Archetypes In The Hero And The God

“A hero is someone who, in spite of weakness, doubt or not always knowing the answers, goes ahead and overcomes anyway”-Joseph Campbell. Stories have so much power connect you to another world and teach you lessons that are needed throughout history. Archetypes give the story a focal point and shape the lesson the author is trying to get across. When ideals get embedded into stories, usually it’s when the hero does something noble and valiant so they want their readers to follow in his footsteps. The Anglo-Saxon Beowulf and Medieval Christian King Arthur display many archetypes and ideals to shape the story and make it exciting. The Beowulf and King Arthur storytellers use archetypes to create stories with suspense and have their heroes display values of loyalty to their respective listeners.

According to the dictionary, an archetype is “the original pattern or model from which all things are the same kind are copied or on which they are based; a model or first form; prototype.” Archetypes are the basic building blocks of any story that is told whether it’s an epic fantasy novel or an intense autobiography about some white guy from 100 years ago. An archetype can be any type of character such as a jester, hero, or a princess. However, archetypes can also be experiences like coming of age. Feelings are also a type of archetype like fear or joy. In the books The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho and The Odyssey by Homer some of these archetypes are shown through Fatima, the Princess (damsel in distress), Calypso, the Temptress, the Alchemist, the Sage, and Odysseus and Santiago, the Flawed Heroes.

In Homers epic poem “The Odyssey” there are many archetypes, many of which were the origin of the archetype. An archetype is a character type, place, or symbol, every culture shares. In “The Odyssey” Homer uses archetypes to evoke meaning to the story. Some examples of archetypes in “The Odyssey” are the temptress, and the father-son conflict.

Archetypes can be seen in many places, such as books, poems, movies, and more. In Homer's The Odyssey, there are examples of archetypal heroes. Odysseus, Penelope, and Telemachus are all archetypal characters.

The idea of a clear and precise pattern that nearly all heroes follow is not something new. In fact, one of the most famous examples of a hero cycle is the one created by Joseph Campbell. In his world-renowned book, The Hero with a Thousand Faces, Campbell sets up and explains how every hero follows the same basic path until he/she winds up back at the beginning and another cycle begins. “The mythical hero…is lured…to the threshold of adventure…journeys through a world of unfamiliar yet strangely intimate forces…undergoes a supreme ordeal…” and then returns back to his home either a hero and changed person or a coward and disgrace (Campbell 211). After the challenges are dealt with in some

Archetypes are defined as “a typical character, an action or a situation that seems to represent such universal patterns of human nature.” (“Archetype”) The short story “On the Rainy River” by Tim O’Brien is about the internal struggle and the journey he faces after he is drafted to serve the army. The classical hero’s journey archetype is similar to Tim O’Brien’s journey in his short story, “On the Rainy River,” with the exception of the arc length and depth of transformation.

In almost any story, whether novel or poem, lies a hero. Depending on the path, a variety of archetypes usually accompany the hero. The Merriam Webster dictionary defines “archetype” as “the original pattern or model of which all things of the same type are representations or copies.” Joseph Campbell’s A Hero With A Thousand Faces introduces the common archetypes often found in various pieces of literature, explaining “The parallels will be immediately apparent; and these will develop a vast and amazingly constant statement of the basic truths by which man has lived throughout the millenniums of his residence on the planet,” in his preface to the 1949 edition. To summarize, after learning of the different archetypes found in a story, one

Glauren Marzina Skyphire, an ancient being that is an indirect descendant to the gods and goddesses. Born in Atlantis, a village to be known to be great, powerful, and full of smart scientists. One such one was the King Vestis, who experimented on his own family mixing the technology of nano bots and DNA of various creature and humans injecting the mix into himself, and his family. In doing so he created a new line of beings. In this new line of beings some seemed rather normal, with just gained extra strength, foresight, and other slight physical or mental differences. Others gained powers, like moving things by words or by mind, some could control others. The most however, took on odd hungers or thirsts, for flesh, blood and for some

An archetype is defined as an image, story-pattern, character, setting, symbol, or situation that recurs frequently in literature and in life. It demonstrates universal human experiences and associates strongly with readers through a subconscious understanding. In the Epic of Gilgamesh the main character, Gilgamesh, is an example of a superheroic archetypal hero. He took on an epic quest for everlasting life by following the archetypal steps of a hero’s journey. Through suffering due to tragedy, realizing the nature of his quest, seeking help from a mentor, experiencing failure, and returning home with a companion, Gilgamesh’s story followed the situational archetype of a hero’s journey.

Archetypes in Literature Swiss psychologist Carl Jung produced many theories accommodating different personalities of mankind. Such as introverts and extroverts Jung advised many people through their journey of awareness, which is an individual process of achieving enlightenment, and finding the inner Self. In addition, he composed a theory of archetypes which depicts common images or patterns that symbolizes the daily life of humans. Archetypes are used variously to portray the connection and development of the character through their journey of awareness. The most prominent archetype in literature is rebirth in Anthem, Myths or Epics, and A Lesson before Dying.

An archetypal hero must have specific characteristics before embarking on a quest. For example many heroes, experience some sort of traumatic event during childhood. In the movie Star Wars IV: A New Hope the archetypal hero Luke Skywalker experiences the

Archetype refers to a generic version of a personality. Archetypes are continually present in folklore and literature for thousands of years, including prehistoric artwork. The identification of archetypes in literature is to primarily find the behaviors and characteristics of the main protagonist, it is important to discover the ambiguity of how the traits change and develop throughout the rising

Shakespeare’s use of archetypes shows that he understood that the human journey has repeated themes. Popular fiction, history, and Shakespeare’s “Macbeth”, contain similar archetypes, because they represent real human struggles and stories. Three examples of archetypes repeated are Michael Corleone From the Godfather as Malcolm, Peter Parker from Amazing fantasy Issue 15 as MacDuff, and King Solomon as MacBeth. Michael corleone has the same archetype as Malcolm, being the reluctant hero. In the Godfather, young Michael Corleone has just returned from WWII as a war hero.

The representation of archetypes in texts, has transformed prominently over time. The archetype of the hero, has been evident in texts as early as the 16th century, therefore has changed drastically over time due to the influences and the reflections of the historical events in which have occurred, as well as the social values in various time periods. The development of the hero archetype can be drawn from Alfred, Lord Tennyson's 1835 poem, Morte d'Arthur, Brothers Grimm's 1857 version of the classic tale, Little Red Cap, and 2010 TV Movie, Avalon High by Meg Cabot. These three texts explore how events and values over time have influenced the archetype of the hero.

Archetypes are used in literature to portray a certain meaning, that helps create a better and more meaningful story. The archetypes used can be embedded in the characters, symbols, or even rituals involved in a story. These archetypes can help give deeper meaning to the story by giving a underlying reference to concepts that are used over and over again in literature throughout history. When an author uses an archetype in his or her writing, they link it to many other stories that use that same archetype. Some do this for a reason, to give an underlying meaning, to symbolized something of importance, or even just to make their story more interesting. Many readers may not notice the underlying archetype, but sometimes the author uses them because he or she knows that the reader will.