Berezkin Analytical Catalogue · Motif
A38B — A mouse gnaws through a snare.
Source data for narratives and traditions is drawn from Berezkin’s Analytical Catalogue. If you use this data, please acknowledge and link to it: Ю.Е. Березкин, Е.Н. Дувакин. Тематическая классификация и распределение фольклорно-мифологических мотивов по ареалам. Аналитический каталог.
Summary of motif
OverviewThe sun gets caught in a trap. Only a mouse or other small animal manages to gnaw through the trap and free the sun.
Berezkin category: The Sun and Moon
This is of motif type Cosmology and etiology and is part of group 1, Sun and Moon.
A38 has 4 other sub-motifs
RelatedA38. The sun falls into a snare, a trap, and finds itself tied by a rope.
A38a. The sun is caught in a loop made of a woman's pubic hair.
A38b. The sun gets caught in a trap. Only a mouse or other small animal manages to gnaw through the trap and free the sun.
A38c. The Sun exchanges a cape made of animal or bird skins with a boy or girl, or spoils it. As a result, the boy or girl raises their status or takes revenge on the Sun.
A38d. Because the Sun has harmed the character (ruined or burned his cloak, the fur on his skin, etc.), he catches it in a trap or kills it.
Top 10 motifs with similar dispersal patterns
Phylogeny| Motif | Similarity | Motif summary |
|---|---|---|
| L5E | 99.80% | The decapitated body of a woman pursues her husband, while her head pursues their children. |
| M4 | 98.00% | When crossing a pond or descending from a tree, the character (usually despite a warning) steps at a specific animal or part of the animal's body . As a result, it falls into the water and often sinks. |
| M93 | 97.62% | When falling asleep or going to do something else, the character tells a certain part of his body to wake him up in case of danger. The organ did not give a signal or the character himself did not listen to it, as a result, the misfortune happened. |
| A38C | 96.80% | The Sun exchanges a cape made of animal or bird skins with a boy or girl, or spoils it. As a result, the boy or girl raises their status or takes revenge on the Sun. |
| L9B | 96.42% | The sharp elbows or (rarely) knees of the character resemble knives or awls. |
| K27YY1 | 96.28% | The hero brings the feather (feathers) of a dangerous bird. |
| C6B | 96.12% | The desired object is brought up from the bottom by a muskrat (rarely a beaver or otter). |
| B97A | 96.12% | A strip of light or dark feathers (rarely: wool) on the neck of a bird (animal) is its necklace (scarf). |
| K19E | 95.91% | Returning from the sky to earth, a woman or two sisters encounter a male wolverine who tries to capture them. Usually, the women who have descended first find themselves in a tree. Some animals cannot or will not help them descend to the ground. The wolverine descends to take the sisters as wives; they run away from him. See motif K19B. |
| D4C | 95.54% | Characters obtain the warm season from its original owners. |
See the 100 most similar distributions →
Map of motif dispersal
DistributionDrag the map to pan, use the scroll wheel to zoom — choose a texture or projection below
Traditions
21 recordedThis motif has been recorded in 21 traditions: Chipewyan, Dogrib, Slavey, Beaver, Bella Coola (Nuxalk), Western Ojibwa (Chippewa), Eastern Ojibwa (Missisauga, Timagami and other groups in eastern Ontario), Algonquin, unspecified Algonkians of the Midwest (probably Old Algonquin), Northern Ojibwa (=Severn Ojibwa, Sandy Lake Cree), Western Swampy Cree (incl. Rock Cree), Eastern Swamy Cree, Eastern Cree, Attikamek, Naskapi, Montagnais, Menominee, Winnebago, Sarsee (Tsuu T'ina), Plains Cree, Plains Ojibwa, Carrier, Wintu, Patwin, Nomlaki
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