Above the subtext

In case you're still recovering from last night's Oscars, cheer yourself up with this nifty Whit Stillman interview. So witty, so mannered, he's my second-favorite writer/director, often credited with influencing Noah Baumbach and Wes Anderson. And here's one of my favorite Stillman exchanges:

Chris Eigeman: Plays, novels, songs, all have a subtext ... which I take to mean a hidden message or import of some kind. Subtext, we know. But what do you call the message or meaning ... that's on the surface, open and obvious? They never talk about that. What do you call what's above the subtext?

Taylor Nichols: The text.

CE (pauses): That's right. But they never talk about that.