All For Love is a drama constructed in five acts, with no internal scene breaks. Dryden also includes a lengthy dedication (the Epistle Dedicatory), a Preface, a Prologue, and an Epilogue. The Epistle Dedicatory and the Preface are written in prose, while the Prologue, Epilogue, and main body of the play are written in blank verse. Blank verse refers to poetry written in regular, metered lines that are unrhymed. Iambic pentameter is the most common form of blank verse, in which a single line is composed of ten syllables of alternating unstressed and stressed syllables (or five iambs), and this is the rhythmic meter that Dryden employs in All For Love.
The language throughout the play is emotional, evocative, and full of poetic phrasing that elevates both the characters and the story as a whole. Dryden is careful to include elements that build a convincing portrait of Ancient Egypt, referring to things like omens and various Egyptian gods, which are effective in transporting the audience to another world and time that is so markedly different from their own. All For Love is full of strategic staging that enhances the audience’s enjoyment of the drama: characters spy on each other, lie to each other, and misunderstand one another repeatedly—a handy dramatic device for plot development!
