The article addresses the issue of the so-called ‘commonplaces’ of two cultures in relation to comparative genology and generative anthropology. It focuses on three themes particularly important to both civilisations: the birth motif and genre of birthday songs, the ritual and tri-unity of dance, sound, and word, and the approach to battle and death. By comparing the genres and cultural phenomena of the Greeks and Romans with those of the Toltecs and Aztecs, the analysis reveals similarities between the ancient literatures of Mediterranean Europe and Mesoamerican tribes. Research that uses the apparatus of generative anthropology and draws from the interdependence of rhetoric and culture offers new conclusions.