An Enemy of the People

An Enemy of the People Literary Elements

Genre

Drama

Language

English

Setting and Context

19th century Norwegian town

Narrator and Point of View

Third person.

Tone and Mood

Tone: ironic, somewhat cynical, mostly objective

Protagonist and Antagonist

Stockmann; Peter, the townspeople, the majority

Major Conflict

The minority vs. the majority; the upholding of truth when it is unpopular; freedom of speech in a time of crisis.

Climax

Stockmann's failure at the lecture hall to convince the people of the truth, and his subsequent label as an enemy of the people.

Foreshadowing

n/a

Understatement

n/a

Allusions

Jesus -Stockmann invokes Jesus, who was crucified on the cross because the mass of people thought he was dangerous.

Imagery

n/a

Paradox

n/a

Parallelism

n/a

Personification

n/a

Use of Dramatic Devices

There are numerous stage directions for the play in regards to characters' movements and actions onstage as they deliver dialogue.