Recurrent elements in fairy tales

thumb|Romeo and Juliet, by [[Frank Dicksee, considered to be the archetypal romantic couple, depicting the play's iconic balcony scene]]

thumb|A fairy offering wishes, illustration by John Bauer to Alfred Smedberg's The seven wishes

legendary carpet used for transportation

thumb|19th century book of incantations, written by a Welsh physician

describes a topic, subject or symbol in a story

thumb|Zeus turning Lycaon into a wolf, engraving by Hendrik Goltzius|upright=1.2 In mythology, folklore and speculative fiction, shapeshifting is the ability to physically transform oneself through unnatural means. The idea of shapeshifting is found in the oldest forms of totemism and shamanism, as well as the oldest existent literature and epic poems such as the Epic of Gilgamesh and the Iliad. The concept remains a common literary device in modern fantasy, children's literature and popular culture. Examples of shape-shifters include changelings, jinns, kitsune, vampires, and werewolves, alon

literary or social stereotype used to create characters or determine their role in a story

mythological object, stolen or hidden by an antagonist

element in folklore

fairytales opening lines

socially constructed norm relating to female body image

fictional theme and a device under some scientific inquiry. In folklore, mythology and fairy tales, a cloak of invisibility appears either as a magical item used by duplicitous characters or an item worn by a hero to fulfill a quest

a motif in folklore and mythology

an archetypical premise common to many legends, fairy tales, and chivalric romances.

narrative motif documented in Thompson's Motif-Index of Folk-Literature

The saga of the 2nd line of reincarnation in the Moirang kingdom in ancient Meitei Manipuri mythology

archetype of the witch in Jungian psychology