Defining Myths and Heroes
Having read and glossed the excerpt from Joseph Campbell’s The Power of Myth, write a definition for myth and a definition for literary hero below.
Myth –
Hero –
Mythic Elements
As we review elements of literary myths, use the space below to take notes. Speaking of Myths…
Archetypes - ______
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· The term archetype was first significantly employed by ______to signify ancient patterns of personality and relationships that appear across the world's myths, legends, and folk tales. These patterns may be familiar to anyone who has read fairy tales or mythology: questing heroes, the heralds who call them to the adventure, the wise old men and women who give them advice and magical gifts, shape shifters who alternately assist and interfere with the quest, dark villains out to destroy the hero, and those foolish sidekicks who cause trouble but also bring comic relief. Remember, archetypes are not stereotypes.
Hero's Journey - ______
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· The Hero's Journey duplicates the stages of ______. First the initiate faces separation from his own, familiar world. Once separated, he undergoes ______, where the old ways of thinking and acting are altered or destroyed, opening the way to a new level of awareness, skill, and freedom. After successfully meeting the challenges of the initiation, the initiate takes the journey's final step, ______. When he does, he will find that he is more confident, perceptive, and capable, and he will discover that his community now treats him as an adult, with all of the respect, rights, and privileges which that status implies.
A Map of the Hero's Journey:
· ______: The hero takes off on a series of adventures beyond the ordinary, either to recover what has been lost or to discover some life-giving idea/ potion/remedy. The journey is a cycle of going and returning. The hero must move beyond known, conventional safety in order to undertake this journey.
· ______: Although the hero is ultimately the one who must face the challenges, he/she generally does not do so alone. In most stories, the hero will have a guide, someone who is wise in the ways of the world, and someone who will offer the hero guidance and wisdom as he/she progresses through the journey. Often, the hero will also have some kind of a talisman, some symbolic item that offers power or strength to the hero.
· ______: Early on in the journey, the hero will leave the world he/she has always known. The hero will leave what is familiar and venture into the unknown. As the hero leaves his/her familiar world, the hero will cross a threshold. Sometimes this is simply symbolic, but other times there will be some kind of physical barrier that the hero must get through. Threshold Guardians are those who would prevent heroes who are not ready for the journey from beginning. They may try to prevent the hero from leaving, or they may try to prevent the hero from entering into the new realm. Whatever side they are on, they will not let anyone pass who is not up to the task at hand.
· ______: The hero must prove to be worthy of hero status, and to prove this the hero will face a series of challenges or trials while on the journey. The trials fall into two main categories.
Two types of hero deeds:
1. ______: The hero performs a courageous act in battle or saves lives.
2. ______: The hero learns to experience the supernormal range of human spiritual life and then comes back with a message.
The trials the hero faces are designed to see if the intending hero should really be a hero. Is he really a match for the task? Can he overcome the dangers? Does he have the courage, the knowledge, the capacity to enable him to serve? In addition, the hero learns something about his own character through his adventures.
· ______: The hero's journey is a cycle that includes a going and a return. However, the return is not always reached. There still may be some challenges.
· ______: Sometimes the hero is content in the new world and does not want return to the old world. However, if the hero is to reach his/her destiny and take his/her place as leader, there must be a return.
· ______: As the hero tries to return the hero may find him/herself in a difficult situation that looks like the end of the hero's quest. Just when things look bleak, someone comes to rescue the hero so he/she can finish the journey.
· ______:
Sometimes the hero wants to return home, but there are forces that would like to prevent him/her from doing that.
· ______: While usually not as involved as crossing the initial threshold, the hero must still return to the old familiar world.
· ______: As the hero completes the challenges, the hero's bravery is noted by those around. As a result, the hero is often looked up to in the new world as well as in the old world. There are times when the hero returns to the old world and his/her message is unheard (especially if it is not what the society was expecting) or the achievements unrecognized. In this case, the hero may die or be killed, or sometimes returns to the other world.
· ______: If the hero is successful on the journey, and if the hero is accepted back into the old world, the hero will have the freedom to live. Such heroes are generally great leaders of their people.
Source: http://www3.cerritos.edu/fquaas/resources/English102/HeroNotes.htm
Types of Archetypes
CHARACTERISTICS OF ARCHETYPES
1. They are not individual, but the part we share with all humanity.
2. They are the inherited part of being human which connects us to our past
3. They are universal. From the Roman gladiator to the astronaut, they remain the same.
4. Their appearance in diverse cultures cannot be explained as many cultures are so separated by geography and time
5. Archetypes are recurrent, appearing in slightly altered forms to take present day situations and relate them to the past to find meaning in a contemporary world.
THREE BASIC TYPES OF ARCHETYPES
SITUATION SYMBOLIC CHARACTER
Situation Archetypes
1. THE QUEST—The quest sends the hero in search for some truth, information, person, or talisman which, when found and brought back, will restore fertility to a wasted land. Usually the hero descends into a realm of psychological hell and is forced to discover the blackest truths, quite often concerning his faults. Once the hero is as this lowest point, he must accept personal responsibility to return to the world of the living. (e.g. The Odyssey, The Canterbury Tales, The Aeneid, The Fellowship of the Ring) Types of quests: quest for truth, quest for immortality, quest for power, etc.
2. THE TASK—To save the kingdom, to win the fair lady, to identify himself so that he may reassume his rightful position, the hero must perform some nearly superhuman deed. (Arthur pulls Excalibur from the stone, Beowulf slays Grendel, Frodo must arrive at Rivendale)
3. THE INITIATION—This archetype usually takes the form of an initiation into adult life. The adolescent comes into his or her maturity with new awareness and problems along with new hope for the community. This awakening is often the climax of the story. (Growing Up: Huckleberry Finn, King Arthur, the hobbits)
4. THE FALL—This archetype describes a descent from a higher to a lower state of being. The experience involves a loss of innocence and bliss. The fall is often accompanied by expulsion from a kind of paradise as penalty for disobedience and moral transgression. (Lancelot and Guinevere, the Epic of Gilgamesh, Adam & Eve)
5. DEATH AND REBIRTH—The most common of all situation archetypes, this motif grows out of the parallel between the cycle of nature and the cycle of life. Thus, morning and springtime represent birth, youth, or rebirth; evening and winter suggest old age or death. (e.g. Dumbledore’s phoenix –Fawkes)
6. BATTLE BETWEEN GOOD AND EVIL—Obviously, the battle between two primal forces. Mankind shows eternal optimism in the continual portrayal of good triumphing over evil despite great odds. (e.g. The forces of Sauron and those of Middle Earth in The Lord of the Rings, any western, most cartoons)
7. THE UNHEALABLE WOUND—This wound is either physical or psychological and cannot be healed fully. This wound also indicates a loss of innocence. These wounds always ache and often drive the sufferer to desperate measures. (e. g. Frodo’s shoulder, Lancelot’s madness, Ahab’s wooden leg)
8. THE RITUAL—The actual ceremonies the initiate experiences that will mark his rite of passage into another state. The importance of ritual rites cannot be over stressed as they provide clear sign posts for the character’s role in society as well as our own position in this world. (e.g. weddings, baptisms, coronations)
9. THE MAGIC WEAPON—The magic weapon symbolizes the extraordinary quality of the hero because no one else can wield the weapon or use it to its full potential. It is usually given by a mentor figure (Excalibur, Odysseus’s bow, Thor’s hammer, Samson’s hair, ______
Symbolic Archetypes
Light vs. Darkness / Light usually suggests hope, renewal, or intellectual illumination; darkness implies the unknown, ignorance, or despairWater vs. Desert / Because water is necessary to life and growth, it commonly appears as a birth or rebirth symbol. Water is used in baptismal services to solemnize spiritual births. Similarly, the appearance of rain in a work of literature can suggest a character’s spiritual birth. (e.g. the sea and river images in The Odyssey.) Water can also be used to symbolize a character’s unconscious desires.
Heaven vs. Hells / Man has traditionally associated parts of the universe not accessible to him with the dwelling places of the primordial forces that govern his world. The skies and mountaintops house his gods; the bowels of the earth contain the diabolic forces that inhabit the universe. (Paradise Lost, The Divine Comedy).
Innate Wisdom vs.
Educated Stupidity / Some characters exhibit wisdom and understanding of situations instinctively as opposed to those supposedly in charge. Loyal retainers often exhibit this wisdom as they accompany heroes on the journey. (e.g. Sam from The Lord of the Rings, Alfred the Butler to Batman)
Haven vs. Wilderness / Places of safety contrast sharply against the dangerous wilderness. Heroes are often sheltered for a time to regain health and resources. (e.g. the Batcave, Camelot, Rivendale)
Supernatural Intervention / The gods intervene on the side of the hero or sometimes against him. (e.g. The Odyssey, The Lord of the Rings, The Epic of Gilgamesh)
Fire vs. Ice / Fire represents knowledge, light, life, and rebirth while ice like the desert represents ignorance, darkness, sterility, death (e.g. the phoenix, Dante’s The Inferno)
It should be noted that the primitive mind tends not to make fine discriminations but think rather in terms of polarities and dichotomies. Thus, when archetypes appear in a work of literature, they usually evoke their primordial opposites. Good is in conflict with evil; birth symbols are juxtaposed with death images; depictions of heaven are countered by descriptions of hell.
DEFINE:
Dichotomy
Juxtaposition
Character Archetypes
Carol Pearson, in Awakening the Heroes Within, expands the idea of the hero into twelve distinct archetypes, each of which can follow the hero quest. Pearson's heroic archetypes are described below. Perhaps you will discover more.
Innocent / Remain in safety / Abandonment / Deny it or seek outside rescue / Fidelity & discernment / Trust, optimism
Orphan / Regain safety / Exploitation / Is victimized by it / Process and feel pain fully / Interdependence, realism
Warrior / Win / Weakness / Slay or confront it / Fight only for what really matters / Courage, discipline
Caregiver / Help others / Selfishness / Take care of it and those it harms / Give without maiming self or others / Compassion, generosity
Seeker / Search for better life / Conformity / Flee from it / Be true to deeper self / Autonomy, ambition
Lover / Bliss / Loss of love / Love it / Follow your bliss / Passion, commitment
Destroyer / Metamorphosis / Annihilation / Allow dragon to slay it / Let go / Humility
Creator / Identity / Inauthenticity / Claim it as part of the self / Self-creation, self-acceptance / Individuality, vocation
Ruler / Order / Chaos / Find its constructive uses / Take full responsibility for your life / Responsibility, control
Magician / Transformation / Evil sorcery / Transform it / Align self with cosmos / Personal power
Sage / Truth / Deception / Transcend it / Attain enlightenment / Wisdom, non-attachment
Fool / Enjoyment / Non-aliveness / Play tricks on it / Trust in the process / Joy, freedom
Source: Pearson, Carol S. Awakening the Heroes Within. San Francisco: HarperCollins, 1991. 10-11.
Quest: The quest that the hero archetype has set out on. The hero may not realize he is on such a quest until it is too late to retreat.
Fear: The fear that is usually the motivating factor for undergoing the quest (why else would the hero need to put himself at risk?). It is also the principal danger that lurks in the shadow of the archetype.
Dragon: In most quests, the hero soon meets his dragon -- the problem or obstacle of the quest—the opposition that must be overcome in order for the quest to be successful
Task: The task that the hero must accomplish in order for the quest to be successful. Succeeding at the task is usually sufficient to overcome the dragon; however, failure to do so can lead to becoming what the hero fears most—his dark self, or shadow.
Virtue: Succeeding at the quest earns the hero these rewards of self . . . in addition to the hand of the princess, the castle, and the gold…
SOURCE: www.teachnlearn.org/archetypestuMASTER.doc
The Power of Myth: The Hero’s Adventure
Finding Joe
“Furthermore, we have not even to risk the adventure alone, for the heroes of all time have gone before us. The labyrinth is thoroughly known. We have only to follow the thread of the hero path, and where we had thought to find an abomination, we shall find a god. And where we had thought to slay another, we shall slay ourselves. Where we had thought to travel outward, we will come to the center of our own existence. And where we had thought to be alone, we will be with all the world.” -Joseph Campbell