One Act Play Glossary

Glossary of terms used throughout this assignment

 Antagonist: The antagonist is a character or a group of characters whose objectives directly oppose the objectives of the protagonist. The antagonist has a major change at the climax of the story.

 Archetype: An archetype is a universally understood representation or idealization of a profession or group, and a perfect, synthesized example of that profession or group.

 Character: Characters are fully-formed personalities actively participating in telling a story. Characters should have a strong point of view

 Conflict: Conflict is tension and competing objectives between the protagonist and other forces in a story. Conflict can come from other characters, from external sources such as nature or machinery, or internal struggles. Conflict is necessary to drive the story forward.

 Dramatic Action: The dramatic action is a series of events and motivations propelled by characters in conflict. While most plays utilize this structure, some plays, such as absurdist plays, are written to oppose this structure:

    o Introduction: The beginning of the play starts with Exposition, in which background information about the story or characters is discussed, presented or disseminated.

    o Inciting Incident: The inciting incident occurs when the protagonist and an opposing force come into conflict, setting the main encounter of the story into action.

    o Rising Action: In the rising action, complications, crises, or discoveries create tension and suspense, and increase Conflict, propelling the protagonist and the antagonist toward a transformation.

    o Climax: The climax of a story is the moment in the story that contains the greatest tension, and a major change in the fate of both the protagonist and antagonist. At this turning point, there is no going back.

    o Falling Action: The falling action holds moments in the story that may contain conflict and tension yet to be resolved.

    o Resolution: The resolution of the story occurs when the main conflicts of the dramatic action are resolved, and the questions in the play are answered.

 Narrator: A narrator delivers expositional commentary outside of the dramatic action, usually directly to the audience.

 Objectives: An objective is a goal or intention that characters are strategically trying to achieve. Characters usually have multiple objectives to pursue.

 Obstacle: An obstacle is a barrier that hinders characters from easily achieving their objectives.

 Protagonist: The protagonist is the main character in a story, and drives the dramatic action with their objectives. They have a major change at the climax. The protagonist, whether a hero or a villain, should always be empathetic to the audience.