![]() When reading the play, actors reference lines. The acts are further divided into scenes. The scene is usually set in a particular moment in time and setting. A lot of literary production is driven by economics, after all: playwrights gotta eat, too! Between each act, the curtain will fall perhaps in the middle of the play there might be an intermission for audiences to use the restroom or buy drinks. These acts usually hinge upon a central plot point. Usually a play will be divided into anywhere from one to five acts. Whether tragedy, comedy, history, or romance, all plays generally follow the structure of act, scene, and line.Ī play can be anywhere from a few minutes to several hours. As in this example (based on Antigone by Sophocles), the structure of a play can have profound effects on its meaning or even genre! For example, what would have happened if the above mentioned King had recognized his tragic flaw (hamartia) in time to save his niece? This would have been a very different play: perhaps even a romance if the niece and king's son married and lived happily ever after. That being said, it can be helpful to analyze the ways in which a plot's structure is formed, as this can reveal deeper meanings. Not all plays or even tragedies follow this structure exactly. The audience feels pity and fear watching the King suffer, and this helps purge their feelings of pity and fear. The heartbroken King leaves the city in self-imposed exile. Example: Not only did the King's niece and son die, but a messenger tells him that his wife killed herself in grief. ![]()
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