dramatic plot
Stage story structure
A dramatic plot is the structured sequence of events in a story, play, or film—the arc from setup through conflict to resolution.
The term emphasizes narrative tension and causation: each event drives the next toward climax.
The dramatic plot unfolds over three acts.
Distinguished from looser episodic structures where events simply accumulate.
- flashbackInvoluntary past memory
- expositionSystematic explanatory presentation
- inciting incidentEvent starting main conflict
- tragedyDisastrous or sorrowful event
- rising actionPlot buildup toward climax
story beats · catharsis · tension · turning point · dialogue · climax · cliffhanger ending · comedy · falling action · subplot · monologue · unreliable narrator · pacing · narrative arc · foreshadowing · protagonist · character arc · denouement
dramatic plotplotlessness
Lack of narrative structure
improvisation · anti-narrative · stream of consciousness · slice of life · random sequence
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