1. Shakespearean Drama
Vocabulary and Terms

2. Shakespeare’s Plays 3 categories
Tragedy: a play that traces the main character’s downfall
Ex: Romeo and Juliet
Comedy: a play that ends happily and usually contains many humorous elements
Ex: Much Ado About Nothing
History: a play that chronicles the life of an English monarch
Ex: Richard 3

3. Tragedy and the Tragic Hero
Shakespeare’s tragedies are often called his “greatest plays.”
Every tragedy contains a “tragic hero”
Tragic hero: a main character who goes through a series of events that lead to his/her downfall

4. Qualities of a Tragic Hero
Possesses importance or high rank
Exhibits extraordinary talents
Displays a tragic flaw—an error in judgment or defect in character—that leads to downfall
Faces downfall with courage and dignity

5. Soliloquy and Aside
Shakespeare uses soliloquies and asides even though these are not things that are used in real life.
Soliloquy: a long speech given by a character while alone on stage to reveal his or her private thoughts or intentions. (monologue)
Aside: a character’s quiet remark to the audience or another character that no one else on stage is supposed to hear. A stage direction (often in brackets) indicates an aside

6. Dramatic Irony
Dramatic Irony: when the reader or audience knows something that one or more of the characters do not know.
EX: In Romeo and Juliet when we know Juliet is married to Romeo, but her parents do not.
EX: We know how the play will end but the characters do not.

7. The Globe Theatre

8. The Plague = Poetry

9. R&J even mentions plagues as do many Shakespearean plays
“A plague on both your houses!” (3.1.59)