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Motif vs Trope - What's the difference?

motif | trope |

In lang=en terms the difference between motif and trope

is that motif is a short melodic passage that is repeated in several parts of a work while trope is a pair of complementary hexachords in twelve-tone technique.

As nouns the difference between motif and trope

is that motif is a recurring or dominant element; a theme while trope is something recurring across a genre or type of literature, such as the ‘mad scientist’ of horror movies or ‘once upon a time’ as an introduction to fairy tales. Similar to archetype and cliché but not necessarily pejorative.

As a verb trope is

to use, or embellish something with a trope.

motif

English

Noun

(en noun)
  • A recurring or dominant element; a theme.
  • See how the artist repeats the scroll motif throughout the work?
  • (music) A short melodic passage that is repeated in several parts of a work
  • A decorative figure that is repeated in a design
  • (crystallography) The physical object or objects repeated at each point of a lattice. Usually atoms or molecules.
  • A basic element of a move in terms of why the piece moves and how it supports the fulfilment of a stipulation.
  • (biochemistry) In a nucleotide or amino-acid sequence, pattern that is widespread and has, or is conjectured to have, a biological significance.
  • trope

    English

    Noun

    (wikipedia trope) (en noun)
  • (literature) Something recurring across a genre or type of literature, such as the ‘mad scientist’ of horror movies or ‘once upon a time’ as an introduction to fairy tales. Similar to archetype and but not necessarily pejorative.
  • A figure of speech in which words or phrases are used with a nonliteral or figurative meaning, such as a metaphor.
  • (music) A short cadence at the end of the melody in some early music.
  • (music) A phrase or verse added to the mass when sung by a choir.
  • (music) A pair of complementary hexachords in twelve-tone technique.
  • (Judaism) A cantillation pattern, or the mark that represents it.
  • Derived terms

    * troper * tropist * tropical * tropology

    Verb

    (trop)
  • To use, or embellish something with a trope.
  • (often, literature) To turn into, coin or create a new trope.
  • (often, literature) To analyze a work in terms of its literary tropes.
  • To think or write in terms of tropes.
  • Synonyms

    * tropify

    References

    *

    Anagrams

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