1. DRAMATIC SIGNIFICANCE OF A SCENE OR EXCERPT How to Answer a Passage Analysis Question

2. WHAT IS IT AND WHY Every line reveals some form of information about a character, the setting, or plot. The dramatic significance of a passage may reveal everything from the personality of the speaker to key moments in the advancement of the plot. There are 5 categories to be examined. On a test, only 3 need to be addressed.

3. 1. PLOT key points in the plot triangle (exposition, inciting incident, rising action, climax, dénouement, catastrophe) background (antecedent) information offstage information (unseen by audience) Complications advancements of the plot (pushes plot forward)

4. 2. SETTING  time (Elizabethan era – role of women; Cold War era)  place (geographical location) – Dunsinane, Inverness, 1970s Communist Poland  atmosphere (tone, mood, or emotions related to scene: foreboding, gloomy, joyous, tense, sombre, jubilant, triumphant)  socioeconomic status (class system: courtiers (royalty) vs. working class; bourgeoisie vs proletariat)

5. 3. CHARACTER personality/nature or changes therein relationships or changes therein Motivations states of mind or awareness (psychological? emotional? intellectual?)

6. 4. THEME motif or recurring concrete images often point to a particular theme (arising from one of the six central concepts:  inescapable quality of fate and destiny,  power of ambition,  supernatural as perpetuator of disorder,  importance of honour and loyalty,  the division between the private and public persona,  the allure of temptation to do evil acts.

7. 5. SPECIAL DRAMATIC EFFECTS dramatic irony, foreshadowing, pathetic fallacy, pathos, comic relief, juxtaposition of scenes, soliloquy language literary devices (e.g., allusion, paradox, metaphor/simile, personification, oxymoron, metonymy, synecdoche)

8. THOROUGH ANALYSIS OF A PASSAGE i) State the name of the work and the author. ii) State speaker and audience (to whom is he/she speaking?) and context (what is happening at this point?). Iii) Outline your blueprint (which three points you will discuss and in which order) iv) Explain how the passage reveals as many (at least three) of the five levels of dramatic significance as possible. Make direct connections between the ideas that are being revealed and the phrases and words that the author employs. Always refer to the audience who is affected by the author’s words. Key Notes Use transitions for each point (First…Second…Finally) No conclusion required Follow the TAPE paragraph formula: Transition + Answer (which element you are discussing and the role it plays) + Proof (textual evidence from the quote, such as key words) + Explanation (why is this element significant and how does it contribute to overall understanding)

9. EXEMPLAR Quote: “Astonished monkeys in the cage continued staring in the sky.” What am I thinking about?

10. CREATE A RESPONSE In this quote from Slawomir Mrozek’s short story “The Elephant”, the narrator is detailing to the audience the reaction of some of the inmates at the zoo immediately after the helium-filled elephant floated away. The significance of the quote is demonstrated through an analysis of special dramatic effects, plot, and setting. First, special dramatic effects are key to this passage as the monkeys are key symbolic representations within this satirical allegory. The “monkeys in the cage” are representative on a surface level of actual monkeys at the zoo; however, they serve on an abstract level as the children and others who are deceived by the type of system represented within the story. The “astonished” looks are what happens when our truths are destroyed or redefined, and therefore the audience understands that this moment will lead to a great change in the characters involved. Second, plot plays a significant role in the analysis. This quote takes place during the climax…. Author and title Speaker, audience and context Blueprint Transitions Proof from the text to support feature Explanation of proof