underplot
Story beneath story
An underplot is a secondary storyline running beneath the main plot of a novel, play, or film.
It typically involves minor characters and may parallel, contrast with, or comment on the primary action: The underplot involving the servants mirrors the romantic troubles of their masters.
The term is somewhat old-fashioned; subplot is more common today.
Clandestine coordinated scheming
- machinationCrafty scheming, often hostile
- schemeCalculated strategy, often secretive
- cabalScheming political faction
- collusionFraudulent secret cooperation
maneuvering · treachery · subterfuge · clandestine · covert · espionage · sedition · subversion
Subdued background quality
- undercurrentFlow beneath the surface
- implicationIndirect suggestion or consequence
- insinuationIndirect, usually negative suggestion
- allusionIndirect reference to something
connotation · subtext · suggestion · inference · overtone · nuance · innuendo · unspoken
Character's past narrative
- threadFiber for stitching
- arcCurved line segment
- B-storySecondary storyline in television
- counterplotPlot against a plot
tangent · digression · entr'acte · interlude · vignette
Point of greatest intensity
- denouementStory's final unraveling
- resolutionFormal decision or determination
- expositionSystematic explanatory presentation
- conflictOpposition between parties
complication · development · pacing · interweaving · convergence · tension · catharsis · revelation
Indirect suggestion
precursor · presage · forewarning · setup · plant · payoff · anticipation · foreboding
conspiracy
Clandestine coordinated scheming
- machinationCrafty scheming, often hostile
- schemeCalculated strategy, often secretive
- cabalScheming political faction
collusion · maneuvering · treachery · subterfuge · clandestine · covert · espionage · sedition · subversion · manipulation
undertone
Subdued background quality
- undercurrentFlow beneath the surface
- implicationIndirect suggestion or consequence
- insinuationIndirect, usually negative suggestion
allusion · connotation · subtext · suggestion · inference · overtone · nuance · innuendo · unspoken · implicit
backstory
Character's past narrative
counterplot · tangent · digression · entr'acte · interlude · vignette
climax
Point of greatest intensity
- denouementStory's final unraveling
- resolutionFormal decision or determination
- expositionSystematic explanatory presentation
conflict · complication · development · pacing · interweaving · convergence · tension · catharsis · revelation · twist
hint
Indirect suggestion
harbinger · precursor · presage · forewarning · setup · plant · payoff · anticipation · foreboding · premonition