Subtext is any content of a
creative work
A creative work is a manifestation of creative effort including fine artwork (sculpture, paintings, drawing, sketching, performance art), dance, writing (literature), filmmaking, and composition.
Legal definitions
Creative works require a cre ...
, which is not announced explicitly (by characters or author), but is implicit, or becomes something understood by the
audience
An audience is a group of people who participate in a show or encounter a work of art, literature (in which they are called "readers"), theatre, music (in which they are called "listeners"), video games (in which they are called "players"), o ...
. Subtext has been used historically to imply controversial subjects without drawing the attention (or wrath) of
censors. This has been especially true in
comedy
Comedy is a genre of fiction that consists of discourses or works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. The term o ...
; it is also common in
science fiction
Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel uni ...
, where it can be easier—and/or safer—to deliver a social critique if, e.g., set in a time other than the (author's) present.
Definitions
Subtext is content "sub" i.e. "under" (with the sense of "hidden beneath") the verbatim wording; readers or audience must "gather" subtext "reading between the lines" or
inferring meaning, a process needed for a clear and complete understanding of the text. A meaning stated explicitly is, by definition not subtext (for lack of hiding), and writers may be criticized for failure artfully to create and use subtext; such works may be faulted as too "on the nose", with the characters meaning what they literally have said, undermining
dramatic tension, and leaving the work too prosaic.
Subtext also may be included in the action of
narrative
A narrative, story, or tale is any account of a series of related events or experiences, whether nonfictional ( memoir, biography, news report, documentary, travelogue, etc.) or fictional ( fairy tale, fable, legend, thriller, novel, etc ...
s, with secondary themes expressed in order to appeal to a general audience; such approaches to sexual or otherwise more adult story-content, in works accessible to the young, often fails to "register" for the young reader, though adults will understand—perhaps even appreciating the mental stimulation offered them, in catching the child-invisible nuances.
See also
References
{{Nonverbal communication
Literary concepts
Fiction
Theme