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A play is an interesting form of writing. The words on the page are what the actors say, but they need to be read as if they were spoken lines. These can be difficult for readers who have not had much exposure to theater, so here we will present 11 ways to interpret a play that may help you make sense of it better.
* When reading a play, the reader has to imagine what is happening. It’s not just about reading lines – it’s about understanding where these characters are in relation to one another and how they’re feeling at that moment.
* You can’t know everything on your first read-through of a script – every line means something, so there will be moments when you have questions or need more information from the author via footnotes or other sources. Read it through once and then go back over key scenes again until you understand them better.
* There may also be items like dialogue tags (said) which indicate who said each line of text; stage directions (stage left) which tell actors where their character should enter from offstage; and other notes about what objects are on stage, where the lights should be positioned, or how much time has passed in between scenes.
* You can try out different interpretations of a single character’s motivations by imagining they’re thinking one thing when they say another – for example: “I don’t know” could mean that he really doesn’t know but is trying to seem like he does because it would look bad if people knew his boss asked him to come up with an answer and he couldn’t provide one.
* If you see that someone says something over a span of four lines as opposed to all at once, then their speech may actually reflect hesitations or interruptions from others around them.
* Sometimes a line is repeated in a scene for rhetorical effect – this could be used as an opportunity to engage with different interpretations of the words each time they’re said, such as: “You can’t tell me what to do.” The first time someone says that, it might just mean he’s frustrated and wants some space; by repeating it later on though, you could imagine him struggling with controlling his anger again.
* If one character seems like they are either speaking or thinking too much based off their dialogue, then try imagining them being defensive about something else- maybe even if we don’t know what exactly that thing is yet! This means there’s probably more going on than meets the eye.
Longer Passage:
– If you see a line repeated in a scene for rhetorical effect, this could be an opportunity to engage with different interpretations of the words each time they’re said. For instance, “You can’t tell me what to do.” The first time someone says that, it might just mean he’s frustrated and wants some space; by repeating it later on though, you could imagine him struggling with controlling his anger again. – If one character seems like they are either speaking or thinking too much based off their dialogue then try imagining them being defensive about something else- maybe even if we don’t know what exactly that thing is yet! This means there’s probably more going on than meets the eye. __
The reader has two choices when reading a play: they can either imagine the words being spoken in the context of what’s happening on stage, or read them as if it were an essay. And this has consequences too- while some words might be repeated for rhetorical effect by repeating line in a scene for rhetorical effect, others may have different meanings each time they’re said.
If one character seems like they are either speaking or thinking too much based off their dialogue then try imagining them being defensive about something else- maybe even if we don’t know what exactly that thing is yet! This means there’s probably more going on than meets the eye. __
Some words might be repeated for rhetorical effect by repeating line in a scene for rhetorical affect, others may have different meanings each time they’re said. – For instance, Hamlet says “to take arms against a sea of troubles” to mean fighting against an enemy; but when Polonius says it he means taking up arms against him and his family because of all their worries (of course this could also refer to taking up arms militarily against a physical enemy).
This means there’s probably more going on than meets the eye. __
Themes are key connections that help you understand what the play is about and can provide valuable insight into your own life as well. – For example, in King Lear, themes of power dynamics between fathers and daughters or how humans often act vainly lead to tragic consequences like madness or even death for some characters. The different ways Shakespeare portrays these ideas through his language lets us draw parallels to our own lives with their respective challenges we face every day without realizing it!
But then again maybe this mode isn’t really for me.. Maybe I’d rather be outside enjoying nature all around me? __
