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| {{Short description|Recurring element that has symbolic significance in a story}} | |||
| {{cleanup|date=July 2008}} | |||
| {{other uses|Motif (disambiguation)|Motive (disambiguation)}} | |||
| {{Refimprove|date= February 2008 }} | |||
| A '''motif''' ({{IPAc-en|audio=en-us-motif.ogg|m|oʊ|'|t|iː|f}} {{respell|moh|TEEF}}) is any distinctive feature or idea that recurs across a ]; often, it helps develop other narrative elements such as ] or ].<ref name="Grayson">{{ cite book | author= James H. Grayson | title=Myths and Legends from Korea: An Annotated Compendium of Ancient and Modern Materials| page= 9 | |||
| {{otheruses|Motive}} | |||
| | place= New York and Abingdon | publisher= ] Curzon | date= 2000 | isbn = 0-7007-1241-0}} | |||
| In a ], such as a novel or a film, motifs are recurring structures, contrasts, or literary devices that can help to develop and inform the text’s major themes. The narrative motif is the vehicle of means by which the narrative theme is conveyed.<ref name="Grayson"> James H. Grayson. ''Myths and Legends from Korea: An Annotated Compendium of Ancient and Modern Materials'' (p. 9). ] and ]: ] Curzon, 2000. ISBN 0-70071-241-0. </ref> The motif can be an idea, an object, a place, or a statement. The flute in ]'s '']'' is a recurrent motif that conveys rural and idyllic notions. The green light in '']'' and the repeated statement, "My father said that the reason for living is getting ready to stay dead," in ]'s '']'' are examples of motifs. A motif can be something that recurs to develop the theme in a novel. | |||
| </ref><ref name ="filmnoir">{{Cite book|last1=Silver|first1=Alain|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QHe_SWJmzhMC&q=visual%2520motifs&pg=PA65|title=Film Noir Reader |last2=Ursini |first2=James |date=1996 |publisher=Hal Leonard Corporation |isbn=978-0-87910-197-8|page= 65}}</ref> | |||
| A narrative motif can be created through the use of ], structural components, ], and other elements throughout literature. The flute in ]'s play '']'' is a recurrent sound motif that conveys rural and idyllic notions. Another example from modern ] is the green light found in the novel '']'' by ]. | |||
| A motif can also be used to connect different scenes or points in time in works such as '']'' or '']''. Fight Club contains a number of motifs used to organize the minimalist writing style of ] such as the rules of fight club. | |||
| Narratives may include multiple motifs of varying types. In ]'s play '']'', he uses a variety of narrative elements to create many different motifs. ] references to blood and water are continually repeated. The phrase "fair is foul, and foul is fair" is echoed at many points in the play, a combination that mixes the concepts of ]. The play also features the central motif of the ], one that combines both verbal images and the movement of the actors. | |||
| A motif differs from a ] in that a theme is an idea set forth by a text, where a motif is a recurring element which symbolizes that idea. The motif can also be more like the central idea behind the theme, such as courage or loyalty. | |||
| In a narrative, a motif establishes a pattern of ideas that may serve different conceptual purposes in different works. ], for example, in his ] narratives such as '']'' and '']'' makes frequent use of ''motif'' to connect different moments that might seem otherwise separated by time and space.<ref>"Kurt Vonnegut, Jr." ''Encyclopedia of World Biography''. Thomson Gale. 2004. HighBeam Research. 26 August 2010</ref> In the American ] ] classic '']'', director ] uses motifs to not only establish a dark and shadowy ] atmosphere,<ref>{{Cite web|title=Blade Runner 1982 | url = http://www.aboutfilm.com/movies/b/bladerunner.htm | date= 2000 |work = AboutFilm.com | author= Carlo| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20001120105200/http://www.aboutfilm.com/movies/b/bladerunner.htm | archive-date = 2000-11-20 }}</ref> but also to weave together the thematic complexities of the plot. Throughout the film, the recurring motif of "eyes" is connected to a constantly changing flow of images, and sometimes violent manipulations, in order to call into question our ability, and the narrator's own, to accurately perceive and understand reality.<ref>Bukatman, pp. 9–11.</ref> | |||
| ⚫ | == |
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| Some literary theorists believe that the motif is an ineffective descriptor in itself, as the use of a motif or pattern is, if intentional, interwoven in a larger scheme of the work, such as a ] or in ]. Those who disapprove of the motif in general understand its implications throughout analytical reading but require more support to uphold its existence. | |||
| Narrative motifs can be ironic. For example, in ]'s ] novel, control is a recurring motif via chapter title and topic of discussion; it's an ironic motif that is instantiated in the constant creation of the unknown and the belief that it can be controlled and contained. The irony is explained through the articulation of ]'s dialogue.{{clarification needed|date=June 2024}}{{or|date=June 2024}} | |||
| ⚫ | == Usage == | ||
| Any number of narrative elements with ] significance can be classified as motifs—whether they are images, spoken or written phrases, structural or stylistic ], or other elements like sound, physical movement, or visual components in dramatic narratives. While it may appear interchangeable with the related concept, '']'',<ref>{{cite web | title = WordNet 3.0 | publisher = Princeton University | year = 2006 | url = http://wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn?s=theme | accessdate = 2010-08-26 | archive-date = 2020-09-25 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20200925081844/http://wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn?s=theme | url-status = live }}</ref> a general rule is that a theme is abstract and a motif is concrete.<ref>{{cite book|last=Abbott|first=H. Porter|title=The Cambridge Introduction to Narrative|year=2008|publisher=Cambridge University Press|location=Cambridge|isbn=978-0-521-88719-9|pages=95|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Jyyt1826rhsC&dq=motif+theme&pg=PA95}}</ref> A theme is usually defined as a message, statement, or idea, while a motif is simply a detail repeated for larger symbolic meaning. | |||
| In other words, a narrative motif—a detail repeated in a pattern of meaning—can produce a theme; but it can also create other narrative aspects. Nevertheless, the distinction between the two terms remains difficult to pinpoint. For instance, the term "]" has been used to describe the way in which "recurrent thematic concepts" are patterned to produce meaning, such as the "moralistic motifs" found throughout the stories of '']''.<ref name="Heath">{{citation|first=Peter|last=Heath|title=Reviewed work(s) ''Story-Telling Techniques in the Arabian Nights'' by David Pinault|journal=]|volume=26|issue=2|date=May 1994|publisher=]|pages=358–360 |doi=10.1017/s0020743800060633|s2cid=162223060 }}</ref> | |||
| == See also == | == See also == | ||
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| == References == | == References == | ||
| {{Reflist}} | {{Reflist}} | ||
| == External links == | |||
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| *{{Wiktionary inline|motif}} | |||
| {{Narrative}} | |||
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Latest revision as of 22:14, 1 July 2024
Recurring element that has symbolic significance in a story For other uses, see Motif (disambiguation) and Motive (disambiguation).A motif (/moʊˈtiːf/ moh-TEEF) is any distinctive feature or idea that recurs across a story; often, it helps develop other narrative elements such as theme or mood.
A narrative motif can be created through the use of imagery, structural components, language, and other elements throughout literature. The flute in Arthur Miller's play Death of a Salesman is a recurrent sound motif that conveys rural and idyllic notions. Another example from modern American literature is the green light found in the novel The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald.
Narratives may include multiple motifs of varying types. In Shakespeare's play Macbeth, he uses a variety of narrative elements to create many different motifs. Imagistic references to blood and water are continually repeated. The phrase "fair is foul, and foul is fair" is echoed at many points in the play, a combination that mixes the concepts of good and evil. The play also features the central motif of the washing of hands, one that combines both verbal images and the movement of the actors.
In a narrative, a motif establishes a pattern of ideas that may serve different conceptual purposes in different works. Kurt Vonnegut, for example, in his non-linear narratives such as Slaughterhouse-Five and Cat's Cradle makes frequent use of motif to connect different moments that might seem otherwise separated by time and space. In the American science fiction cult classic Blade Runner, director Ridley Scott uses motifs to not only establish a dark and shadowy film noir atmosphere, but also to weave together the thematic complexities of the plot. Throughout the film, the recurring motif of "eyes" is connected to a constantly changing flow of images, and sometimes violent manipulations, in order to call into question our ability, and the narrator's own, to accurately perceive and understand reality.
Narrative motifs can be ironic. For example, in Michael Crichton's Jurassic Park novel, control is a recurring motif via chapter title and topic of discussion; it's an ironic motif that is instantiated in the constant creation of the unknown and the belief that it can be controlled and contained. The irony is explained through the articulation of Dr. Ian Malcolm's dialogue.
Usage
Any number of narrative elements with symbolic significance can be classified as motifs—whether they are images, spoken or written phrases, structural or stylistic devices, or other elements like sound, physical movement, or visual components in dramatic narratives. While it may appear interchangeable with the related concept, theme, a general rule is that a theme is abstract and a motif is concrete. A theme is usually defined as a message, statement, or idea, while a motif is simply a detail repeated for larger symbolic meaning.
In other words, a narrative motif—a detail repeated in a pattern of meaning—can produce a theme; but it can also create other narrative aspects. Nevertheless, the distinction between the two terms remains difficult to pinpoint. For instance, the term "thematic patterning" has been used to describe the way in which "recurrent thematic concepts" are patterned to produce meaning, such as the "moralistic motifs" found throughout the stories of One Thousand and One Nights.
See also
References
- James H. Grayson (2000). Myths and Legends from Korea: An Annotated Compendium of Ancient and Modern Materials. New York and Abingdon: Routledge Curzon. p. 9. ISBN 0-7007-1241-0.
- Silver, Alain; Ursini, James (1996). Film Noir Reader. Hal Leonard Corporation. p. 65. ISBN 978-0-87910-197-8.
- "Kurt Vonnegut, Jr." Encyclopedia of World Biography. Thomson Gale. 2004. HighBeam Research. 26 August 2010
- Carlo (2000). "Blade Runner 1982". AboutFilm.com. Archived from the original on 2000-11-20.
- Bukatman, pp. 9–11.
- "WordNet 3.0". Princeton University. 2006. Archived from the original on 2020-09-25. Retrieved 2010-08-26.
- Abbott, H. Porter (2008). The Cambridge Introduction to Narrative. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p. 95. ISBN 978-0-521-88719-9.
- Heath, Peter (May 1994), "Reviewed work(s) Story-Telling Techniques in the Arabian Nights by David Pinault", International Journal of Middle East Studies, 26 (2), Cambridge University Press: 358–360 , doi:10.1017/s0020743800060633, S2CID 162223060
External links
The dictionary definition of motif at Wiktionary
