--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Theatre aside, my penchant for the…" description: "\"Theatre aside, my penchant for the extended monologue began with my reading of Browning's dramatic monologues, in high school. My inclination to adopt ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6cc/norman-lock-21222_book_theatre-aside-my-penchant-for-the-extend_173343.jpg" --- # Theatre aside, my penchant for the extended monologue… ![“Theatre aside, my penchant for the extended monologue began with my reading of Browning's dramatic monologues, in high school. My inclination to adopt the form for prose was confirmed by Richard Howard's book of dramatic monologues, Untitled Subjects.” quote by Norman Lock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6cc/norman-lock-21222_book_theatre-aside-my-penchant-for-the-extend_173343.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6cc/norman-lock-21222_book_theatre-aside-my-penchant-for-the-extend_173343.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6cc/norman-lock-21222_book_theatre-aside-my-penchant-for-the-extend_173343.jpg) > “Theatre aside, my penchant for the extended monologue began with my reading of Browning's dramatic monologues, in high school. My inclination to adopt the form for prose was confirmed by Richard Howard's book of dramatic monologues, Untitled Subjects.” [Norman Lock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-lock/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The author's interest in extended monologues stems from early exposure to Browning and later reinforcement by Howard's work, shaping a prose style. **In simple terms:** Early reading inspired a love for long monologues. Key Takeaway Explore dramatic monologue techniques. Themes literature writing style influence Mood analytical inquisitive Type educational reflective When to use this quote - creative writing workshops - college literature courses - personal writing projects Key Concepts dramatic monologue prose adaptation literary analysis Questions to Reflect On - How does monologue affect narrative voice? - What challenges arise when adapting monologue to prose? A Different Perspective Not all readers connect with monologue forms. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Dramatic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dramatic/) [High school](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/high-school/) [Monologue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/monologue/) [Monologues](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/monologues/) [Prose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/prose/) [Reading](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reading/) [School](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/school/) [Theatre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/theatre/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [My fondness for extended monologue might have been encouraged by two decades of writing stage and radio dramas.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-lock/my-fondness-for-extended-monologue-might-have-been-encouraged-by-two/) [Norman Lock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-lock/) > [I do seem to favor a deathbed confession as the occasion for my dramatic monologues.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-lock/i-do-seem-to-favor-a-deathbed-confession-as-the-occasion-for-my/) [Norman Lock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-lock/) > [As a practical matter, I like the dramatic monologue for its compelling intimacy. To be inside one's character, to register his or her every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-lock/as-a-practical-matter-i-like-the-dramatic-monologue-for-its/) [Norman Lock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-lock/) > [Our true history is scarcely ever deciphered by others. The chief part of the drama is a monologue, or rather an intimate debate between…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-frederic-amiel/our-true-history-is-scarcely-ever-deciphered-by-others-the-chief-part/) [Henri Frederic Amiel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-frederic-amiel/) > [I feel like any single woman of color who's been onstage has a Shakespeare monologue in her back pocket, and a monologue from 'For…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kerry-washington/i-feel-like-any-single-woman-of-color-who-s-been-onstage-has-a/) [Kerry Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kerry-washington/) > [I'm not talking to anyone, I'm delivering a monologue. It's the inebriated man's prerogative.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-ruiz-zafon/i-m-not-talking-to-anyone-i-m-delivering-a-monologue-it-s-the/) [Carlos Ruiz Zafon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-ruiz-zafon/) > [I actually did an Agatha Christie monologue for my audition showcase at Guildhall, and that's how I got my agent. Some people said 'ooh…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-howes/i-actually-did-an-agatha-christie-monologue-for-my-audition-showcase/) [Thomas Howes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-howes/) > [You have Cameron Crowe write an incredible monologue for you just based on the things that you're talking about. It just became this opportunity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scarlett-johansson/you-have-cameron-crowe-write-an-incredible-monologue-for-you-just/) [Scarlett Johansson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scarlett-johansson/) > [ \["Fear & Loathing in Las Vegas"\] is a very hard book to translate to film because there's so much interior monologue. The what if… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/fear-loathing-in-las-vegas-is-a-very-hard-book-to-translate-to-film/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [When I get up to speak tonight, it's kind of a monologue. When I am talking with someone one-on-one, it's a dialogue. I ask…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-laurie/when-i-get-up-to-speak-tonight-it-s-kind-of-a-monologue-when-i-am/) [Greg Laurie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-laurie/) > [Media used to be one way. Everyone else in the world just had to listen. Now the internet is allowing what used to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-gordon-levitt/media-used-to-be-one-way-everyone-else-in-the-world-just-had-to/) [Joseph Gordon-Levitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-gordon-levitt/) > [Training is vital. You need to know the technical aspects of acting, just in case someone hands you a monologue and simply says, 'Cry…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kali-hawk/training-is-vital-you-need-to-know-the-technical-aspects-of-acting/) [Kali Hawk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kali-hawk/) > [I had to invest in the love and understand that with the love comes the pain. So when he tells me that, the monologue…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viola-davis/i-had-to-invest-in-the-love-and-understand-that-with-the-love-comes/) [Viola Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viola-davis/) > [There should be a rule against your own inner monologue throwing around that much sarcasm.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-butcher/there-should-be-a-rule-against-your-own-inner-monologue-throwing/) [Jim Butcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-butcher/) > [I must remind the right honourable gentleman that a monologue is not a decision.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clement-attlee/i-must-remind-the-right-honourable-gentleman-that-a-monologue-is-not/) [Clement Attlee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clement-attlee/) ## More by Norman Lock > [I admitted that I did not understand life. What I meant was that I am bewildered by human hearts and motivations, including my own.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-lock/i-admitted-that-i-did-not-understand-life-what-i-meant-was-that-i-am/) [Norman Lock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-lock/) > [I had hoped to be a poet, and for a long time I tried to write poetry. My first published pieces were poems.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-lock/i-had-hoped-to-be-a-poet-and-for-a-long-time-i-tried-to-write-poetry/) [Norman Lock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-lock/) > [I find it only natural for a storyteller to be interested in storytelling and, for anyone who spends the better part of his or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-lock/i-find-it-only-natural-for-a-storyteller-to-be-interested-in/) [Norman Lock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-lock/) > [Each piece of writing I undertake, whether a story, novel, play, or poem, begins with an image.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-lock/each-piece-of-writing-i-undertake-whether-a-story-novel-play-or-poem/) [Norman Lock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-lock/) > [I very much like the idea of the unreliable narrator. Shaping my fictions as monologues - by introducing the "I" - allows me to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-lock/i-very-much-like-the-idea-of-the-unreliable-narrator-shaping-my/) [Norman Lock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-lock/) > [I do seem to favor a deathbed confession as the occasion for my dramatic monologues.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-lock/i-do-seem-to-favor-a-deathbed-confession-as-the-occasion-for-my/) [Norman Lock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-lock/) > [I do believe we are actors in our own dramas, which, moment by moment, we ourselves write; that we are characters in our own…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-lock/i-do-believe-we-are-actors-in-our-own-dramas-which-moment-by-moment/) [Norman Lock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-lock/) > [The critique of social inequality, which is very much a part of my story, came about naturally from my recollection of Huck and Tom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-lock/the-critique-of-social-inequality-which-is-very-much-a-part-of-my/) [Norman Lock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-lock/) > [In nearly everything I write, I am like a ventriloquist, throwing my voice into my characters, animating them by the slightest twitch as I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-lock/in-nearly-everything-i-write-i-am-like-a-ventriloquist-throwing-my/) [Norman Lock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-lock/) > [It may be old hat, but I see no reason to close off what is for me a fruitful subject of inquiry, especially so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-lock/it-may-be-old-hat-but-i-see-no-reason-to-close-off-what-is-for-me-a/) [Norman Lock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-lock/) > [Emotional, physical, and spiritual estrangement and ontological and religious doubt inform my personality, my thoughts, and my characters, which are, more often than not,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-lock/emotional-physical-and-spiritual-estrangement-and-ontological-and/) [Norman Lock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-lock/) > [Many of my short fictions use theatre as a metaphor for situations in which characters find themselves estranged from the larger, uncontrollable world that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-lock/many-of-my-short-fictions-use-theatre-as-a-metaphor-for-situations-in/) [Norman Lock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-lock/) > [I used to teach writing in a federal prison, and for my students' benefit, I would liken the narrative use of this highly personal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-lock/i-used-to-teach-writing-in-a-federal-prison-and-for-my-students/) [Norman Lock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-lock/) > [I haven't the stature to critique one of our literature's great novels, Tobias; and I'm not one of those who believe The Adventures of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-lock/i-haven-t-the-stature-to-critique-one-of-our-literature-s-great/) [Norman Lock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-lock/) > [Eventually, I came to believe, stupidly, that I had exhausted that story's "original" form with its single use. I went on to other stories,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-lock/eventually-i-came-to-believe-stupidly-that-i-had-exhausted-that-story/) [Norman Lock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-lock/) [Explore all 29 Norman Lock quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-lock/) ## More Book quotes > [I think a new world will arise out of the religious mists when we approach our Bible with the idea that it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/i-think-a-new-world-will-arise-out-of-the-religious-mists-when-we/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [If I had a dollar for every time I couldn’t sleep, I could buy a billion locks and finally read a book in peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop-rock/if-i-had-a-dollar-for-every-time-i-couldn-t-sleep-i-could-buy-a/) [Aesop Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop-rock/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/) [Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/) > [The Rosary is the book of the blind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fulton-j-sheen/the-rosary-is-the-book-of-the-blind/) [Fulton J. Sheen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fulton-j-sheen/) > [I have many who keep me going, I am very fortunate in this sense. There is nothing like a child who knows more about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-cooper/i-have-many-who-keep-me-going-i-am-very-fortunate-in-this-sense-there/) [Floyd Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-cooper/) > [I think books in which people are really happy and things are going well are probably the most challenging novels there are to write,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/i-think-books-in-which-people-are-really-happy-and-things-are-going/) [Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/) > [It's like the query letter problem that I just mentioned, magnified a hundredfold. You might be good at telling a story, but that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/it-s-like-the-query-letter-problem-that-i-just-mentioned-magnified-a/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [I don't think I have made as much of my life as I should have. I should have written more books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-m-schlesinger-jr/i-don-t-think-i-have-made-as-much-of-my-life-as-i-should-have-i/) [Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-m-schlesinger-jr/) > [Some books are not read in the right way because they have skipped a stage of opinion, assume a crystallization of information in society…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/some-books-are-not-read-in-the-right-way-because-they-have-skipped-a/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [“People talk about books that write themselves, and it's a lie. Books don't write themselves. It takes thought and research and a backache and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/people-talk-about-books-that-write-themselves-and-it-s-a-lie-books/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [There are great books in this world and great worlds in books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-bronte/there-are-great-books-in-this-world-and-great-worlds-in-books/) [Anne Bronte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-bronte/) > [The purpose of this book is to supply, in the form suitable for laymen, guidance in the adoption and execution of an investment policy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-graham/the-purpose-of-this-book-is-to-supply-in-the-form-suitable-for-laymen/) [Benjamin Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-graham/) > [But I think that of all the literature that I studied, the book that did more than any other to fire my enthusiasm was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kwame-nkrumah/but-i-think-that-of-all-the-literature-that-i-studied-the-book-that/) [Kwame Nkrumah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kwame-nkrumah/) > [It's amazing to see things that are suggested in the book fully developed and so brilliantly realized through the artistry of the designers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-collins/it-s-amazing-to-see-things-that-are-suggested-in-the-book-fully/) [Suzanne Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-collins/) > [“But I’ve developed a great reputation for wisdom by ordering more books than I ever had time to read, and reading more books, by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilynne-robinson/but-i-ve-developed-a-great-reputation-for-wisdom-by-ordering-more/) [Marilynne Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilynne-robinson/) [Browse all 29,378 Book quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Theatre aside, my penchant for the extended monologue began with my reading of Browning's dramatic monologues, in high school. 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