Creative Writing

Quarter 2
Learning Activity Sheet 7
Elements, Techniques, and Literary
Devices in Drama

Negros Occidental High School

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NOT FOR SALE
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 LEARNING ACTIVITY SHEET NO. 7
Creative Writing

I. Most Essential Learning Competency (MELC)

● Identify the various elements, techniques, and literary devices in drama
HUMSS_CW/MPIj-IIc-15

II. Background Information for the Learners

The world of literature is a magical realm where humanity has expressed

its hopes and fears, its joys and tears. For countless generations, people have
found in it inspiration, relaxation, and experience which they otherwise would
never have.

These learning activity sheets will present guidelines on how to write a

one-act play with various elements, techniques and literary devices and will
offer opportunities for you to engage yourself in meaningful tasks that will help
you demonstrate your understanding of how you can enhance and develop
your writing skills on a one-act play.

⚫ What is drama?
The word drama comes from the Greek word “dran” which means
“deed” or “action.” Drama is written to be performed by actors and
watched by an audience.

Two Types of Drama

1. Tragedy shows the downfall or death of a tragic hero or main
character. In ancient Greek plays, the hero was a good person brought
down by a tragic flaw or defect in character. In modern plays, the hero
can be a normal person destroyed by an evil in society. It emphasizes
human greatness.

2. Comedy often shows a conflict between opposite age groups,

genders, or personality types. The typical comedies involve confusion,
jokes, and a happy ending. It stresses human weaknesses.1

How is a play written?

● The author of a play is called a playwright. Everything a playwright
writes must appear onstage.
● A play in written form is called a script.

1 “Wording the World:The Art of Creative Writing” by Aguila, A. A. et. al, copyright 2017 by C & E Publishing, Inc.
 ● The playwright must write the dialogue, or what the characters say
to each other in conversation, as well as the stage directions,
which tells how the play is to be performed.
How is a play divided?
● A play is largely divided up into parts, or acts. The number of acts
in a production can range from one to five, depending on how a
writer structures the outline of the story. The length of time for an
act to be performed can range from 30 to 90 minutes.
● Acts may be further divided into scenes; in classical theatre each
regrouping between entrances and exits of actors is a scene, while
today it describes a quick change of setting.

ELEMENTS OF DRAMA
Characters
● These are the people, animals or even ideas who are given life in
the play. In other words, they are who make the story happen in
drama.
● Characters are different from actors. Actors are the ones who are
doing the ‘acting’ or the people who are portraying different
characters.

Plot
● This element answers how the story happened in the play.
● This describes the events, which relate to each other in a pattern
or sequence that makes up a story.
● The plot helps playwrights organize the information in the play in
an understandable manner.

Dialogue
● Dialogue is what the characters say, and it is used to reveal their
personalities or character traits.
● The name of the character who is to speak is listed usually in bold at
the start of a line, followed by a colon.
● Every time the speaker changes, a new line is started. Dialogue is
necessary in order to develop conflict and advance the plot.
● Below is an example of a dialogue:
GLORIA : Today is payday, Mario.
MARIO : Yes … but…
GLORIA : But what? Where’s your pay for the week?
 Setting
● This is where and when the story in the play happened or the time
and place where the events in the play took place.
● Example: The play Romeo and Juliet has been set in the era between
1300 and 1600 in Verona, Italy. The mention of places like the
Capulet estate, the Friar Laurence’s church, Verona and Mantua (a
city in Italy) shows that the story was indeed set in Italy.

Theme
● While plot refers to the action of the play, theme refers to the
meaning of the play.
● Theme is the main idea; in some cases, the theme of a play is
obvious; other times it is quite subtle.

Sets
● Sets are the scenery, backdrops, and furniture that create the setting.
● A production may have different sets for different scenes. For
example, some scenes may take place outside the street, while
others may take place in a character’s living room. Some scenes may
take place during the day, while others may take place at night.
Props
● Props are things like books, telephones, dishes, and other items
that actors use onstage during the performance to support the
action.
Stage directions
● Staging is the practice of putting on the play. Some of the details of
staging may be included in the stage directions; however, the director
and the producer take what the playwright has described and bring it
to life with their own ideas.
● Stage directions are notes in the script usually written in italics and
enclosed in parentheses or brackets. They usually describe where
and when a scene takes place (setting), how the characters should
say their lines, and how the characters should move onstage. They
may explain the character’s mood or how the character is feeling.
● Stage directions may also describe sets, costumes, props, lighting,
and sound effects.
● Stage directions use certain terms to describe the stage.2

2 “Lesson Plan Elements of Drama | Play (Theatre) | Genre”, n.d. Accessed July 20, 2020.
https://www.scribd.com/document/414160903/Lesson-Plan-Elements-of-Drama.
 Dramatization
● Some plays are completely new works. Other plays are adapted
from novels, short stories, or even from nonfiction. A playwright
takes scenes, characters, and action from an existing work and
turns them into a play, or dramatizes them.

TECHNIQUES AND LITERARY DEVICES IN DRAMA

Playwrights use many techniques and literary devices to make the story
more exciting and interesting. These techniques help bring the story to life and
arouse the intended emotions in the audience or readers. A good play is one
that captures the audience/readers’ heart and attention while leaving important
lessons or realizations about society, family, love, politics, poverty, life and
other significant issues we deal with every single day.
A dramatic device is a convention used in drama as a substitution for
reality that the audience accepts as real although they know them to be false.
These techniques give the audience information they could not get from
straightforward presentation of action. Some of these literary devices are the
following:
● Soliloquy: This is read as sƏ-li-lƏ-kwē. This is a speech by a single
actor who is alone on stage. Most classical plays have scenes when a
character does soliloquy. The character speaks out his/her thoughts
aloud for the audience to know and understand what he/she is thinking.
● Monologue: This refers to a long speech made by one actor which may
be delivered alone or in the presence of others.
● Dramatic Irony: This occurs when a character’s words or acts carry a
larger meaning that the character does not perceive. He/she expects
the opposite of what fate holds in store, or unknowingly says something
that has a double meaning. The audience, however, is fully aware of the
character’s situation.
● Foreshadowing: This is the playwright’s use of “hints” or “clues” which
prepares the audience/reader for future events or the outcome.
● Imagery: This is creating images in the audience’s/readers’ mind
through the use of vivid words. The use of figurative language is a good
technique to stir and challenge the readers’ imagination. This can be
achieved by using figures of speech like hyperbole, metaphor, simile,
paradox, personification, oxymoron, metonymy and many others.

Tips on How to Get Started Writing

1. Reading is necessary. Read works of famous writers for reference.
 2. The plot of a one-act play is short. It focuses on the main character or a
single incident or goal.
3. Characterization is about whose story to portray and whose point of view
prevails that will be your main character.
4. A character must have a goal. The main character should reach his/her
goal no matter what happened even if there are challenges along the
way.
5. Conflict is the heart of any story and how the main character faces and
overcomes it. Keep in mind that the obstacles get harder the next time.
6. Remember that in one-act play you must reach the climax quickly.
7. You must develop characters; both main and supporting. They should
have strengths and weaknesses. These techniques should be used to
build your characters.
8. The setting must play an important part in the play. It may be simple and
require audience’s imagination.
9. Scene should be outlined. As the basic unit of a drama within a play.
Each scene should include a conflict involving a main character pursuing
to reach his/her goal. You must have also a list of obstacles that stand in
the main character’s way into each scene.
10. When you write, bear in mind that it will not be perfect the first time
through. If you need to rewrite, that is fine.3
III. Activities
SHILA 1 : COPY and ANSWER in your Creative Writing Notebook
Directions: Recall the important elements in column A and match them with the correct
definition found in column B. Write your answers in your notebook.

A B
1. Characte
A. refers to the words written by the playwright and spoken by the
r
characters in the play

2. Setting
B. descriptions of landscape, scenery, buildings, seasons or weather

3. Theme C. the action; the basic storyline of a play

D. meaning of a play; the main idea or lesson to be learned from a
4. Plot play
E. the people (sometimes animals or ideas) portrayed by the actors in
5. Dialogue
the play

3 ) “Essential English Worktext in Literarature and Language. De Vera, Estrella E., Francisco, Nelda R. & Gonzales,
Carolina T. 2015. Sampaloc, Manila. Rex Book Store, Inc.
 Performance Task 1: Plot Your Story
COPY and ANSWER in your Creative Writing Notebook
Directions: Using the event/graphic organizer, write a possible plot for a play. Arrange
them in a chronological order. Be ready for a focus-group discussion (FGD).

SHILA 2 : Director’s Notes

COPY and ANSWER in your Creative Writing Notebook
DIRECTIONS: With a pair, create a dialogue and stage directions.
Write your answers in your notebook. You may add more dialogues. Be ready to
recreate the scene in front of the class.

Stage Direction: ___________________________________________________

Character 1. :_______________________________________________________
Character 2:________________________________________________________
Character 3:________________________________________________________

IV. References
A Journey through Anglo- American Literature Learner’s Material. Almonte, Liza R., et al. 2015. Pasig City.
Department of Education.

Creative Writing – Malikhaing Pagsulat Self-Learning Module. Acero, G., et al. 2020. Cagayan De Oro.
Department of Education-Region 10

“Essential English Worktext in Literarature and Language”. De Vera, Estrella E., Francisco, Nelda R. &
Gonzales, Carolina T. 2015. Sampaloc, Manila. Rex Book Store, Inc.

“Lesson Plan Elements of Drama | Play (Theatre) | Genre”, n.d. Accessed July 20, 2020.
https://www.scribd.com/document/414160903/Lesson-Plan-Elements-of-Drama.
“Theater Etiquette | Play (Theatre) | Genre”, n.d. Accessed July 20, 2020.