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Dental college is part of the plan...

DNA - Dialogue

Study how dialogue in DNA reveals power, guilt, and group pressure, from short, broken exchanges to Leah’s intense speeches that spill into monologue.

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Fascinating Fact:

Leah’s extended speeches to Phil function like monologues. They expose anxiety, conscience, and the need to be heard.

In GCSE English Literature, studying dialogue in DNA means looking at short lines, silences, and longer speeches. These patterns reveal tension, loyalty, guilt, and shifting power within the group.

Key Terms

Dialogue: Spoken exchanges between characters that reveal relationships, emotions, and power dynamics on stage.
Monologue: A longer, uninterrupted speech by one character that exposes inner thoughts or feelings.
Subtext: The hidden or implied meaning beneath what characters actually say in their dialogue.

Frequently Asked Questions (Click to see answers)

How is dialogue used in DNA by Dennis Kelly?

In DNA, dialogue is often short, fragmented, and repetitive. This style shows panic, peer pressure, and how characters struggle to take responsibility for their actions.

Why are Leah’s speeches to Phil important in DNA?

Leah’s speeches matter because they function like monologues. They reveal her guilt, compassion, and fear, while Phil’s silence highlights his emotional distance and growing control over the group.

How can I write about dialogue in a DNA GCSE essay?

In a GCSE essay, quote short sections of dialogue and comment on pauses, repetitions, and interruptions. Link these features to themes such as guilt, bullying, leadership, and complicity.

Try These Related Quizzes

Match the dialogue to the correct speaker.

1 .

"I can't face it. They look at me. They look at me like I'm lying and it makes me cry. I can't stand the way they look at me. And then, because I cry, they think I'm telling the truth, but I'm crying because I'm lying and I feel terrible inside"

Lou

Brian

Adam

Danny

Brian is assigned the role of accuser and feels guilt once he is expected to give evidence against a real suspect. He is aware that his guilty tears make his lies appear more trustworthy to the adults questioning him

2 .

"We'll take you up the grille now. We'll get you by the arms. By the legs. And we'll swing you onto the grille. We'll throw rocks at you until you drop through. You'll drop through. You'll fall into the cold. Into the dark. You'll land on Adam's corpse and you'll rot together"

John Tate

Richard

Cathy

Phil

Phil's discourse is cold and threatening, even when he is not explicitly outlining the violent consequences for anyone who does not go along with his plan, as he is here to Brian

3 .

"This is not part of the plan. Dental college is part of the plan, A levels are part of the plan, dead people are not part of the plan, this is not dental college."

Cathy

Brian

Lou

Danny

Danny fears the consequences of Adam's supposed death only insofar as they will impact on his future

4 .

"You can walk down any corridor in this [...] any corridor in this school and you know, no-one bothers you and if you want something it's yours and no-one bothers you and everyone respects you and everyone's scared of you and who made that, I mean I'm not boasting, but who made that happen?"

Phil

Richard

John Tate

Danny

John Tate is presented as a high-school version of a mafia don. He sees himself as a protector, but the audience understands this "protection" works through intimidation and bullying

5 .

I was sad, crushed.

Came outside.

I couldn't remember things.

I couldn't remember anything.

I was new

Adam

Brian

Leah

John Tate

Adam describes his memory loss as a type of rebirth

6 .

"This is insane. I mean I've never, but this, because, alright, whatever, but this is actually insane. We can't just leave him up here"

Cathy

Brian

Leah

Phil

Leah can barely articulate the madness of the situation, in which, as she believes, the group will abandon Adam in the woods. She does not yet recognise Phil's plan for the murder of Adam as a way to rid themselves of evidence

7 .

"Well, we thought, you know, I mean you'd given a description so we thought, well, I thought, you know, show initiative, we'll look for a fat balding postman with bad teeth"

Mark

Danny

Cathy

Jan

Cathy finds the event exciting and wonders how she can benefit personally from the media exposure. These lines demonstrate how she alternates between sharing responsibility, expressed with the plural pronoun, "we", and taking individual credit by saying "I thought"

8 .

"There, I'm admitting, I am admitting, I talk too much, so shoot me. So kill me, Phil, call the police, lock me up, rip out my teeth with a pair of rusty pliers, I talk too much, what a crime, what a sin, what an absolute catastrophe, stupid, evil, ridiculous, because you're not perfect actually"

Cathy

Leah

Brian

Jan

Leah fills in dialogue for an unresponsive Phil, ventriloquising accusations and criticisms she believes he holds. She often expresses her own subconscious thoughts through those she imagines to be his

9 .

So we're all peggin them. Laughing. And his face, it's just making you laugh harder and harder, and they're getting nearer and nearer. And one hits his head. And the shock on his face is so...funny. And we're all just...

just...

really chucking these stones into him, really hard and laughing and he slips

Jan

Mark

Brian

Danny

Mark recounts the events leading to the supposed death of Adam, beginning with the groups' desire to see how far they could push him to do as they wished and ending with the way his fear became part of their entertainment. Mark can't bring himself to say the word "dead", instead letting his story trail off

10 .

"The refuse sacks that you are going to buy on the way, do not use the first one on the roll, use the third or fourth, do not be tempted to use a bin liner you have knocking around the house as that will be a DNA nightmare"

Phil

John Tate

Leah

Cathy

Phil's speech is imperative in tone. He breaks his long silences to take command, creating a plan to deflect blame from the group by fabricating evidence

Author: Sheri Smith (PhD English Literature, English Teacher & Quiz Writer)