Fish Out of Water

[rowyn]

ysabetwordsmith mentioned the Fish Out of Water motif, and I was thinking: "Does it still count as a motif if it's part of every story

Comments

[tuftears]

Maybe the motif is more useful if you turn it around and make it 'the character who doesn't belong in the setting'. A fish running around outside the water would be viewed with alarm and suspicion by some people, welcomed as a novelty by others, perhaps hailed as the foretold hero of prophecy by still others.

[terrycloth]

I don't think that's a motif exactly. It's more of a narrative device? A motif is a bit of symbolism repeated over and over within a work.

[rowyn]

Fair enough. :) I wasn't sure that was the right word for it.