The introductory part of a play, a novel or a poem is the ________

Step 1: Analyze the question The question asks for the term describing the introductory part of a literary work (a play, novel, or poem).

Step 2: Explain the concepts

• Epilogue: A concluding section at the end of a work. It often tells what happens to the characters afterward.
• Plot: The sequence of events in the story. It is not an "introductory part".
• Setting: The time and place in which the action happens. It is an element of the story, not a section of the text.
• Prologue: An introductory section at the beginning of a work that sets the stage or gives background. (From Greek pro = "before" and logos = "speech".) For example, Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet opens with a prologue that summarizes the story.

Step 3: Solve by elimination

• A is wrong because an epilogue comes at the end.
• B is wrong because the plot is the whole chain of events, not an introduction.
• C is wrong because the setting is the time and place, not a section of the work.
• D fits because the prologue is the introduction at the beginning.

Answer: D. prologue

Exam tip: Remember the prefixes. PROlogue = PROceeds the story (comes before), while EPIlogue = EPItomizes the ending (comes after). "Pro" means before, and "epi" means upon or after.