Dramatic Genre Definition: We explain what the dramatic genre is, its elements, subgenres and characteristics. Also, what the structure of the dramatic work is like.
What is the dramatic genre?
In art and literature, when we talk about the dramatic genre we refer to the theatrical genre, also called drama (from the Greek drama, “action” or “performance”). This is a genre that is characterized by representing situations through dialogue and the actions of the characters, either in the written text (the theatrical “script”) or in a stage performance (the theatrical “staging”). Maybe you want to know this(Perspective)!
However, unlike other literary and narrative genres, the events of the dramatic genre occur in a continuous present, before the eyes of the spectator, and without the intermediation of a narrator of any kind.
Although it is common to use the terms drama and theater as synonyms, many specialists point out certain differences:
- Drama: It refers specifically to the written part of this art, that is, to a literary genre, therefore, it is the product of a playwright.
- Theatre: It involves the acted part, that is, a performing art in itself. In other words, it is the work of a theatre director.
However, both aspects are linked and inseparable when it comes to thinking about this type of artistic representation.
The dramatic genre had its origins in Greek antiquity, specifically in the cult of Dionysus, god of wine and joy, whose celebrations consisted of the singing of hymns and, later, the representation of mythological scenes.
Theatre became a fundamental part of Greek civic education, and its great playwrights such as Thespis (c. 550-500 BC), Aeschylus (c. 526-c.455 BC), Sophocles (496-406 BC) and Euripides (c. 484-406 BC) were inspired by the characters and anecdotes of their religious tradition to construct a vast and profound work that largely survives today.
Later, drama was inherited by Rome, whose great exponents of the genre were Plautus (254-184 BC), Terence (185-159 BC) and Seneca (4 BC-65 AD). After a long hiatus during the Christian Middle Ages, the theatrical tradition was revived in Europe during the 11th and 12th centuries, when comedy written in Latin and the staging of passages from the Christian gospel re-emerged.
The first play written entirely in Spanish was the “Auto de los Reyes Magos”, an anonymous piece written in the 13th century, of which approximately 147 verses are preserved. You want to know this(Catharsis)!
Characteristics of the dramatic genre
The dramatic genre is characterized by the following:
- The ancient Greeks called “drama” all forms of acting, regardless of their content. Its current equivalent would be “theater.” We should not confuse this use of the term with what we understand today as “dramatic,” that is, linked to tragedy and emotional suffering.
- Although it has a literary text as a base, it is fundamentally designed for staging, that is, to be acted on a stage. Therefore, the dramatic text has indications and marks to guide the performance, although the latter is left to the interpretation of the director of the work.
- It represents a set of actions that are part of a story, but unlike narrative, it does so in an immediate present, that is, it makes things happen in front of the spectator, and normally lacks any type of narrator.
- The dramatic genre combines literary art and performing art, and is considered one of the most powerful artistic genres of the Western tradition.
Dramatic subgenres
Throughout history, there have been many ways of classifying and subdividing the dramatic genre, some of which are specific to their time of origin, such as those proposed by Aristotle (384-322 BC) in his Poetics, and others much later which show the evolution of theatre over the centuries.
Currently, it is considered that there are seven major dramatic genres, differentiated between realistic (attached to the credible) and non-realistic (which take liberties with reality), and which are:
Tragedy:
A realistic genre, with a great tradition in the West, which is dedicated to narrating the fall of illustrious characters, to move the public through their suffering. A clear example of this are the classical Greek tragedies, such as Oedipus Rex by Sophocles.
Comedy:
Realistic genre, counterpart of tragedy, since it deals with vulgar, common and ordinary characters, represented by ridiculing or exaggerating their features, moving the spectators to laughter or sympathy. This occurs from an identification with the character that, in many cases, can point to a moralistic background, since it seeks to leave some kind of lesson. A perfect example of comedy are the plays by the French Molière (1622-1673), such as Tartuffe or The Miser.
The play:
Realistic genre, characterized by subjecting common and ordinary characters to complex situations and extreme experiences, which however do not necessarily cause a transformation in the character’s inner self. An example of this is A Doll’s House by the Scandinavian Henrik Ibsen (1828-1906).
Tragicomedy:
A realistic genre, with archetypal or even stereotypical protagonists, who throughout the work pursue some kind of ideal: success, love, etc. As its name indicates, it brings together tragic and comic elements in a complex anecdote, which also leaves room for sarcasm and parody. An example of this is The Tragicomedy of Calisto and Melibea by Fernando de Rojas (c. 1470-1541).
Melodrama:
A non-realistic genre, which tells complex anecdotes starring characters endowed with exaggerated emotional reactions, and which, accompanied by music and other theatrical “effects”, seek a superficial emotional response from the spectator. Since the 17th century it has existed mainly as an opera genre, and later on radio, film and television. A good example of this is Pagliacci by Ruggero Leoncavallo (1857-1919) or Madame Butterfly by Giacomo Puccini (1858-1924).
The didactic work:
A non-realistic genre, presented to the public in the form of a reflection or syllogism, and which aims at teaching or learning, through simple characters and a complex anecdote. A perfect example of this is The Caucasian Chalk Circle by the German Bertolt Brecht (1898-1956).
The farce:
A non-realistic genre, which draws on elements from any other dramatic genre, to lead its characters towards caricatured or symbolic situations, often functioning as a parody. From a certain point of view, it is not a genre in itself, but a procedure for re-appropriating others. An example of a farce is Waiting for Godot by Samuel Beckett (1906-1989).
In addition to these seven, there are a variable number of minor subgenres, considered transitory or punctual trends in the history of the genre, such as the theatre of the absurd, the theatre of cruelty, existentialist theatre, etc.
Elements of the dramatic genre
The dramatic genre consists of different elements, both for its writing and for its stage representation:
The action:
The set of actions and exchanges that take place on stage during the performance of the work, and not all of which are necessarily contemplated in the written text. In general, the action makes up the plot of the work, that is, the story that unfolds before our eyes.
The spatiality:
The stage or fictional place where the work takes place, represented through real stage elements (sets, instruments, etc.) or imaginary ones (those that are made to “appear” through the acting).
Temporality:
Two very different forms of time coincide in the play: the time of the play, that is, the time that covers the unfolding of the action and that can be minutes, weeks, months or years, depending on the anecdote told; and the time of the performance, which is the actual time it takes to tell the anecdote, that is, the duration of the show, usually between one and three hours.
The characters
Each actor on stage embodies a character in the anecdote, according to what is contemplated in the script. The characters can be leading or secondary, and they can be presented to the public accompanied by costumes, or not. In ancient Greece, actors used masks that made it clear which character they were playing.
The conflict:
In every dramatic work there is a conflict that is the source of tension in the story, that is, it generates suspense and the desire to continue watching the work (or continue reading it). This conflict arises from the desires of the protagonist and his encounter with the reality of the rest of the characters, that is, when two or more world views clash in the plot.
Structure of a dramatic work
Dramatic works can vary in structure, but in general they are structured as follows:
- Acts: These are broad units into which the work is segmented, separated from each other by a break (intermission) represented by a curtain drop, a dark scene or a similar mechanism.
- Scenes: These are the units into which each act is divided, and which correspond to the presence on stage of certain characters or elements, that is, they are determined by the entrance or exit of the actors on stage.
A play can have 2, 3, 5 or even 7 acts or more, and each of them a different number of scenes.
On the other hand, speaking in narrative terms, a play is divided, according to the classic Aristotelian vision, into three clearly differentiated segments: beginning, development and outcome.
- The beginning is the presentation of the characters and the conflict, generally based on opposing positions that are offered to the public.
- The development corresponds to the complication of the plot, leading the characters to the decisive confrontation or to the extreme situation, which is where the story reaches its maximum point of tension.
- The outcome corresponds to the resolution of the conflict and the presentation of a new order of things, which resolves the tensions and brings the work to an end.
