A monologue, pronounced monolog, is a speech made by one person speaking his or her thoughts aloud or directly addressing a reader, audience, or character. This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...

• It is a common feature in drama, animated cartoons, and film.
• The word may also be applied to a poem in the form of the thoughts or speech of a single individual.
• Monologue is a common feature of opera when an aria, recitative or other sung section may carry out a function similar to that of spoken monologues in the theatre.
• Monologues are often found in twentieth century fiction.
• Comic monologues have become a standard element of entertainment routines on stage and television.

A Soliloquy.
Youthful Mercury. "What's this 'ere on the plyte? 'Knock and ring'! Blowed if they won't be harsking yer to 'walk hinside', next!!"
Cartoon from Punch magazine, Vol. 102, April 23, 1892

In a monologue in a play or film, the speaking actor need not be alone on the stage or scene; however, none of the supporting cast (in theater or film) speaks. This does not cite its references or sources. ... A cartoon is any of several forms of art, with varied meanings that evolved from one to another. ... Film is a term that encompasses individual motion pictures, the field of film as an art form, and the motion picture industry. ... Poetry (ancient Greek: poieo = create) is an art form in which human language is used for its aesthetic qualities in addition to, or instead of, its notional and semantic content. ... The New Opera in Oslo, Norway The Teatro alla Scala in Milan, Italy. ... This article is about the musical term aria. ... Recitative, a form of composition often used in operas, oratorios, and cantatas (and occasionally in operettas and even musicals), is melodic speech set to music, or a descriptive narrative song in which the music follows the words. ... Serge Sudeikins poster for the Bat Theatre (1922). ... Fiction (from the Latin fingere, to form, create) is storytelling of imagined events and stands in contrast to non-fiction, which makes factual claims that can be substantiated with evidence. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (982x1504, 80 KB) A Soliloquy. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (982x1504, 80 KB) A Soliloquy. ... For other usages see Theatre (disambiguation) Theater (American English) or Theatre (British English and widespread usage among theatre professionals in the US) is that branch of the performing arts concerned with acting out stories in front of an audience using combinations of speech, gesture, music, dance, sound and spectacle &#8212... Film is a term that encompasses individual motion pictures, the field of film as an art form, and the motion picture industry. ...

There are two basic types of monologues in drama:

Exterior monolog: This is where the actor speaks to another person who is not in the performance space or to the audience.

Interior monolog: This is where the actor speaks as if to himself or herself. It is introspective and reveals the inner motives to the audience. This is also a common device in stream of consciousness writings. Frequently in modern theatre, the actor may deliver the monologue in an "aside" (or a sequence of asides). In literary criticism, stream of consciousness is a literary technique which seeks to portray an individuals point of view by giving the written equivalent of the characters thought processes. ... An aside is a technique used in a dramatic performance whereby the actor will step aside from the action and deliver a soliloquy or an asinine remark to the audience which is assumed to be unheard by the other characters on stage. ...

Where the character delivering the monologue is alone on stage it may also be described as a 'soliloquy'. Writers such as Shakespeare used the soliloquy to great effect in order to express some of the personal thoughts and emotions of characters without specifically resorting to third-person narration. Wikipedia does not yet have an article with this exact name. ... Personification of thought (Greek Εννοια) in Celsus Library in Ephesos, Turkey Thought or thinking is a mental process which allows beings to model the world, and so to deal with it effectively according to their goals, plans, ends and desires. ... In psychology and common terminology, emotion is the language of a persons internal state of being, normally based in or tied to their internal (physical) and external (social) sensory feeling. ... Grammatical person, in linguistics, is used for the grammatical categories a language uses to describe the relationship between the speaker and the persons or things she is talking about. ... In fiction, a narrator is a voice or character who tells the story. ...

It is a dramatic convention that soliloquies and asides cannot be heard or noticed by the other characters, even if they are delivered in their plain view. A dramatic convention is a set of rules which both the audience and actors are familiar with and which act as a useful way of quickly signifying the nature of the action or of a character. ...

A written monologue may contain stage directions for the performer, and might be preceded by information about the monologue's setting. (For example, Samuel Beckett's monologue, Krapp's Last Tape). A theatre director is a principal in the theatre field who oversees and orchestrates the mounting of a play by unifying various endeavors and aspects of production. ... Setting in literature is the locale and time that serves as the backdrop to short stories, novels, dramas and screenplays. ... Samuel Barclay Beckett (13 April 1906 – 22 December 1989) was an Irish dramatist, novelist and poet. ... Krapps Last Tape is a one-act play by Samuel Beckett. ...

The monologue was a significant feature of French classical drama; the monologues of Racine have been highly prized by French actresses, including Rachel and Sarah Bernhardt. Jean Racine. ... Portrait of Mlle Rachel by William Etty, 1840s Rachel (18 February 1821 - 4 January 1858) was a French Jewish actress who was considered the greatest of her time. ... Sarah Bernhardt (October 23, 1844 – March 26, 1923) was a French stage actress. ...

The dramatic monologue is a poetic form not to be confused with the monologue in drama. It was brought to a high standard by Robert Browning. The form is such wherein the poet writes from a speaker's point of view in the form of an address to a listener who does not respond in the poem. The speaker in the poem generally talks about a subject, but inadvertently reveals something about their character. It gives the poet an opportunity to present his subject in direct 'conversation' with the reader (e.g. Browning's Porphyria's Lover) or places the reader as a 'character' to whom the monologuist speaks (e.g. the same poet's Mr. Sludge the Medium or My Last Duchess). Such poetry combines the dramatic impact of the stage monologue with the potential of more elaborate and suggestive use of language; on the printed page, where the words can be re-read and pondered, there is the potential to evoke more complex layers of intent and meaning. Robert Browning For information about Robert X. Browning, Director of the C-SPAN archives, see Robert X. Browning. ... My Last Duchess is a poem by Robert Browning, frequently anthologized as an outstanding example of the dramatic monologue. ...

The term "monologue" is also applied to a form of popular narrative verse, sometimes comic, often dramatic or sentimental, that was performed in music halls or in domestic entertainments in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century. Famous examples include Idylls of the King, The Green Eye of the Yellow God and Christmas Day in the Workhouse. Music Hall is a form of British theatrical entertainment which reached its peak of popularity between 1850 and 1960. ... The Idylls of the King (1856 - 1885) are a cycle of poems by Alfred, Lord Tennyson that express the legend of King Arthur in terms of the psychology and concerns of nineteenth-century England. ... This page is a candidate for speedy deletion because: it is patent nonsense. ... In the Workhouse - Christmas Day, better known by its first line It is Christmas Day in the workhouse is a dramatic monologue published by George Robert Sims in 1879. ...

Operatic monologue

In early opera and opera seria many arias were effectively monologues expressing the character's state of mind - for example, the well-known Ombra mai fu in Handel's opera Xerxes. However the function of such pieces was generally not, as in drama, to further the action or reveal anything new about the characters, but to provide opportunities for the singer to display his or her musical prowess. Opera seria is an Italian musical term which refers to the noble and serious style of Italian opera that predominated in Europe from the 1720s to ca 1770. ... Ombra mai fu is an aria from the opera Serse by George Frideric Handel. ... HANDEL was the code-name for the UKs National Attack Warning System in the Cold War. ... Serse (also known as Xerxes) is an Italian opera by George Frideric Handel. ...

With the libretti of Lorenzo da Ponte for Mozart, such arias began to have more dramatic force. The use of monologue by Wagner in his Ring cycle however brought a new concept of operatic monologue - much of the operas consists of extensive monologues by some of the principal characters, accompanied by music which, by the use of leitmotivs, sometimes underlines and sometimes contradicts what is being sung, giving an additional insight into the character's sub-conscious, as well as his (or her) overt motivation or emotion. Lorenzo da Ponte Lorenzo Da Ponte (March 10, 1749–August 17, 1838) was an Italian librettist born in Ceneda (now Vittorio Veneto). ... Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (IPA: , baptized Johannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart) (January 27, 1756 – December 5, 1791) was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical era. ... Wilhelm Richard Wagner (May 22, 1813 – February 13, 1883) was a German composer, conductor, music theorist, and essayist, primarily known for his operas (or music dramas as he later came to call them). ... The Ring of the Nibelung or, in the original German, Der Ring des Nibelungen, is a series of four epic operas. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ...

This more dramatic use of operatic monologue was adapted by Verdi and his librettist Boito to good effect in Otello and in Falstaff. Giuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi (either October 9 or 10, 1813 – January 27, 1901) was an Italian Romantic composer, mainly of opera. ... Arrigo Boito (February 24, 1842 – June 10, 1918) was an Italian poet, successful journalist, novelist and composer, best known today for his opera libretti and his own opera, Mefistofele. ... For the Rossini opera, see Otello (Rossini) or for the eurobeat artist see Gianni Coraini. ... For other uses, see Falstaff (disambiguation). ...

In Musical Theatre

In the world of musical theatre, songs such as Ol' Man River (from Show Boat) and If I Were a Rich Man (from Fiddler on the Roof) can be considered the equivalent of soliloquies, with characters singing aloud their inner thoughts. There is even a song actually entitled Soliloquy in the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical Carousel (musical), an eight-minute solo in which the main character, Billy Bigelow, sings aloud his thoughts on learning that his wife is expecting a child. Ol Man River (music by Jerome Kern, lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II) is a song in the 1927 musical Show Boat that tells the story of African American hardship and struggles of the time. ... If I Were a Rich Man film poster If I Were a Rich Man (Ah! Si jétais riche) is a 2002 French film written and directed by Gérard Bitton and Michel Munz. ... Rodgers (left) and Hammerstein (right), with Irving Berlin (middle) and Helen Tamiris, watching auditions at the St. ... Carousel is a 1945 stage musical by Richard Rodgers (music) and Oscar Hammerstein II (book and lyrics) that was adapted from Ferenc Molnars play Liliom. ...

In Music

American Musician Jandek, since 2000, has released a series of albums that seem to be sung/spoken monologues (3 C.D's where all spoken word/a capella). His subjects concentrate on love, life, depression, illness and religion. Jandek is the assumed name of an outsider musician who operates in or around Houston, Texas. ... A cappella music is vocal music or singing without instrumental accompaniment, or a piece intended to be performed in this way. ...

Interior monologue

Based to some extent on Wagnerian monologue, the interior monologue has become an important feature of much 20th century fiction. The outstanding exemplar is James Joyce, whose novel Ulysses ends with the famous soliloquy of Molly Bloom, and whose Finnegans Wake is apparently one long monologue. Other authors using similar techniques include William Faulkner and Joseph Heller. James Augustine Aloysius Joyce (Irish Séamus Seoighe; 2 February 1882 – 13 January 1941) was an Irish writer and poet, widely considered to be one of the most influential writers of the 20th century. ... Ulysses is a 1922 novel by James Joyce, first serialised in parts in the American journal The Little Review from 1918 to 1920, and published in its entirety by Sylvia Beach on February 2, 1922, in Paris. ... Molly Blooms soliloquy is the final chapter of James Joyces novel Ulysses (often referred to as Penelope, after Mollys mythical counterpart). ... Finnegans Wake, published in 1939, is James Joyces final novel. ... William Cuthbert Faulkner (September 25, 1897 – July 6, 1962) was an American novelist and poet whose works feature his native state of Mississippi. ... Joseph Heller (May 1, 1923 – December 12, 1999) was an American satirist author. ...

Comic monologue

During the nineteenth and twentieth century a popular feature of variety shows and the music hall in the USA and Britain was the comic monologue. This has evolved into a regular feature of stand-up comedy and television comedy. An opening monologue of a humorous nature is a typical segment of stand-up comedy, and may often form a regular feature of television programmes such as The Tonight Show. A variety show is a show with a variety of acts, often including music and comedy skits, especially on television. ... Music Hall is a form of British theatrical entertainment which reached its peak of popularity between 1850 and 1960. ... This article does not cite its references or sources. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...

Famous comic monologuists include Dave Chappelle, George Carlin, Jack Parr, Billy Connolly, Bill Cosby, Lord Buckley, Johnny Carson, David Letterman, Jay Leno, Rove McManus, Bob Hope, Stanley Holloway, Julius Tannen, George Robert Sims, Ellen DeGeneres, John Leguizamo, Jerry Seinfeld, Don Rickles, Dane Cook and Conan O'Brien. Some of the aforementioned performers often perform what is referred to as a solo show, and some practitioners of the form wrestle with stories and themes which mix the comic and the dramatic, namely Spalding Gray, Garrison Keillor, and Eric Bogosian. David Khari Webber Chappelle (born August 24, 1973)[2] is an American stand-up comedian, satirist and actor. ... George Dennis Carlin (born May 12, 1937 in New York, New York)[2] is a Grammy-winning Irish-American stand-up comedian, actor, and author. ... Jack Harold Paar (May 1, 1918–January 27, 2004) was an American radio and television talk show host. ... William Billy Connolly, CBE, (born 24 November 1942) is a Scottish comedian, musician, presenter, and actor. ... William Henry Bill Cosby, Jr. ... Lord Buckley, or Richard Myrle Buckley, (April 5, 1906 - November 12, 1960) was an eccentric, joyous American monologist. ... For other people named John Carson, see John Carson (disambiguation). ... David Michael Letterman (born April 12, 1947) is an award-winning American television personality, late night talk show host, television producer, philanthropist, and Indy race car owner. ... Jay Leno (born James Douglas Muir Leno April 28, 1950) is an Emmy-winning American comedian who is best known as the current host of NBC televisions long-running variety and talk program The Tonight Show. ... John Rove McManus, born 21 January 1974, is an Australian variety show host, comedian and owner of the production company Roving Enterprises. ... Bob Hope, KBE (May 29, 1903 – July 27, 2003), born Leslie Townes Hope, was an English-Born American entertainer who appeared in vaudeville, on Broadway, on radio and television, in movies, and in performing tours for U.S. Military personnel, well known for his good natured humor and career longevity. ... Stanley Augustus Holloway (October 1, 1890 - January 30, 1982) was a British actor and entertainer famous for his comic and character roles on stage and screen. ... Julius Tannen (May 16, 1880 – January 3, 1965) was a comedian – or monologist, as those of his era were known – who had a long and successful career in Vaudeville. ... George Robert Sims (September 2, 1847 - 1922), English journalist and dramatic author, was born on the 2nd of September 1847. ... Ellen Lee DeGeneres (born January 26, 1958) is an American actress, stand-up comedian, and currently the Emmy Award-winning host of the syndicated talk show The Ellen DeGeneres Show. ... John Leguizamo, (born July 22, 1964 in Bogotá, Colombia), is an Emmy winner and a Golden Globe Award nominated comedian, actor and producer of Colombian and Puerto Rican descent. ... This article does not cite its references or sources. ... Donald Jay Rickles (born May 8, 1926 in New York City, New York) is an American comedian, film actor, and voice actor. ... Dane Jeffrey Cook (born March 18, 1972) is an American stand-up comedian and actor. ... Conan Christopher OBrien (born April 18, 1963[2]) is an Emmy-winning American television personality best known as host of NBCs late-night talk/variety show Late Night with Conan OBrien. ... Gray in Grays Anatomy (1996). ... Garrison Keillor (born Gary Edward Keillor on August 7, 1942) is an American author, humorist, columnist, musician, satirist, and radio personality. ... Eric Bogosian Eric Bogosian (born on April 24, 1953) is an American actor, playwright, monologist, and novelist. ...

Monologuing

Also known as the villain speech, monologuing is a common fiction cliché in which the villain of the story will take a moment to gloat in front of the hero, who the villain believes will soon meet his demise. Commonly used in conjunction with the deathtrap, fictional villains have a habit of pontificating on how said victim will soon die, and reminiscing over how he tried for so long to get his kill and is now about to reap the reward. Villains may also give away details of their evil plots, on the rationale that the victim will die immediately. This speech almost always results in giving the hero time to escape the trap, providing the protagonist critical information he needs to defeat the villain, or filling in plot background that has not yet been revealed to the audience. This idea suffuses comic book plotting in all genres of film and theatre. A deathtrap is a literary and dramatic plot device in which a villain, who has captured the hero or another sympathetic character, attempts to use an elaborate and usually sadistic method of murdering him/her. ...

Along with comic books, James Bond films feature some of the earliest monologue/deathtrap combinations. For example, From Russia With Love's assassin, Donald "Red" Grant, can barely resist the temptation to gloat over James Bond's impending demise, allowing himself to reveal the true architect of the plot (SPECTRE) and the finer points of how MI6 will be scandalized with circumstantial evidence surrounding Bond's (faked) murder/suicide. The practice reached its most absurd level in the Batman live action show of the late sixties. In almost every episode, Batman and Robin would be defeated and captured, then the villain would reveal a ludicrously elaborate deathtrap, finally, the villain would monologue about how the heroes would die and what their plan was. These shows/movies were later lampooned in the Austin Powers movies, and on Venture Bros. The Last Action Hero and other shows by which time all seriousness is removed and the monologue/deathtrap becomes a joke. The term "monologuing" was (at least in part) popularized by the movie The Incredibles, in which the character Frozone tells Mr. Incredible about an encounter the former had with the villain Baron von Ruthless ("the guy has me on a platter and he won't shut up"). and later when Syndrome admits that Mr. Incredible "caught me monologuing" upon attacking him during their first encounter on the villain's island. From Russia with Love is the second James Bond film in the official EON Productions series, and the second to star Sean Connery as the suave and sophisticated British Secret Service agent James Bond. ... A list of henchman from the 1963 James Bond film and novel From Russia with Love from the List of James Bond henchmen. ... Flemings commissioned image of James Bond to aid the Daily Express comic strip artists. ... Spectre, taken from the Battle for Wesnoth computer game. ... The Secret Intelligence Service (SIS), more commonly known as MI6 (originally Military Intelligence Section 6), or the Secret Service, is the United Kingdom external security agency. ... This article does not cite its references or sources. ... Batman (originally referred to as the Bat-Man and still referred to at times as the Batman) is a DC Comics fictional superhero who first appeared in Detective Comics #27 in May 1939. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... This article or section is not written in the formal tone expected of an encyclopedia article. ... The Venture Bros. ... Last Action Hero is a 1993 action comedy directed by John McTiernan. ... The Incredibles is a 2004 Academy Award-winning animated feature film produced by Pixar Animation Studios for Walt Disney Pictures, centering around a family of superheroes. ... Lucius Best (superhero name Frozone) is a character in the Disney/Pixar motion picture The Incredibles, voiced by Samuel L. Jackson. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Buddy Pine (supervillain name Syndrome; calls himself Incredi-Boy earlier in the film) is a fictional character, the main supervillain featured in the film The Incredibles, (produced by Pixar and Disney, first released on November 5th, 2004), the short film Jack-Jack Attack, and the Disney on Ice play, Disney...

Occasionally villains will have motives for their speech: they think the hero regards them as inferior, and wish to point out, in detail, the marks of their superiority, or they wish to have their plan admired by the one man who could appreciate the cleverness involved. The prevalence of the cliché, however, can make even such motivated speeches look implausible.

Dramatic monologues

• My Last Duchess in Wikisource
• Porphyria's Lover in Wikisource

Monologue sources

• Monologue Search » The Free Searchable Monologues Database and Index
• Monologue Archive
• Shakespeare's Monologues
• The Monologue Database