What is the meaning of the term mytheme?
When did the term first come into use, and what are some examples of mythemes?
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2Hi, Baldr, welcome to Mythology and Folklore. Did you check Wikipedia, and if so, what still confuses you?– HDE 226868Commented Feb 11, 2018 at 3:16
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1@HDE226868 possibly they're looking for an explanation in layman's language. (I'm thinking of my first brush with Time Complexity as a non-mathematician.) The wiki is clear, but assumes general grounding in linguistics.– DukeZhouCommented Feb 14, 2018 at 22:55
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1 Answer
Oxford dictionaries provides us with the following definition:
In structuralist anthropology and literary criticism:
each of a set of fundamental generic units of narrative structure (typically involving a relationship between a character, an event, and a theme) from which myths are thought to be constructed.
It is, in effect, a common ground between different mythological stories.
Vampires and Selkies for example might be based on a mytheme of shapeshifting.
Hades and Nirvana may have the mytheme of the afterlife.
I hope this answers your question.
