Guide to Literary Terms | Content

Content (also called subject matter or substance) - things or substances in an enclosed space, such as topics, ideas, statements, or facts in a book, document, letter, etc. This is true not only of forms, but also thought, feeling, attitude, and intention as conveyed by the words and their arrangement—especially what is said, rather than how it is said, in literature and in poetry.

The word is taken directly from the Latin continere, meaning “to contain.”