Elements of Drama in Animal House (Essay Sample)

Student Professor Course Date Drama Elements of Drama in Animal House The script of the film Animal House captures the comical life of college freshmen, the deltas, who spend their college life binge drinking and having fun at the expense of their grades. Written in the traditional style of dialogue, the script contains several elements of drama that not only convey the thematic concerns but also elevates it to a comical level (Kincaid 145). Moreover, the characters are vivid, funny, and relatable. The script starts with Larry and Kent arriving at Faber College where there are received with a mixture of warmth and humor. It is immediately clear that they will immerse themselves deeper into the charm and pleasure seeking life of the new dormitory rather than the pursuit of education that brought them from the south. Throughout the script, several elements of drama stand out, most notably the dramatic form, setting and staging, and plot. This paper will delve into the three listed elements and demonstrate their effectiveness in creating a comical script. One of the most conspicuous element of drama, and which sets apart script from other genres, is dramatic form. Scripts for films are not written in the characteristic prose of novel or short stories. Neither are they written in the quintessential verse pattern of poems though poetic embellishments may form part of the script. Essentially, scripts for films and plays are written as dialogue in which characters engage in conversations to overtly or covertly convey the intended thematic concerns (Cremin, Teresa et al 280). Some script writers may opt for monologues, soliloquies or muted dialogues in their script. All in all, scripts must have lines of dialogue between characters, or within a character in case of a monologue. The script of the film Animal House has used dialogue to develop its central themes and entertain the audience. As early as the second page, the reader encounters Larry and Kent conversing about the appropriateness of wearing a beanie in the school environment. “Take of that Beanie”, Larry opines. “Hey! We are supposed to wear them till homecoming”, replies Kent (Ramis, Kenney, and Miller 2). The conversational style is used throughout the script with no attempt at prose as is the case with novels and short stories or verses as is the case with poems and songs. Unlike in the mentioned genres with dialogue may be used to authenticate or make a story real, script of plays exclusively use dialogue. The other important element of drama in the script of the film Animal House is setting and stage. Essentially, scripts are to be performed on stage hence the need to provide actors and audience with stage directions. Characteristically, stage directions are italicized or put in parenthesis to enable those who will execute the script interpret scenes (Evans 200). Moreover, the directions provide the background to the reader and actors so that the actions on stage become clear within a particular context. The script of the film Animal House has used setting and stage elements extensively to provide context and help actors/readers interpret and understand the background and context. This fact is clear as early as in the first page where the script provides extensive background information about the setting. First, there is a disclaimer that the incidences in the film are true and based on real happenings but the participants’ names are not real to protect their privacy. Turns out, according to the disclaimer, that the film has actually been made up to fit a realistic situation. Thereafter, the script proceeds to describe the settings of different actions. There is the chapel bell tower, quadrangle, Faber stadium, dormitory, library, Omega house, and fraternity row among other prominent settings. The time for each setting is also specified. Moreover, characters and their actions are vividly described. In the second page for instance, the stage directions read, “The two freshmen slowly approach the spiffy façade of Omega House” (Ramis, Kenney, and Miller 2). Beneath this explanation comes the lucid description of the characters Larry and Kent with a cappella chorus in the background. Plot is the other important element of drama that the script of the film Animal House has employed. Typically, a plot has five stages namely the exposition where the characters, setting, and sometimes the conflict are introduced (G...