Archetypal Motifs in Myths
The world was created in six days, with a seventh consecrated for rest. There are seven deadly sins; Jewish men sit shiva for seven days after a loved one dies; there are seven branches on the Menorah of the Temple. There are seven layers of earth, sky, and heaven, according to Muslim belief, and the Prophet Mohammad warned against the seven sins. Hindus believe there are seven chakras and seven worlds in the universe. The hands and feet of Cuchulainn, in Irish mythology, have seven digits each. He has seven pupils in each eye. Do you notice a theme?
An example of an archetypal motif, the number seven appears again and again throughout mythology, regardless of culture or time period. What exactly is an archetypal motif? Let’s discuss motifs first to get a better sense. When the shark is coming in the movie Jaws, what do you hear? That distinctive and memorable music recurs throughout the movie; it is a motif, a theme of sorts that helps build suspense, atmosphere, and anticipation. It’s a cue to yell, “Get out of the water!”
What is an archetypal motif? They go deeper into the human condition than the Jaws music. Carl Jung believed that these motifs are developed from our collective unconscious, that they are universal and go to the core of how we understand the world around us and our place in it. Seven, for instance, has great spiritual and cultural significance for everyone from Christians and Muslims to Hindus and Buddhists. The number is believed to represent perfection, completion, and entirety.
What if you were visiting Poland and had to use the restroom? Instead of mezczyzn or kobiety (men or women), the doors are marked with triangles and circles. Which would you enter? Triangles for men, circles for women. Why? It is believed by some that three sides of the triangle represents men, while four sides of the circle (no, a circle does not have sides, but a circle represents four in much of the world) represents women. 3+4=7. And 7 is completion. The archetypal motif of completion and entirety is pervasive throughout nearly all cultures and myths. The fact that 7 plays a special role in nearly all cultures is remarkable: the Dogon people of Western Africa, for instance, also revere 7 and apply 3 to men and 4 to women. 3+4 = perfection.
We all relate and respond to archetypal motifs, even if we are not aware of it. The flawed hero is just one example. We love heroes, but we also love when they have faults, when they are far from perfect. From Odysseus to Captain Jack Sparrow, we have a lengthy tradition of putting our trust in flawed humans because, quite simply, we are all flawed. This, as Jung suggests, springs from our unconscious needs. We need to know that despite flaws, we can succeed.
Archetypal motifs are central to myths, but they can also relate to our everyday lives. In What Story Are You Living?, authors Carol Pearson and Hugh Marr write, “When we understand the stories and recognize their universality, we can connect with each other at deeper and more conscious levels, using the archetypal stories as the foundation.” These motifs are at the core of existence, and, at the core, we are more alike than different.
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