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• General terms – terms that are representative of those used in mainstream theatre practice • Specialist technical terms – terms that are used by specialists in lighting and sound. The terms in both sections are ordered alphabetically.
Before you start studying plays written by famous dramatists or some unknown play by an unknown playwright, it becomes important to have an understanding of major literary terms that often occur during the lectures or in an article by some literary scholar or critic that you read.
A customary feature of a literary work, such as the use of a chorus in Greek tragedy, the inclusion of an explicit moral in a fable, or the use of a particular rhyme scheme in a villanelle. Literary conventions are defining features of particular literary genres, such as novel, short story, ballad, sonnet, and play. Denotation
Literary terms: A guide for students Introduction The terminology below may be used support your reading and response to literature. It will also help you access any critical reading on your specified literary texts, alongside any specific glossaries that have been provided in Edexcel’s support materials.
Summary, themes, line-by-line analysis, poetic devices, form, meter, rhyme scheme, and more. Full definitions of each term with color-coded examples, followed by additional resources. The full play, poem, or sonnet alongside the modern English translation mapped by colors.
Character: An imaginary person that inhabits a literary work. Dramatic characters may be major or minor, static (unchanging) or dynamic (capable of change). Example: In Shakespeare's Othello, Desdemona is a major character, but one who is static. Othello is a major character who is dynamic, exhibiting an ability to change.
Glossary of Literary and Dramatic Terms Act: A major division in a play. An act can be sub-divided into scenes. (See scene). Greek plays were not divided into acts. The five act structure was originally introduced in Roman times and became the convention in Shakespeare’s period.
