What does mytheme mean?

Question

What is the meaning of the term mytheme?

When did the term first come into use, and what are some examples of mythemes?

Answer 1

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.