Question

The breaking of the “fourth wall” by Wilder means _____.

Answer 1

The characters speak directly to and interact with the audience

Answer 2

The correct answer is: the characters speak directly to and interact with the audience.

Indeed, the Fourth wall is a dramatic convention that was developed in the 16th century and has continued to evolve ever since. It was developed for theater art and has now been adopted for cinema and audiovisual formats. The diegetic space is supposed to be three-dimensional and its fourth invisible wall faces the audience. The audience can see and hear everything that takes place within the diegetic space but the characters within act as if they cannot.

Usually, it can be broken for dramatic or comedic purposes and it has become another stylistic and artistic choice.