Subtext is a special kind of information transfer

One day Ernest Hemingway noticed that the literary work is like an iceberg: on the surface is only one-seventh of the story, and everything else is hidden between the lines. And for the reader to see what is not, the author has to "hint" at an event or situation. Such hints are called "subtexts" - this is another ingenious trick in the vast arsenal of writer's "tricks". In this article we will try to briefly disassemble the topic under the title "Subtext is ...".

When did it come and where did it catch on?

For the first time the concept of subtext was included in literature in the early 19th century. This technique was originally characteristic of psychological prose or poetry of symbolism and post-symbolism. Somewhat later, it began to be used even in journalism.

In the literature, the concept of "subtext" was first comprehended by Hemingway. His philosophical definition of the term was as follows: subtext is the hidden part of the work, where the main moments of the story are found, which the reader must independently find.

The most subtext has taken root in Japan, where understatement or a hint is a special artistic measure that can often be found not only in works of literature, but also in other areas of art. After all, the religion and mentality of the Land of the Rising Sun are focused on seeing the invisible behind the visible.

What is subtext?

As already clear from the above, the subtext in literature is an artistic hint. A special kind of information that opens the reader to the other side of the story. To understand it means to find something that the author has not mentioned. Disclosing the subtext, the reader as if becomes a co-author, representing, thinking out and imagining.

Subtext is a mystery, as if the user was offered to guess the picture, showing only a few strokes. By directing the imagination of the reader, the author makes him feel, rejoice or sad.

Subtext is what is hidden under the text. The text itself is just a set of letters and a handful of punctuation marks. They do not mean anything - they are so simple, but something else is hidden behind them. In the white interstitial apertures, the experiences of the protagonist or the beauty of another world flash.

Examples with explanations

Subtext is phrases that cause the reader to imagine what is happening, to represent the experiences of the protagonist. It can be found in every work of fiction. To better understand the meaning of the subtext, it is worthwhile to give a few phrases and a "subtext" decoding.

Subtext in the literature is (examples):

• A. Akhmatova: "I put on my right hand, Glove with the left hand." After these lines, the reader understands that the main character is in tension. Her actions are scattered because of emotions.
• L. Tolstoy: "A whistle of a locomotive arose in a sad and grim voice ... ... the horror of the blizzard has become beautiful now." The reader seems to experience Anna Karenina's mental state before her death: a terrible blizzard becomes beautiful because of the fear of death approaching, "deplorably and gloomily."
• A. Chekhov: "A taciturn, submissive, incomprehensible creature, depersonalized by its humility, spineless, weak from superfluous kindness, quietly suffered on the couch and did not complain." With these words the author tried to show the weakness of the hero (Dymov), who was at death.

Subtext can be found everywhere: it is present in literature, and in conversations, and in drama. The understatement and hidden meaning is another way of conveying information, which makes the main subject of discussion more real and close.