ARNs Notes 2017 National College, Manacaud PO, TVM-9.

THEATRE STUDIES
MODULE 4: PRAXIS
Praxis: Writing dialogues Preparation of script for acting based on narratives/stories/reports
Learning the process of staging a play through an enactment of the prepared script(s) which may
be group activity in the class. The class may be divided into groups and they can be assigned
specific tasks like script writing, choreography etc. which can finally lead to the production of
the script.
(This module must be effectively used by the teacher for internal/continuous assessment and so
no separate texts for study is provided)

WRITING DIALOGUES

Conversations and dialogues are same as long as the nature and style are concerned.
However, they serve different purposes.

A dialogue is a verbal exchange between two or more people that is reported in a drama,
movie, or narrative. So, dialogues are spoken words between two or more characters which serve
a purpose within a story. It is believed that all dialogues should accomplish at least one of the
following three things moving the story forward, contributing to characterization and giving
information.

Thus, it can be understood that in the most basic kinds of writing, dialogue serves the
interest of moving the story forward. Better writing involves dialogue that contributes to
characterization, where what a character says somehow relates to what he/she does as well.
Dialogues thus help to portray events which are to come, and make these events more vivid
when they do arrive. They also give life to characters, and establish the kind of relationship that
exists between them.

It is useful to learn how to construct dialogues. It helps you perform better whenever you
wish to participate in a role-playing exercise or perform on stage. Moreover, it also helps you
appraise (=assess the value or quality of; evaluate, assess, survey, inspect, review, examine, estimate, sum up,
judge, value, rate: If you appraise someone or something, you form an opinion about their quality, value, etc. If you
are apprised of something, you are told about it.) the dialogues spoken by characters on stage, in movies,
and fiction. Most importantly, learning to appreciate the art of speaking and constructing
dialogues helps you improve your overall communication skills.
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Tips for Writing Dialogues

Following are important tips for writing dialogues:

01. Dialogue should have a certain verisimilitude (= the appearance of being true or real; authenticity,
credibility, likeliness, plausibility, semblance). It should seem real to the reader.
02. Use contractions (dont, shouldnt, cant) unless a character is very stuffy [= (of a
person) not receptive to new or unusual ideas; conventional and narrow-minded] or speaks in a very
formal context.
03. Internal/inner dialogue (thinking) does not need to be within inverted commas.
04. Let characters break off sentences, or speak in phrases rather than sentences. (You might
think of these as verb less sentencesthey are ideal for dialogue.)
05. Have characters interrupt one another.
06. Use the occasional um or er, if a character is being particularly hesitant.
07. During a discussion, include the name of the speaker after every five to six pieces of
dialogue; otherwise readers may find themselves flipping pages to find out who actually
said what.
08. Remember to show who is speaking, it need not be a he said' or a she said', an action
works just as well, provided we are told who is doing it.

Giving Characters Distinct Speech Patterns

Some factors should be taken into consideration when finding each characters voice as
well as their personality. These are as follows:

Educational background of the character

Likes and dislikes
Place they belong to
Speech habits and other behavioural patterns
Age
Occupation

All these will decide whether your character is well-defined or long-winded, [= (of speech or
writing) continuing at tedious length: lengthy, overlong, prolonged] whether they use technical terms or that
of a lay person. The factors will also determine the sort of slang that your characters use.
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Learn How to Write Dialogues

While learning to write dialogues, start with a conversation between two characters who
represent contrasting world views. What all this means is that one character feels one way about
the world/life in general and the other character feels the opposite.

Remember that dialogue is definitely not generally a representation of the way people
really speak. Everyday speech is full of repetition and hesitation and mundane utterances which
are extremely tedious and boring when written down.

Read the following dialogue and see how dull and meaningless it sounds:

Speaker 1: Good morning Jassi, how are you?

Speaker 2: Oh Im fine thanks, how are you?

Speaker 1: Not too bad, thanks. Lovely weather today, isnt it?

Speaker 2: Yes, gorgeous.

Speaker 1: Yes, I thought it would rain again. Did you watch any movie last night?

Speaker 2: Yes, I saw Titanic on STAR Movies, it had that actress in it, whats her
name? Oh goodness what is her name? Its on the tip of my tongue, hold on a sec

Does it really interest you? Will you keep reading this story or will you abandon reading it?
Dialogue should always be used to convey something important to the plot. It conveys the
rhythm and syntax of real speech. Dialogue needs to convey information to the reader, but in a
way which sounds natural. For example, if Jassi tells Malti:

Have you heard Rahul Bose, the film actor, will be the chief guest for our cultural
fest?

This line conveys to us that there is a character called Rahul Bose, who is known, and it also
conveys the added information that this character will be the chief guest of some function. So,
this piece of information will carry the story further. It does so in a way which sounds perfectly
natural.

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Dont overload dialogue with information. If you do so, it becomes conspicuous (= obvious to the
eye or mind; apparent, visible, noticeable, easily seen/noticed) and sounds unnatural. For example:

Do you know Rahul who acts in movies, I am talking about Rahul Bose... the hero
of the movie Jhankar Beats, about whom I told you I met in Delhi at some
function... he will be the chief guest of our cultural function.

This is an absolutely cluttered (= filled or scattered with a disorderly accumulation of objects or rubbish; litter,
encumber, fill (untidily), mess (up), make a mess, make untidy) dialogue, since it strives to convey too
much in one dialogue. In a scene with only two characters, dialogues such as these can largely be
dispensed with (= manage without or get rid of), but with three or more characters present, the reader
will get caught in the whirlpool of information. Therefore, keep the dialogue crisp, brief, and
pointed in order to secure the attention of the audience.

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