Home › Glossary › Letter A

Archetype

Concept
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

Want to hear it? Click the Listen button to hear the browser speak the word using text-to-speech!

The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

A universal symbol, character type, or narrative pattern (e.g., the hero, the journey) that recurs across cultures and poetic traditions.

Detailed Definition
An archetype is a universal symbol, motif, or character pattern recurring across cultures and eras (e.g., the Hero, the Wanderer); in poetry, archetypes evoke deep psychological resonance, structuring narratives from Homer to Eliot and enabling mythic dimensions in personal or historical lyric.
Example
Example in poetry:
Archetype: The “wise old man” in W.B. Yeats’s “Sailing to Byzantium” functions as a Jungian archetype, representing timeless knowledge and spiritual guidance.
Additional Notes
Archetype: A universal symbol, motif, or character pattern (e.g., the Hero, the Shadow) derived from collective unconscious (Jung); in poetry, archetypes provide deep structural resonance—e.g., the journey, the garden, the trickster.
Other Meanings of “Archetype”
Also Known As
Universal symbol Primal pattern Recurring motif Prototype character archetypal expression
Skip to main content