Meaning
A recurring musical, visual, or thematic element attached to a particular character, idea, or mood; by extension, any dominant recurring theme in art, writing, or public life. The register is neutral-to-formal, and the word is now used far beyond the opera criticism where it began. Formal, faintly technical register that has spread from music criticism into general cultural commentary. Regional use: General English (borrowed from German).
Origin
From German Leitmotiv, literally 'leading motif', from leiten 'to lead' plus Motiv 'motive, theme' (from Latin motus 'movement'). The critic F. W. Jahns first used the word in print in 1871, describing motif technique in operas by Carl Maria von Weber, and Hans von Wolzogen popularized it in 1876 through his guide to Wagner's Ring, which claimed to isolate and name every recurring motif. Wagner himself never used the term, preferring Grundthema and Hauptmotiv, and was reportedly irritated by Wolzogen's labels. English took the word over around the same time - the Online Etymology Dictionary dates English use to 1876 - and the spelling leitmotif is a partial anglicization of the German -iv ending.
Research Sources
References used to check this entry’s meaning, history, or documented forms.
Variants
- leading motive
- leitmotiv
Usage Examples
- The composer attaches a brassy leitmotif to the villain so that even his offstage presence feels menacing.
- Rain streaking the window becomes a visual leitmotif throughout the film, marking each of the heroine's defeats.
- Declining trust in institutions has been the leitmotif of the past decade's political coverage.