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Stith Thompson Motif Index
About this index and how to read it
Stith Thompson's Motif-Index of Folk-Literature classifies recurring narrative elements in folktales, myths, legends, ballads and related traditional narratives. Each entry below gives Thompson's motif reference and the description recorded in the index.
The index is large, so this browser displays 250 entries per page. You can search by motif reference or by words in the description, restrict the results to one of Thompson's main letter categories, and click motif references mentioned inside descriptions to follow cross-references. Individual motif pages also show any ATU tale types whose concordance explicitly cites that Thompson reference.
All
A
Mythological Motifs
B
Animal Motifs
C
Motifs of Tabu
D
Magic
E
The Dead
F
Marvels
G
Ogres
H
Tests
J
The Wise and the Foolish
K
Deceptions
L
Reversals of Fortune
M
Ordaining the Future
N
Chance and Fate
P
Society
Q
Rewards and Punishments
R
Captives and Fugitives
S
Unnatural Cruelty
T
Sex
U
The Nature of Life
V
Religion
W
Traits of Character
X
Humor
Z
Miscellaneous Groups of Motifs
| Thompson reference | Description ▲ |
|---|---|
| N342.6 | Woman mistakenly accused of cannibalism. She is seen biting off finger of corpse to get its ring. India: *Thompson-Balys. |
| N384.12 | Woman playing dead to spy on husband killed. Lithuanian: Balys Legends No. 866. |
| N332.5 | Woman unwittingly poisons her son. Mistakes poison for medicine. Italian Novella: Rotunda. |
| N340.3 | Woman wrongly condemned for drunkenness when seen to take one drink. Spanish Exempla: Keller. |
| N325.2 | Women, driven mad, devour their infants' flesh. Greek: Frazer Apollodorus I 331 n. 4. |
| N226 | Wrecked man saved on coffer of jewels; becomes rich. Boccaccio Decameron II No. 4 (Lee 30); Italian Novella: *Rotunda. |
| N344.1 | Wrong sign put out leads to boys' leaving home. They are to be informed by a sign if a sister is born. *Type 451; BP I 70ff.; Italian: Basile Pentamerone IV No. 8. |
| N659.2 | Youth accidentally absent when entire family is wiped out. Greek: Grote I 106. |
| N332.4.1 | Youth accidentally takes the poison he intended for his father. Italian Novella: Rotunda. |
| N339.10 | Youth gazing at own image reflected in water falls and drowns. Irish myth: Cross. |
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