Literary Elements of Dramatic (or Narrative) Significance

In order to depict in a short space of time, a conflict that will hold the attention of the audience or reader, and evoke a progressively strong emotional response, a dramatist (or novelist) must plan the structure and the dialogue of his or her play (or novel) with great care.

Every conversation, aside, soliloquy, action, and piece of narration must have a definite purpose in the story that unfolds. This purpose is termed ‘dramatic or narrative significance’ (depending upon whether one is analyzing a play, novel, or short story).

Below is a list of the various types of dramatic significance (in no particular order) that can be identified in a speech, conversation, incident, or entire scene in a play, or through the narration and dialogue in prose fiction.

NOTE: Often, a combination of a few or even several of these types of literary elements are present in a single passage:

To establish conflict: i.e. to introduce key elements of conflict that will need to be resolved such as: person vs person, person vs society, person vs nature, or person vs himself or herself

To forward the plot: i.e. to depict the victories and the defeats of the protagonist; to depict some incident or decision that will precipitate further events in the conflict

To give information: i.e. to give background facts that the audience needs to know in order to understand the conflict; or, to give information about events that, during the play, were supposed to have occurred off-stage

To develop character or to characterize: i.e. to reveal the nature or character traits of a character; or to show development in a character

To create suspense

To create atmosphere or to impart mood

To provide dramatic relief: i.e. a scene or passage included after a tense scene or incident that is designed to break the tension (without going so far as to provoke laughter)

To provide comic relief: i.e. a scene or passage included after a serious scene or incident that is designed to provoke laughter from the audience

To arouse pathos in the audience: i.e. to make the audience’s sympathies lie where the dramatist wants them to lie

To create irony (dramatic, verbal, or situational)

To foreshadow later events

To create dramatic contrast in characters or mood

To emphasize or link to a theme

To create imagery: i.e. the use of description, including metaphors, similes, personification, etc., to help support characterization, atmosphere, theme, etc.

To establish setting: i.e. to create a sense of time and place

William Anderson (Schoolworkhelper Editorial Team)

William completed his Bachelor of Science and Master of Arts in 2013. He current serves as a lecturer, tutor and freelance writer. In his spare time, he enjoys reading, walking his dog and parasailing.

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