- In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. The drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super-genre, macro-genre, or micro-genre, such as soap opera, police crime drama, political drama, legal drama, historical drama, domestic drama, teen drama, and comedy-drama (dramedy). These terms tend to indicate a particular setting or subject matter, or they combine a drama’s otherwise serious tone with elements that encourage a broader range of moods. To these ends, a primary element in a drama is the occurrence of conflict—emotional, social, or otherwise—and its resolution in the course of the storyline.
- When, however, the doctor [John Miller Haden] and the agent [Edmond Starling] made their proposal to the new collector [Isaac Ebey], the latter said that he could not leave immediately on account of his wife. When, however, they returned from Admiralty bay with their canoe, and guide, the sly colonel changed his mind and said he would go with them, so the original plan was inverted, much to the disgust of Starling and the doctor. The agent had been of little use on the trip. In his official position he had completely failed, and in his promises to supply us with game and to be of practical assistance in several ways, he had “slipped up,” in addition to which he was exceedingly irritable when twitted with his shortcomings.