2. a distinctive and recurring form, shape, figure, etc., in a design, as in a painting or on wallpaper.
3. a dominant idea or feature.”
Technically, the word “motif” can mean a variety of different things. In trope land, however, a motif is best described by the first definition above; it's something symbolic that keeps turning up in order to reinforce the main theme of the work. Usually, this is a physical item, although a motif may show itself in other ways — such as through dialogue. It may even be a double motif: a pattern on somebody's sofa, an emblem on the heroine's shirt or a bumper sticker on the hero's car.
Sometimes it can be difficult to establish what is a motif, and what isn't. Their defining characteristics are that they appear more than once and they must be significant in some way. A sea shell on its own is not a motif. However, if a painting of a seascape turns up ten minutes later, followed by a tank full of tropical fish, then that sea shell probably is a motif - the objects that show up afterwards reinforce the theme of “the sea.”
Broadly speaking, motifs are employed in three different ways:
- A single object, or a collection of extremely similar objects, that appear(s) many times throughout the course of the play/film/book. Tends to place a lot of importance on the item itself, possibly at the expense of whatever they are supposed to represent. Example: The titular Glass Menagerie, in particular the glass unicorn.
- A collection of related objects or symbols that appear over and over again. Generally the most popular option, as it marks the motifs as significant, but puts the emphasis firmly on the theme. Example: the various vehicles that appear in Adolescence of Utena.
- An assortment of objects that don't seem to be related, but on closer inspection have an underlying resemblance that serve the theme. For example, a black cat, spilled salt and an umbrella left open indoors all point to the theme of bad luck. The audience may have to spend some time looking for the connection.
In literature, television or film, it's quite rare, although not impossible, for a motif to be a theme in itself. It's possible that the dead roses the hero and his girlfriend keep coming across are just a reflection on their lack of gardening skills if gardening is a theme of the story. It's more likely, however, that the dead roses signify that their romantic relationship is in trouble.
Motifs are a favourite subject for English essays, and they've been responsible for many an epileptic tree — since anything can be a motif if you squint hard enough (and can find some way of relating it to other objects).
Compare Central Theme (the idea behind the story), Symbolism, Shapes and Symbols Tropes.
Motif groupings:
- Animal Motifs
- Biblical Motifs
- Body Motifs
- Chess Motifs
- Color Motif
- Cosmic Motifs
- Duality Motif
- Elemental Motifs
- Elite Four
- Esoteric Motifs
- Eye Motifs
- Fairytale Motifs
- Flower Motifs
- Gemstone Motifs
- Holiday Motif
- Leitmotif
- Metallic Motifs
- Mood Motif
- Mythical Motifs
- Numerological Motif
- Playing Card Motifs
- Recurring Riff
- Setting Gimmicks
- Skeleton Motif
- Symbol Motif Clothing
- Tarot Motifs
- Theme Naming
- Zodiac Motifs
See also:
Motifs that demanded their own page:
- Ace Of Spades
- Animal Metaphor
- Arachnid Appearance and Attire
- Arc Number
- Arc Symbol
- Arc Words
- Astral Checkerboard Decor
- Blade-of-Grass Cut
- Butterfly of Death and Rebirth
- Butterfly of Transformation
- Cherry Blossoms
- Clocks of Control
- Death's Hourglass
- Eastern Zodiac
- Elemental Powers
- Elemental Rivalry
- Eye of Providence
- Fanatical Fire
- Feather Motif
- Four-Temperament Ensemble
- The Four Gods
- Field of Blades
- Heart of the Matter
- The Laws of Magic
- Love Is Like Religion
- Macabre Moth Motif
- Ouroboros
- Personality Blood Types
- The Power of Language
- The Phoenix
- Rainbow Motif
- Rainbows and Unicorns
- Recurring Camera Shot
- Seasonal Baggage (Seasonal Motif)
- Solar and Lunar
- Sunny Sunflower Disposition
- Tempting Apple
- The Tower
- Tiger Versus Dragon
- Unicorn
- Virtue/Vice Codification
- World Tree
- Western Zodiac
Other examples:
Literature
- In Spoonbenders, each member of the Telemachus Family is associated with a Zener card, chapters focusing on a specific character beginning with one of the cards and each chapter's sections separated with their corresponding shapes: Teddy is a square, Irene is the star, Matty are the three wavy lines, Frankie is the circle and Buddy is the plus-sign.
Live-Action TV
- In The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, beside water motifs, Galadriel is associated with boats/ships too, symbolizing her struggle to distinguish right from wrong in her quest for revenge. The pilot begins with a young Galadriel building up a paper boat which gets destroyed by other children. Finrod invites her to listen to an anecdote about why a ship can sail and a rock cannot, to which Galadriel asks which light is the sail supposed to follow if the water can reflect the light just as strong, foreshadowing meeting a disguised Sauron in human form on the wreck of a ship in the future. As an adult, she is is send to Valinor, but refuses to go by jumping off the Swan Boat and trying to swim back to Middle-earth, leading her to Sauron. Later, she ends up in Numenor, known for its maritime power. At the end of Season One, after blowing off Sauron's disguise, he traps her in a memory of the ship wreck where they met, and tries to recruit her for his cause. Galadriel refuses and is nearly killed by Sauron.
Webcomics
- Shen Comix: Most of the human characters in Public U. Art Club have fruit motifs. Apple for Ana, strawberry for Sofia, banana for Beatrix, lemon for Lilith, grape for the art teacher, durian for the engineering student, and lime for Leanne.
