Paper – I Drama, B.A. II Yr.

Unit- I

MODULE-1

UNIT -I

INTRODUCTION TO DRAMA AND ITS FORMS

Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance: a play, opera, mime, ballet,
etc., performed in a theatre, or on radio or television.

The term "drama" comes from a Greek word meaning "action" (Classical Greek) which is
derived from "I do". The two masks associated with drama represent the traditional generic
division between comedy and tragedy.

OR

Drama is a mode of fictional representation through dialogue and performance. It is one of

the literary genres, which is an imitation of some action. Drama is also a type of a play written
for theater, television, radio and film. In simple words, a drama is a composition in verse or
prose presenting a story in dialogue. It contains conflict of characters, particularly the ones who
perform in front of audience on the stage. The person who writes drama for stage directions is
known as ‘dramatist’ or playwright’.

Forms of Drama

1. Tragedy
2. Comedy
3. Tragic comedy
4. History Plays
5. Problem Play
6. Epic Theatre
7. Poetic Drama
8. Realistic Drama
9. Melodrama
10. Farce

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Paper – I Drama, B.A. II Yr. Unit- I

1. Tragedy

Tragedy is a genre of story in which a hero is brought down by his/her own flaws, usually by
ordinary human flaws – flaws like greed, over-ambition, or even an excess of love, honor, or
loyalty.

In any tragedy, we start with the tragic hero, usually in his prime. The hero is successful,
respected, and happy. But he has some tragic flaw that will ultimately cause his downfall.
Usually, the plot of the story follows a gradual descent from greatness to destruction. It’s
especially important that the hero end up isolated from all of his friends and companions. In the
end, we feel deep sadness and pity (also called pathos) for the hero. But we also feel a sense of
understanding – the story warns us to guard against the ordinary flaws that brought down the
hero. Sometimes, people use the word “tragedy” for any sad event. For example, we might say
that an airplane crash or tsunami was “tragic.” But in literature, the word has a much more
specific meaning than that.

Example- Shakespeare was a huge fan of a good tragedy, and some of his best plays are his
tragedies. Macbeth, for example, tells the story of a noble Scottish warrior whose wife convinces
him to betray and murder the King. Over the course of the play, Macbeth gradually isolates
himself from all of his friends and supporters, growing more and more dependent on his own
(and his wife’s) ambition. In the end, he is destroyed by the very people he once fought side-by-
side with.

2. Comedy

Comedy is any work that is intended to incite laughter and amusement, especially in theatre,
television, film, stand-up comedy or any other entertainment medium. It dates back to the
Ancient Greeks, originating from the comedy literary definition which refers to a medieval story
or narrative involving an amusing character that triumphs over poor circumstances, creating
comic effects. The tone here is light and satirical and the story always ends well.

William Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream is an example of a romantic comedy. In

this play, the characters experience comical situations of confused love, but in the end, they are
reunited with feelings for their true loves.

George Bernard’s Pygmalion is an example of a comedy of manners. In this play, a gentleman of

the high society attempts to refine a lower-class woman through lessons on how to act properly.

3. Tragic Comedy

a tragicomedy is just what it sounds like — a perfect mix of comedy and tragedy. Much like in
tragedies, there are flawed characters, but, often, the serious plot is punctuated by humorous

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Paper – I Drama, B.A. II Yr. Unit- I

elements. And, usually, characters avoid completely tragic endings. To use Shakespeare again,
The Merchant of Venice is a popular tragicomedy.

4. History Play

A history play is also known asa chronicle play, is a dramatic work where the events of the plot
are either partially or entirely drawn from history. It is also considered a theatrical genre.
William Shakespeare wrote teen of these plays, each loosely based on an English monarch and
the period in which he reigned. Importantly these plays remain works of fiction, whether based
on an historical figure or not.

Example - William Shakespeare, the famous English playwright, wrote plays in many different
genres. One area of particular use by Shakespeare was the period of English history leading up to
his own day, specifically the Plantagenet and Tudor Dynasties. The history plays cover much of
the time period between 1199-1547, and include King John, Richard II, Henry IV, Part IandII,
Henry V, Henry VI, Part I, II and III, Richard III, and Henry VIII.

King John deals with the forced abdication and death of the title character. The brother of
Richard the Lionhearted, King John is an incredibly unpopular king and is systematically
betrayed by most of the characters, eventually losing the throne. It is historically unknown
whether John died of starvation in prison or was murdered, but in this version he is poisoned by a
monk. This first of the history plays is probably the least performed in modern times, although it
was a favorite play of Victorian era England.

One of the bloodiest of succession battles in the Plantagenet dynasty is the subject of Richard II.
The previous monarch, Edward III, passed over his younger sons to bring his grandson Richard
II to the throne, leaving Richard to a lifetime battle with his uncles and cousins. Richard II was
first performed in 1595 and was considered a politically dangerous play at the time. The current
monarch of Shakespeare’s day, Elizabeth I, had come to power through a fight for succession
and was considered by some unfit to rule.

The Henry Era of the history plays is probably the best known. Henry IV, Part IandII follow the
battles of King Henry IV after his supplanting of Richard II on the throne. Young Hal, son of the
king and a lazy drunkard at the beginning, finally renounces his former life and becomes King
Henry V. Henry V is a chronicle of the Battle of Agincourt, where a small English army
overcame tremendous odds against a French force, and Henry’s victory resulted in his marriage
and alliance with France. The life of his son, Henry VI, and the beginning of the War of the
Roses is covered by Henry VI, Part I, II and III.

Because of the death of the hero, Richard III is considered by some to be a tragedy. Yet unlike
with his other tragedies, Shakespeare paints Richard III as an unredeemable character overrun by
flaws and ego. Most experts believe this places Richard III firmly in the camp of the history

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Paper – I Drama, B.A. II Yr. Unit- I

plays. Richard details the end of the Plantagenet reign and the rise of the Tudor Dynasty.
Because Shakespeare’s current monarch was a Tudor, the completely corrupt and villainous
character of Richard is often considered political pandering on behalf of the playwright.

The last of the history plays was first performed in 1613, and covers part of the reign of
Elizabeth I’s father, Henry VIII. Some scholars speculate that Shakespeare did not attempt to
cover this subject until after the death of Elizabeth I, and the succession of a non-Tudor monarch.
Henry VIII has never been a popular play, but is notable for a tragic coincidence. At a
performance at The Globe Theater in 1613, a cannon misfired, setting the roof of the stage ablaze
and destroying the entire theater. Because of this, the play is often considered “cursed” by theater
professionals.

Although some of the material of the history plays would have been common knowledge in
Shakespeare’s day, he is believed to have taken most of his information from Raphael
Holinshed’s Chronicles of England, Scotland and Ireland. The history plays are not considered to
be completely historically accurate, as Shakespeare left out or added details, characters and
motivations. Nevertheless, in a time of little wide-spread education the history plays gave
English citizens access to an action-packed version of their own history that remains popular in
modern day.

5. Problem play

Type of drama that developed in the 19th century to deal with controversial social issues in a
realistic manner, to expose social ills, and to stimulate thought and discussion on the part of the
audience. The genre had its beginnings in the work of the French dramatists Alexandre Dumas
fils and Émile Augier, who adapted the then-popular formula of Eugène Scribe’s “well-made
play” (q.v.) to serious subjects, creating somewhat simplistic, didactic thesis plays on subjects
such as prostitution, business ethics, illegitimacy, and female emancipation. The problem play
reached its maturity in the works of the Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen, whose works had
artistic merit as well as topical relevance. His first experiment in the genre was Love’s Comedy
(published 1862), a critical study of contemporary marriage. He went on to expose the hypocrisy,
greed, and hidden corruption of his society in a number of masterly plays: A Doll’s House
portrays a woman’s escape from her childish, subservient role as a bourgeois wife; Ghosts
attacks the convention that even loveless and unhappy marriages are sacred; The Wild Duck
shows the consequences of an egotistical idealism; An Enemy of the People reveals the
expedient morality of respectable provincial townspeople.

Ibsen’s influence helped encourage the writing of problem plays throughout Europe other
Scandinavian playwrights, among them August Strindberg, discussed sexual roles and the
emancipation of women from both liberal and conservative viewpoints. Eugène Brieux attacked

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Paper – I Drama, B.A. II Yr. Unit- I

the French judicial system in The Red Robe. In England, George Bernard Shaw brought the
problem play to its intellectual peak, both with his plays and with their long and witty preface.

6. Epic Play

Epic theatre, German Episches Theater, form of didactic drama presenting a series of loosely
connected scenes that avoid illusion and often interrupt the story line to address the audience
directly with analysis, argument, or documentation. OR Epic theatre (German: episches Theater)
is a theatrical movement arising in the early to mid-20th century from the theories and practice of
a number of theatre practitioners who responded to the political climate of the time through the
creation of new political dramas. Epic theatre is not meant to refer to the scale or the scope of the
work, but rather to the form that it takes. Epic theatre emphasizes the audience's perspective and
reaction to the piece through a variety of techniques that deliberately cause them to individually
engage in a different way. The purpose of epic theatre is not to encourage an audience to suspend
their disbelief, but rather to force them to see their world as it is.

7. Poetic Drama

Poetic drama is not merely a drama which is written in verse, because prose may also be its
effective medium. It is, in fact, a blending of the poetic and dramatic elements in a fruitful union.
Here poetry is an integral part of the play, twined with plot, character and their interplay, not an
element of isolated beauty or lyricism for its own sake, as is the case with splendid lyricism in
some parts of Marlowe’s Dr. Faustus, for example. At the same time the dramatic elements must
be capable of sustaining the poetic grace and intensity. It means its themes and characters should
be poetically convinced and should be larger than the average humanity and humdrum monotony
of daily life, the passions and emotions permeating them should be naturally productive of the
poetic expression, calculated to lift the mind of the spectator above the sphere of our ordinary
joys and sorrows and send the penetrating gaze of his inner vision far down below the surface of
life to the very springs of human action and human drives. Moreover, drama being so intimately
bound up with the stage condition and the historic skill its practitioner must combine mastery
over the poetic resources, with a real understanding of the peculiar needs and modes of the
dramatic representation in the theatre. The history of the poetic drama in England is littered with
the frozen anatomies of poetic plays written by the distinguished poets of the nineteenth century
who failed to subordinate poetry to the general dramatic spirit and adapt the plays to the
conditions and requirements of the stage.

8. Realistic Drama

Realism is a developed set of dramatic and theatrical conventions with the aim of bringing a
greater fidelity of real life to texts and performances. Its a movement to replace the artificial
romantic style with accurate depictions of ordinary people in plausible situations. A theatrical
way of taking an unflinching look at the way things really are in the world. Their intention is to

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Paper – I Drama, B.A. II Yr. Unit- I

illuminate humankind’s struggles and concerns in a straightforward way. The sets of realist plays
evoke the typical workplace, towns, homes, society, basically everyday life. The goal of Realism
was about truth and accuracy; they denounced anything shown exaggerated. Presentation of
drama with the aim of conveying a convincing representation of real life. An authentic
representation of life that is believable and could actually happen. In attempting to create a
perfect illusion of reality, playwrights and directors rejected dramatic conventions that had
existed since the beginnings of drama. Dramatic Conventions: departures from reality that an
audience must accept in order to enjoy a drama. Examples: actors facing the audience so they
can be heard, the room has four walls even though 3 walls are visible. Main features of realistic
dramas: A focus on real life, An emphasis on behavior and tough decisions believable dialogue

common everyday settings People who wrote realistic plays from a realistic perspective created
true to life stories, characters, settings, conflicts, and staging. People could relate to these plays
very easily.

OR

When trying to understand realism in literature, just think of the word real. Rather than applying
filters or fantasy to your fictional world, realism is based on “real” everyday life. So, realism in
literature is like that photo you take before adding all your Snap chat filters. In realism, you’ll
find characters with genuine jobs and problems.

For example, a work of realism might chronicle the life of an average farmer. Rather than fun
metaphors or imagery, a realistic writer would show you the undramatized life and dialect of the
area.

 Literary realism isn’t hard to miss. It has several classic elements to the writing giving
away this story is a piece of literary realism.
 Realistic characters and setting
 Comprehensive detail about everyday occurrences
 Plausible plot (a story that could happen in your town)
 Real dialects of the area
 Character development important
 Importance in depicting social class

Realism in Literature

While realism in literature explores real life and stories, it’s anything but boring. Explore the raw
and unfiltered world through these realism literature examples.

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Paper – I Drama, B.A. II Yr. Unit- I

In his Civil War novel, The Red Badge of Courage, Crane invited readers to explore the real life
of a soldier during the time. His novel shined a light on the conditions of soldiers along with the
realities of the battlefield.

Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck

Set in the Great Depression, Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men reveals the stark realities of people
living in impoverished conditions. Through the novel, you follow the plight of two working-class
men of the time and the economic difficulties they encounter. It also works to shine a light on the
prejudices and isolation of those working with disabilities.

Life in the Iron Mills by Rebecca Harding Davis

An acclaimed novelist of her time, Rebecca Harding Davis illuminates the bleak working
conditions of early industrial workers and the poor. She was one of the first realism writers in
America to put a feminist perspective on the world around her.

9. Melodramatic

They are serious, generally over-the-top stories filled with heroes and villains. Often, these
works center on romance or other slice-of-life circumstances — but, unlike the other dramatic
forms, melodramas employ both happy and sad endings in fairly equal measure. One of the most
influential melodramas is Jean Jacques Rousseau’s enduring play Pygmalion.

10. Farce

A farce is a literary genre and type of comedy that makes use of highly exaggerated and funny
situations aimed at entertaining the audience. Farce is also a subcategory of dramatic comedy,
which is different from other forms of comedy as it only aims at making the audience laugh. It

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Paper – I Drama, B.A. II Yr. Unit- I

uses elements like physical humor, deliberate absurdity, bawdy jokes, and drunkenness just to
make people laugh. We often see one- dimensional characters in ludicrous situations in farces.

The basic purpose of a farcical comedy is to evoke laughter. We usually find farces in theater
and films, and sometimes in other literary works too. In fact, all of these forms combine
stereotyped characters and exaggeration to create humor. Although a farce may appear only to be
funny, they often contain deeper implications on account of the use of satirical elements. In
terms of plots, farces are often incomprehensible; hence, the audiences are not encouraged to
follow the plot in order to avoid becoming overwhelmed and confused. Moreover, farces also
contain improbable coincidences, and generally mock weaknesses of humans and human society.

Example- Waiting for Godot by Samuel Beckett, She Stoops to Conquer by Oliver
Goldsmith,The Taming of the Shrew by William Shakespeare etc.

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