Hero's Journey Analysis

Watching a film, one can easily recognize plot, theme, characterization, etc., but not many realize what basic principle lies behind nearly every story conceived: the hero’s journey. This concept allows for a comprehensive, logical flow throughout a movie. Once the hero’s journey is thoroughly understood, anyone can pick out the elements in nearly every piece. The hero’s journey follows a simple outline. First the hero in question must have a disadvantaged childhood. Next the hero will find a mentor who wisely lays out his/her prophecy. Third the hero will go on a journey, either literal or figurative, to find him/herself. On this journey the hero will be discouraged and nearly quit his/her quest. Finally, the

The 1st stage is Departure. In the departure of a hero’s journey, as outlined by Joseph Campbell, a hero will question the world he or she lives in because he or she is different. Also in most journey of a hero there will be some sort of call to adventure, or a reason for leaving, which a hero will sometimes deny, and sometimes accept. The ordinary world, (there is something different about our hero in his/her world), he has massive strength. Accepting the call, (challenge accepted) Zeus sends Hercules on a mission to fulfil his god powers so he can join his

Stage one of the Hero Cycle is called the Ordinary World. This is the hero’s everyday life, where he is oblivious to the adventure that is to come, and the reader learns details that may be helpful later in the story. In many stories, this stage shows the hero in a human world. This makes the hero character easier to identify with, thus making the him easier to emphasize with later on in the story.

In the late 1940’s a man named Joseph Campbell shared his Mythic principal with the world. He explains that there is a three-stage formula that he calls a Hero Journey which is the structure of every story. Though most stories are completely different on the outside, the stories are almost structured around these three stages. Stage 1 is the hero leaves the everyday world and enters another world. While Stage 2 the hero is challenged by opposing forces and must pass a series a test throughout the movie. That will then determine who will be victorious, either the hero or the opposing forces. Stage 3 is tied into Stage 2 because if the hero is victorious, they will return to the ordinary world with a gift for the world.

In stories, there is always a pattern that they all have in common. This certain pattern is known as the Hero’s Journey. There are varying descriptions of the Hero’s Journey steps but only the steps that are set by the teacher is used. These steps are the “The Call”, “Allies”, “Preparation”, “The Guardians of the Threshold”, “Crossing the Threshold”, “Road of Trials”, “Saving Experience”, “Transformation”, and ”Sharing the Gift”.This essay is explaining what the Hero’s Journey is in the book Whirligig by Paul Fleischman. The step that is coming up is the Call which is when the hero starts their journey.

The first phase of the hero’s journey archetype is called the “ordinary world.” according to Christopher Vogler, this is the stage in which “The hero, uneasy, uncomfortable or unaware, is introduced sympathetically so the audience can identify with the situation or dilemma.” In the beginning of the story, the author discusses how the story makes him uncomfortable:

The first stage of The Hero’s Journey is the ordinary world, which is essentially the part of the story in which the protagonist is

Small or big, everything we do in life is part of our journey. Reg Harris’ “The Hero’s Journey” describes the voyage one takes throughout life to grow and change as a person. He breaks the journey down into eight steps leading to the return. It starts out as a goal that isn’t always easy to reach, one goes through hardship and personal doubts only to succeed and become a better person. An example of this journey can be found in the movie, Troy through the character Achilles. Achilles is a strong fearless warrior in the movie, Troy who goes through “The Hero’s Journey” and ends up with a change of heart.

Moreover, in the Ordeal the hero faces his greatest fear and dies. The hero may also face the death of someone close to him, from which the hero will have more reason to complete the journey. From this death the hero will come back stronger and even more prepared to defeat the villain. On to the Reward stage, the hero receives a reward or treasure because he finished the journey, but because of death he can lose it. On The Road Back the hero decides to leave the special world with the treasure that he has earned, now he must go home as a hero. When he is resurrected he is purified and is made stronger than he ever was before, this sacrifice that he made brought peace to the world and the villain was stopped. No longer will the villain return, and for now on the hero will be praised because he has earned it. Finally, in the Return With The Elixir Stage the hero proceeds with the journey or decides to return back home to the Ordinary World with the treasure that has the power to make the hero’s world how he pleases, at the end of the story the hero is now everything he set out to

These stages are what makes the story. They create and shape the hero. This is their journey. 12. Return- going back to ordinary life, only to repeat the cycle- Pg.67 “...adventure is always and

He believes that all stories are just modified versions of one simple format. Campbell's theory of the hero’s journey consists of 17 steps divided into 3 stages. The first stage is called Departure and consists of the steps: Call to Adventure, Refusal of the Call, Supernatural Aid, Crossing of the First Threshold, and Belly of the Whale. The second stage is Initiation and consists of six steps, more specifically: The Road of Trials, The Meeting with the Goddess, Woman as Temptress, Atonement with the Father, Apotheosis and The Ultimate Boon. The third stage is Return and the remaining steps are: Refusal of the Return, The Magic Flight, Rescue from Without, The Crossing of the Return Threshold, Master of the Two Worlds and Freedom to Live. Although written in vastly different cultural origins and time periods, the heroes in Gilgamesh, Beowulf, and Things Fall Apart, follow the stages Campbell defines in his work, The Hero with a Thousand Faces. It must be noted, however, that the hero in Things Fall Apart completes these stages in a different order than what is originally

The journey stage the ordeal is said to be by Joseph Campbell is where the hero confronts their biggest challenge. Qualities in this stage are confronting biggest fear and/or challenge and facing a life or death situation. Jerry from Through the Tunnel by Doris Lessing successfully meets his challenge in this stage of the journey because he conquered his fear and swam through the tunnel. Jerry had watched other kids swim through a tunnel in the ocean and had tried to do it himself. He then failed but did not give up; he then said “As soon as she had bought the goggles, he grabbed them from her hand as if she were going to claim them for herself, and was off, running down the steep path to the bay” (Lessing, 1) which showed he was eager to get out and try again.

Hero's journey is the transition that a normal man goes through to become a hero. There is a set pattern of events that take place and thus this journey forms the basic template for all the stories and folktales that have been narrated since the beginning of times. From the very fundamental bed time stories to the traditional and popular tales, hero's journey is the path that has been observed to be followed by the narrator of the story. In the book called The Hero with a Thousand Faces written by Joseph Campbell, this journey has been described in great detail. In this paper, we shall discuss the stages of the Hero's journey briefly.

Phase two of the hero’s journey is “Initiation and Transformation” and this includes “The Challenges”, “The

is a pattern of narrative that appears in drama, storytelling, myth, religious ritual, and psychological development. It describes the typical adventure of the archetype known as The Hero in twelve stages.