted Answer

dialogue

Question 36

a character whose behavior and values contrast with protagonist to highlight a unique quality

Accepted Answer

foil

Question 37

dramatic literature written to be performed by actors on a stage before an audience

Accepted Answer

plays

Question 38

a device that provides the necessary background info about characters and their circumstances

Accepted Answer

exposition

Question 39

a drama that represents a social issue in order to awaken the audience

Accepted Answer

problem play

Question 40

when the action reaches a final crisis in the plot

Accepted Answer

climax

Question 41

a turning point in the action of the story that has a powerful effect on the protagonist

Accepted Answer

crisis

Question 42

an internal trait such as excess of pride, ambition, passion that leads to disaster

Accepted Answer

tragic flaw

Question 43

when the meaning of a character's words/actions are understood by audience/ not the character

Accepted Answer

dramatic irony

Question 44

a play that typically involves lovers whose hearts are set on each other with complications

Accepted Answer

romantic comedies

Question 45

in Greek Tragedies, a group of people who serve mainly as commentators on the characters/events

Accepted Answer

chorus

Question 46

a term applied to any literary work that relies on implausible events and sensational action

Accepted Answer

melodrama

Question 47

the text of a play

Accepted Answer

script

Question 48

the character who is in some kind of opposition to the central character

Accepted Answer

antagonist

PCC LIT 115 Drama Vocabulary Practice

Questions 48

PCC LIT 115 Drama Vocabulary Practice

Questions 48