Framing device  

From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia

The term framing device refers to the usage of a single action, scene, event, setting, or any element of significance at the beginning and end of an artistic, musical, or literary work. The device thus acts as a context within which the main body of work can develop.

An example of this is the diner scene in Quentin Tarantino's Pulp Fiction; similarly, the Beatles song "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" works as a framing device for their album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, appearing as both the first and twelfth tracks.

The Tempest, Shakespeare's last complete play utilises framing devices within the story as well as the beginning and the end. Think of Act 3, Scene 3 and Ariel and the masque in Act 4, Scene 1. They are framing devices because they stand apart from the rest of the text.