Definitions of Terms – Text Features

act -  one of the major divisions of a play or opera.

aside -  words spoken by an actor directly to the audience, which are not heard by the other characters on the stage during a play.

conflict - a struggle between opposing forces in a story or play, usually resolved by the end of the work. The conflict may occur within a character as well as between characters. Lady Gregory's one-act play The Rising of the Moon exemplifies both types of conflict as the Policeman wrestles with his conscience in an inner conflict and confronts an antagonist in the person of the ballad singer.

setting - the time, place, and circumstances in which a narrative, drama, or film takes place.

scene - the place in which the action of a play, movie, novel or other narrative occurs; a setting.

stage direction - playwright’s descriptive or interpretive comments that provide the readers (and actors) with information about the dialogue, setting, and action of a play.

tone - the attitude the author takes toward the subject, characters, or the audience