Changes

In fandom, subtext is content in [[canon]] (or, sometimes, [[fanworks]]) that is meant to be understood by the audience without being explicitly stated.   

In fandom, subtext is content in [[canon]] (or, sometimes, [[fanworks]]) that is meant to be understood by the audience without being explicitly stated.   

In dramatics, subtext does not necessarily have to be deliberate on the part of the author. There have been many debates over whether certain subtext exists in canon whether or not the [[authorial intent|writer intended to put it there]]. K.M. Weiland argues that subtext ''must'' be intentional in order to be subtext in the first place. <ref>[http://www.helpingwritersbecomeauthors.com/5-ingredients-need-story-subtext/# The Only 5 Ingredients You Need for Story Subtext], Sept. 12, 2016.</ref>

An example of subtext:  When Bodie and Doyle have a different set of rooms every time they are shown at home in [[The Professionals]], the subtext might be, "CI5 agents have to move often for security reasons," or "These characters are so unstable that they can't keep the same apartment for long." The subtext intended by the show's creators, if any, can be intuited through dialogue, continuity, bits of stage business and so on. For example, a line about how much they're paid can help to determine if they're choosing to move that frequently (expensive) or if CI5 pays for their housing and/or assigns them to live in different places.

Subtext is extremely subjective, and not all fans will agree on their validity or application to a particular relationship in a show or film.

==Subtext and Authorial Intent==

In dramatics, subtext does not necessarily have to be deliberate on the part of the author. There have been many debates over whether certain subtext exists in canon whether or not the [[authorial intent|writer intended to put it there]]. K.M. Weiland argues that subtext ''must'' be intentional in order to be subtext in the first place. <ref>[http://www.helpingwritersbecomeauthors.com/5-ingredients-need-story-subtext/# The Only 5 Ingredients You Need for Story Subtext], Sept. 12, 2016.</ref> But in ''The Fanfic Symposium'', fan author Shomeret argues that subtext is "a level of interpretation that is almost always unintended by the writer.  When you write a story, you intend to communicate certain things.  Being told about something you didn't intend may be alarming or infuriating." Shomeret continues:

An example of subtext:  When Bodie and Doyle have a different set of rooms every time they are shown at home in [[The Professionals]], the subtext might be, "CI5 agents have to move often for security reasons," or "These characters are so unstable that they can't keep the same apartment for long." The subtext intended by the show's creators, if any, can be intuited through dialogue, continuity, bits of stage business and so on. For example, a line about how much they're paid can help to determine if they're choosing to move that frequently (expensive) or if CI5 pays for their housing and/or assigns them to live in different places.

{{Quotation|In slash the anxiety about what you are subconsciously communicating also exists. Although I am bisexual, I have been unable to complete any [[Femslash|f/f slash]] because I worry so much about the potential subtexts.  Since there is so little f/f in the majority of fandoms (aside from Xena), I tend to feel very self-conscious about the sort of lesbian relationships that I would be portraying, and fear that I will misrepresent lesbians.  I always ask myself what my f/f story might be saying about lesbians in general.  Am I feeding into stereotypes?  Am I being too negative?  Am I being too positive?  I don't want to over-romanticize lesbian relationships either. I have written lesbian characters into slash stories that are primarily m/m, but the idea of putting a story out there for other fans to read that focuses on an f/f relationship sets off a panic reaction in my brain. I have several uncompleted f/f stories in various fandoms, and one completed story that is in a state of eternal revision because it never satisfies me.

Subtext is extremely subjective, and not all fans will agree on their validity or application to a particular relationship in a show or film.<ref>Shomeret, [http://www.trickster.org/symposium/symp27.htm The Subtext Anxiety]. ''The Fanfic Symposium'', November 21, 1999.</ref>}}

In fan discussions, subtext most commonly refers to canon that is felt to imply a romantic [[Shipping|relationship]] or [[UST|unresolved sexual tension]]/attraction between two same-sex characters, or to hint at a character's sexual orientation. [[Slash]] fans point out elements of art direction and photography as well as acting that they feel make the "obvious" point. Sexual subtext, of course, also still exists between male and female characters, but these are not generally the focus of modern fan attention.

In fan discussions, subtext most commonly refers to canon that is felt to imply a romantic [[Shipping|relationship]] or [[UST|unresolved sexual tension]]/attraction between two same-sex characters, or to hint at a character's sexual orientation. [[Slash]] fans point out elements of art direction and photography as well as acting that they feel make the "obvious" point. Sexual subtext, of course, also still exists [[Het|between male and female characters]], but these are not generally the focus of modern fan attention.

When the term subtext is used with regard to canon, an argument is often made that fans are [[Slash goggles|seeing sexual relationships or attraction]] where they don't really exist. In film and television, especially in dramatic or suspense genres, just as in real life, two men or women looking intensely at each other or even touching does not mean they are sexually attracted to each other.<ref>Early ''Star Trek'' fans saw James Kirk and Cmdr. Spock's wordless exchanges as evidence that they were developing a kind of intuition or telepathy common to people who work closely together, rather than a sexual connection. Kirk's becoming telepathic was a subplot in [[Claire Gabriel]]'s ''[[The Thousandth Man (Star Trek: TOS story)|The Thousandth Man]]'' and a major plot point in later episodes of [[Jacqueline Lichtenberg]]'s ''[[Kraith]]'' series.</ref> However, [[TPTB|showrunners and producers]] who point this out, may be accused, rightly or wrongly, of [[Queer Baiting]].

When the term subtext is used with regard to canon, an argument is often made that fans are [[Slash goggles|seeing sexual relationships or attraction]] where they don't really exist. In film and television, especially in dramatic or suspense genres, just as in real life, two men or women looking intensely at each other or even touching does not mean they are sexually attracted to each other.<ref>Early ''Star Trek'' fans saw James Kirk and Cmdr. Spock's wordless exchanges as evidence that they were developing a kind of intuition or telepathy common to people who work closely together, rather than a sexual connection. Kirk's becoming telepathic was a subplot in [[Claire Gabriel]]'s ''[[The Thousandth Man (Star Trek: TOS story)|The Thousandth Man]]'' and a major plot point in later episodes of [[Jacqueline Lichtenberg]]'s ''[[Kraith]]'' series.</ref> However, [[TPTB|showrunners and producers]] who point this out, may be accused, rightly or wrongly, of [[Queer Baiting]].