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Definition of Motif
A motif is an element or idea that recurs throughout a work of literature. Motifs, which are often collections of related symbols, help develop the central themes of a book... read full definition
A motif is an element or idea that recurs throughout a work of literature. Motifs, which are often collections of related symbols, help develop the... read full definition
A motif is an element or idea that recurs throughout a work of literature. Motifs, which are often collections of... read full definition
Motifs
Explanation and Analysis—Flashbacks:
As the plot grows more complicated in Volume 2, the narrator uses flashbacks as a motif, every so often filling in the reader on events that happened prior to or during the previous chapter. Each time a flashback occurs, it resolves some suspense while also creating more intrigue. For instance, in Volume 2, Chapter 1, Hope is missing long enough to worry everyone before showing up wet and bedraggled to Governor Winthrop's house. She won't say much and is extremely vague even with Esther about why she seems upset. Volume 2, Chapter 2, makes everything clear to the reader: through a flashback, it reveals that Hope met with Magawisca at the cemetery and found out that Faith is still alive. This helps Hope's strange behavior in the previous chapter make sense, and it creates satisfying dramatic irony because the reader is now in on Hope's secret from the other characters. However, it also introduces new conflict to the novel. Faith is now married to Oneco and is happy with her life. Even coming face to face with her will require clandestine operations Hope must coordinate with Magawisca. The reader now sits in suspense over whether Hope will pull off a meeting.
Related Themes:
Motifs
Explanation and Analysis—Kidnapping and Adoption:
Kidnapping and adoption run throughout the novel as a motif. In particular, many characters are kidnapped or adopted by families across religious and political divides. For example, at their mother's wishes, Hope and Faith Leslie are taken in by the Fletchers after their parents die. Alice Fletcher's father, Sir William Fletcher, forced her to marry Charles Leslie specifically because he was loyal to the English crown. Mr. William Fletcher, on the other hand, loses his chance to marry Alice because he is a Puritan. Puritans held stricter religious views than the Anglican church, and they set off for North America because they did not want to be subjects to an Anglican king. When little Alice and Mary Leslie are adopted by the Fletchers and renamed Hope and Faith according to Puritan customs, they become symbols of a future in which young people can more easily cross cultural divides.
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Related Themes:
Volume 2, Chapter 5
Explanation and Analysis—Birds in Captivity:
A motif in the novel is a comparison between women and birds in captivity. For instance, in Volume 2, Chapter 8, after Faith has been taken back to Governor Winthrop's house, Mr. Fletcher describes her behavior as bird-like:
Unlock with LitCharts A+“All day, and all night, they tell me, she goes from window to window, like an imprisoned bird fluttering against the bars of its cage; and so wistfully she looks abroad, as if her heart went forth with the glance of her eye.”
Related Themes:
Volume 2, Chapter 8
Explanation and Analysis—Birds in Captivity:
A motif in the novel is a comparison between women and birds in captivity. For instance, in Volume 2, Chapter 8, after Faith has been taken back to Governor Winthrop's house, Mr. Fletcher describes her behavior as bird-like:
Unlock with LitCharts A+“All day, and all night, they tell me, she goes from window to window, like an imprisoned bird fluttering against the bars of its cage; and so wistfully she looks abroad, as if her heart went forth with the glance of her eye.”
Related Themes:
Volume 2, Chapter 14
Explanation and Analysis—Spiritual Corruption:
One motif in the novel is the possibility for characters to be corrupted, starting out pure of heart and becoming less so. In Volume 2, Chapter 14, Hope is overcome with sadness for what Magawisca's spirit will lose when she goes back to the forest:
Unlock with LitCharts A+"Those beautiful lights,” and [Magawisca] pointed upward, “that shine alike on your stately domes and our forest homes, speak to me of his love to all,—think you I go to a solitude, Hope Leslie?”
“No, Magawisca; there is no solitude, nor privation, nor sorrow, to a soul that thus feels the presence of God,” replied Hope. She paused—[...] the thought that a mind so disposed to religious impressions and affections, might enjoy the brighter light of Christian revelation—a revelation so much higher, nobler, and fuller, than that which proceeds from the voice of nature—made Hope [...] desire [...] to retain Magawisca[.]
Related Themes:
