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Did Atalanta Follow The Hero's Journey?

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Did you know that every hero that has ever existed has followed the Hero's Journey in some way? The Hero's Journey is a path that consists of separate steps that every hero engages in. It has 3 main parts-the "Departure," the "Initiation," and the "Return"-which are broken down into smaller sub-parts. In ancient mythology, Atalanta is a young lady who as a baby, was left on a mountaintop to die. She then was raised by a she-bear and grew into a young lady who became daring and quick. However, the story of Atalanta only partially follows the hero's journey. In the "Departure" stage, Atalanta's story does indeed follow the hero's journey. This stage can be summed up with a hero who "ventures forth from the world of common day into a region of supernatural wonder" (Document A). Atalanta's "Call to Action" stage was shown when her father "decided that she was not worth bringing up and had [Atalanta] left on a wild mountainside to die of cold and hunger" (Document B). A …show more content…

"The Road of Trials" stage is shown when Atalanta goes to help destroy the Calydonian Boar. Meleager, the prince of Calydonia, sent for every great athlete and "asked them to come to Calydonia and hunt down the monstrous beast" (Document C). Atalanta was one of them who hoped to save Calydonian and receive all the glory. Then, the "Atonement with the Father" occurs when Atalanta is reunited with her father when he realizes that Atalanta is worthy and almost as good as a son. When Atalanta walks off with all the glory after saving Meleager's life and helping to kill the boar, it is showing the "Ultimate Boon." However, one may realize that these steps are mixed up. The "Atonement with the Father" actually takes place after the "Ultimate Boon" in context to the story. Even though the first two stages partially show the hero's Journey, the third stage does not

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