Radio Drama: L01 Task 3

In this essay I will evaluate and compare two different radio dramas. One of them
being a traditional drama and the other one being a postmodern drama. The
traditional radio drama follows a typical structure; this usually has a strong
storyline with multiple characters which also includes a narrator. A problem is
made in which the characters need to spend the time solving. Unlike the
traditional story a post-modern drama creates questions rather than answers
them, the audience are then made to answer these. The post-modern radio
drama I have chosen is Day of the Dead. This Postmodern drama about a man
who travels to New Orleans to find his lover however when he arrives in New
Orleans he realises the city is very rough compared to his home. The traditional
radio drama I will discuss is The Archers. This drama is based in a fictional town
called Ambridge it follows the day-to-day life of family and the problems they
face. In this story, the women are getting ready for a gathering. Alongside this,
the married couple need to establish what they are going to do about their son
Henry and whether the step dad will adopt him or not.
Words are used because there is a lack of visuals in radio so that you can give
more information to the listener. This done by giving information through what is
being said whether it can be from a narrator or character. An example of this can
be heard in Day of the dead when the character excitingly says says coming
home again . This gives information to the audience that this character lives or
has lived in this place before
Music in radio drama is incredibly important for both genres as it is a good way
for setting a scene and conveying an emotion to listener. Music plays at the start
of The Archers, which gives the drama a more traditional feeling. The music sets
the scene of a drama and helps gives the audience an idea of what is going on.
Different to The Archers, Day of the dead is a love story which shown the
beginning as the protagonist plays a soft melody.
Accent and dialect is massively important in radio drama as they distinguish
where someone is from. In the Archers, it is apparent straight away that they are
from the English countryside due to their accents. This makes the viewers rightly
come to the assumption that the characters live on a farm. The conversations
between the characters is relaxed showing there is no awkwardness between the
characters. The speech from Day if the dead has the main character speak in a
very high and timid voice but his tour guide speaks in a very strong New Orleans
accent, which sets the tone of the setting being New Orleans.
The Archers is set in the fictional village of Ambridge and is about a group of
women who are preparing for a gathering they are having in the day. Apart from
this a couple who are also a part of the same family are having their own
problems with their son Henry. The setting of this clip is made quite clear that to
start with they are inside, in the kitchen. This is made obvious when one of the
characters say there wasnt enough space in my kitchen and puts something
down on the table. The fact there are no background sounds at this point
enhance this, apart from this the sound of footsteps on the kitchen floor when
one of the characters enters. When the setting moves to the outside, again it is
made obvious. For example when the couple are outside in the park with their
son Henry, you can hear people shouting in the background. The fact that we can
hear other than the sound of footsteps on the kitchen floor when one of the
characters enters. The Archers is very upbeat giving us a happy feeling.
Suggesting that is the theme and tone throughout.
In order to follow the traditional storyline flashbacks arent used unlike Day of the
dead. This tory follows a traditional structure including multiple characters a
strong storyline and an issue that needs to be faced at the end. The problem in
this episode is that the main protagonist is traveling to New Orleans to see his
lover. From this episode I can guess that the target audience is from the elder
generation as it deals with themes such as alcohol. However the main theme is
that the protagonist is trying to find his love. The overall tone of this episode is
that it is relatively informal and shows the day to day life style of people who live
in New Orleans.
Ambience is often created in radio dramas through different sound effects. This is
done to help create the scene and let you know where the characters are. It can
also be used to help set the tone and setting of the scene. An example of
ambience being used in Day of the is at one point sounds are used to tell the
listener that the character is on a train . The sounds used are the sound of a train
on tracks. In the Archers the ambience is used to show that the characters are
outside.
Sounds are important in radio dramas as without it there would only be silence
which too much of would make people not want to listen. An example of this in
day of the dead is the sound effect of a lighter being used tells the audience that
someone is lighting up a cigarette. This is important because it tells the audience
what the character is doing. Another example is in the Archers when you can
hear the sound of crunching grass and heavy breathing which tells the
characters are walking. These two examples both used in the way to help the
audience visualise what the characters are doing.
Silence is often used in radio drama. It can be used to indicate the end of dialog
and a scene. It can also be used to show something as a big impact or to create
tension. An example of silence being used can be heard in Day of the Dead when
there is silence being used to tell the audience that the scene is over. This is
useful to stop confusion as it could mess up the narrative if you thought it was
the same scene. The Archers use of silence is in-between dialog to let the
audience know that what is about to be said is important. The pause acts as a
dramatic pause and suggests that the character may not want to say it.
Aural signposting is used to establish the scene through audio cues. It allows the
audience to know what is there and where the character is. It can also be used to
let the audience know when a conversation is coming to an end. An example of
aural signposting in day of the dead is when the sound of a car door slams and
the screech of the tires tells the audience that the character has exited the car.
Another example in The Archers is when the gates open and it tells the audience
that the characters are about to leave the farm.
A cliff hanger is when the characters build up to something dramatic at the end
of the radio drama. This makes the listeners interested in what is going to
happen. An example of this is in day of the dead the character has to leave he
can find out why his love Emily did the things he did. In The Archers Debby and
Richard leave together clearly upsetting one of the characters. However unlike
day of the dead this example does not end as open ended.
Flashbacks are a brief re telling of a serious and important event that occurred.
This is done to inform the audience on something that could have missed that is
crucial in the story. An example of this is in Day of the dead. It starts with the
narrator telling the audience of what happened previously. It serves as a small
backstory to the character and also foreshadows that something bad may
happen. This important because it gives the audience more of a back story to the
characters. The Archers has no examples of Flashbacks
A fade is when the sound slowly goes out. It is used in radio drama to show
changing of a scene .It can also be used to show distance, if someone is walking
away the sound will fade out. Day of the Dead shows at a point the sound of the
train fading out. This is important as it stops confusion and lets the listener know
what is going on. The same thing happens in the Archers where the sound fades
out.
Characterisation is to show the characters in a radio drama, using speech and
other sounds. An example of characterisation in a radio drama can be found in
the postmodern radio drama. In Day of the Dead throughout the radio drama the
main character is built up as a nervous kid . This is first shown in the train when
speaking to another character, he is addressed as kid When he replies he
sound timid and has the occasional voice crack.
Chronological development is the arrangement of which events occur in radio
drama, in order of time. An example of chronological development can be found
in The Archers. The chronological development of this this radio drama linear.
Things happen one after another.
Narration is the way that the story is told by the narrator. The narrator can
explain to the audience parts of the story that the characters cant. Narration can
also be used to intro the story catching the audience up on what has happened
previously in a short amount of time. In Day of the Dead at the start of the radio
drama 3rd person narration is used to tell the audience what had happened to the
character previously. This is useful as it gives a quick introduction to the
character previously. This useful as it gives a quick introduction to the character
as well as giving some information to why he is doing what he is doing
Direct speech is speech in its simplest form. It is any structured sentence that
the character or narrator says during the broadcast of the radio drama. Direct
speech is used in both day of the dead and the archers. Direct speech is
important as there are no visuals to give information or communicate to the
audience.
The titles are what is said at the start if the radio drama to let the audience know
what they are listening to. An example of titles being used can be found in Day of
the Dead. Titles are used at the start of the radio drama to tell the audience what
they are listening to.
Credits are used in radio dramas to let the audience know who was involved in
creating the radio drama, giving credit to those involved. It can be heard at the
start or at the end of the radio drma, some even have it at both. In Day of the
Dead credits are used at the end to say who created the radio drama as who
created the radio drama.
Appropriateness to TA is how well suited the radio broadcast is to a group of
people. The TA or target audience is the selection of people that the radio drama
is designed for and who would most enjoy it. An example of appropriateness to
TA can be found in The Archers. The Archers target audience is most likely
adults. This is because the show often depicts themes that only an adult
audience would relate to or understand. An example of one of these themes can
be found in one of the most recent Archers episodes where a character meets
with an old friend at a pub.
Dramatic reconstruction is when a whole scene is recreated using different
sounds. An example of this can be found in the Archers near the end of one of
the more recent episodes a scene takes place in a bar. The scene is created
through use of different sounds. These include the clink of glasses and people in
talking in the background.
The most common styles and genres in radio dramas are horror, mystery,
postmodern, comedy and creation of mind. These genres are the most common
as the environments are easy to recreate. The radio drama day of the is an
example of postmodern drama.
Creation of mood is how radio drama creates a certain mood for the listener. This
can be done through different sounds and lack of sounds, Ab example of creation
of mood can be found in day of the dead. It uses solo guitar music to set the
mood of travel near the start of the radio drama when the main character is
traveling on the train.
Duration is the length of the radio drama. This is important as there is often a
time limit set by radio shows for radio dramas as the radio station may have to
stick to a schedule. The Archers are 12 minutes long. This is because they
broadcasted every day and having it this short length allows people to listen
every day.
Narrative structure consists if the traditional parts of a story and the order that
the listener hears them. This provides a framework for the unfolding of the radio
dramas story the archers narrative is linear it does not contain any flashbacks.
This is different to Day of the Dead which contains flashbacks. Postmodern
dramas such as Day of the dead often have this type of narrative structure as it
fits more with the fantasy story they often tell.
The plot is the vents put together that make up the story in the radio drama.
Without the plot there would be no clear understanding of the story and what is
going to happen in the radio drama. The plot of the traditional radio drama The
Archers is realistic and follows a group of people and their lives. The plot of Day
of the Dead follows one man and his journey to find his love.