Epic communication structures

It sometimes happens that the distinction between the internal and external communication system is not so strictly observed. It can occur that one of the dramatic figures addresses the audience directly, thereby violating this distinction. In this case we speak of epic communication as opposed to dramatic communication. The figure who performs such an action becomes detached from the dramatic situation in which he is placed. A good example of such a figure is that of the narrator. The choruses in the classical Greek tragedies fall into the same category. They are not part of the actual dramatic configuration, but comment on it or give us background information on it.

Figure 4.7: Epic communication structure