Literature - Subtext ... on the Internets!

In the study of drama, one important concept is the idea of subtext. A dictionary might define it as the unspoken or hidden motives behind dialogue, a section of text, or even a single word. Without understanding subtext, Hamlet's advise to Ophelia to "Get thee to a nunnery" has less meaning if we don't know that when he says "nunnery" he means "brothel." Much early drama, due to censorship, is rife with subtext. However, one must not confuse this with the often hilarious, yet inappropriate, double entendre. One difference is that the double entendre is almost always "vulgar." However, not all subtext is dirty.

Subtext is a difficult thing to transmit to the audience of a play or TV show. However, this becomes even harder when the playwright or author is not given the benefit of an actor to transmit the idea. Thus, many texts have subtext that is either difficult or impossible to figure out.

However, I have noticed a development in web publishing. I refer, of course, to the ever-useful wiki! The best example of this is Wikipedia, a source for many seekers of knowledge and writers of papers (whether or not they should actually be using it for the latter purpose.) Because of the interrelated nature of the information on the site, many of the pages contain numerous links to other pages. It is very easy to waste hours just following links. Of course, websites have had links like this before. However, wikis are unique because the "everyone can edit" nature allows them to be placed with ease. It is for this very fact that I believe wikis would be a superb medium for a hilarious comedy.

This (inserting the subtext) can be accomplished in two ways. The first method is the more direct method of adding a link with one word, but having the actual destination be the intended subject of the subtext. For instance, in the sentence "I really like the dentist's office," the word like would be a link with the word hate as the actual destination. Examples of this type can be seen on wiki sites like the Wikipedia parody Uncyclopedia, or the Transformers wiki at tfwiki.net. This method, however, is a bit heavy-handed and doesn't allow much in terms of independent analysis on the reader's part. It is, although, often quite hilarious.

The second method, I propose, would combine traditional subtext with the internet wiki variety. One would put a link in the internet method, but the destination link would itself be a subtext word. It would be subtext within subtext. Additionally, the story or narrative could be in multiple parts, linked by its subtext for the curious reader to discover Or, the pages could simply be supplimental detail to the story. Just imagine a wiki-style version of the Lord of the Rings universe. Now, all I have to do is get a wiki and figure out how to do all of that...