Russian Formalism And The Hero

The novel, The invisible hero by Elizabeth Fensham explores the theme of heroism and villainy. Heroism can be defined as doing a selfless act in hope of inspiring others. Villainy can be defined as an act of doing something ‘evil’ in spite of another person or group. although it is commonly known that heroes and villains are polar opposite it is much more complex because it all depends on perspective. This idea of heroism and villainy will be expressed through an analysis of the style, characters, setting and plot.

Joseph Campbell dedicated his whole life researching patterns that appear in almost every hero story or movie. He discovered that there are a few basics stages that just about every hero character goes through. This cycle is called “the monomyth” or more commonly known as “the hero’s journey.” This paper will compare and contrast Beowulf and Shrek and how each fits into the monomyth. Every story that involves a hero will subsequently follow the concept of the Heroes Journey.

In all of literature, patterns and stages of the hero’s journey can be seen and identified within every story. Joseph Campbell applied the term “monomyth” to stories in order to describe basic stages that every hero quest goes through. When Joseph identified these common parts of stories, he helped connect the world of literature and establish recurring characters, actions, and situations. Even when pieces of literature that seem to have no connection to each other are examined, such as The Matrix directed by Lana and Lilly Wachowski, and The Epic of Gilgamesh by N.K. Sanders, the monomyth, the hero's journey, and archetypes are efficient ways to help compare and match pieces of literature and publications; all while helping to reflect on

To begin, Linda Seger’s article demonstrates how the idea of a hero is universal and is defined by their journey, which is incorrect because other cultures might define a hero as something else. In her article, she tries using ten stages of how a hero is sometimes just an ordinary person. Who then takes in order

There are a number of many different archetypes found in works of fiction and nonfiction that bestow upon the hero his true role in a work of literature. In the Middle English, chivalric romance Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, Gawain’s role as the hero emboldens as the story describes more and more archetypes of the quest. The monomyth can be described as the three step process that the hero takes in completing the quest motif. The basic template is supported by “separation, initiation, and return: which might be named the nuclear unit of the monomyth” (Campbell 28). Each of these three categories contain other subcategories, which help understand the different archetypical situation within the work itself. An understanding of three key archetypes -the magic weapon, the boon, and the unhealable wound- reveal the essence of Gawain’s role within the archetypal quest motif.

“The Hero’s Journey” is a pattern of narrative identified by the American scholar Joseph Campbell that appears in drama, storytelling, myth, religious ritual, and psychological development. It describes the typical adventure of the archetype known as The Hero, the person who goes out and achieves great deeds on behalf of the group, tribe, or civilization. The hero’s journey is divided into three sections departure, initiation, and return. The three sections are then divided into subsections that give a little more in detail journey that the so-called “hero” takes in the storyline. Hamlet and Simba are the main characters in the two storylines that take on the role of the hero.

The hero trope is used in many different genres in many different ways, but the genre in which this trope and the ‘hero’s quest’ appear in their traditional form is that of narrative heroic poetry. One such example being the eight century poem Beowulf. Which when tied and compared to a much more modern take on the traditional hero genre in the form of David Malouf’s “ransom” showcase the different ways in which the hero trope can be explored. Throughout both these texts, the author directs and challenges the reader's ideas of heroism. Within Beowulf especially where the traditional ideals of being a hero are challenged and reformed, to create depth and interesting new ideas thus come into play that co-exist with traditional hero tropes and the unique genre to become a new thing. Also within David Malouf’s ‘Ransom’ the genre is challenged by modernising a familiar traditional hero tale and inter-textualising it. Creating a whole new form of telling the heroes quest, without relying heavily on the original tale for details and instead brings forth more attention to characters that are in the background or barely mentioned in the original text.

Aspects such as abnormality, the visits to the supernatural world, and greater knowledge gain than original expected of the epic hero archetype guide the reader through this story. Leading them to realize that without understanding the dangers of something irreversible mistakes may be made and yet at the same time wisdom allows for innovation and progress to

In life, heroes are everywhere. They fight crime, save lives, and basically just do good deeds. Heroes follow their journey, which, when written, is actually very cliché. A hero follows a set of events in their journey that are rarely changed. In this essay, two hero’s are examined, Santiago from The Alchemist, and Dorothy from The Wizard of Oz. These two stories seem very different, but in the end, are actually very similar. When examined closely, one may find that their journeys are very similar, following the events of a hero’s journey. This seemingly simple set of events is found in almost every heroic story. First is the problem. The hero is in a not quite perfect way of life, and needs to fix it. Then there is the refusal, the hero is called up to fixed the problem, but refuses for whatever personal reason. Then they are forced to go, and meet a mentor. This mentor gives them the wisdom that they need to get through the journey. It may even be what the hero is striving to be. Then they cross the threshold from their ordinary world to the new special world. The fifth and sixth parts can be interchangeable. Trials and allies/enemies, either can come first. Then they reach what they have been striving for, the liar, the cave, the final destination as a normal person. Once the hero reaches this part, they will be forever changed. At some point in this final destination, they will be killed and reborn, whether it is metaphorical or literal. After this they will fight

Usually, when people think of the word ‘hero’, their mind conjures up several images of Superman, Batman, or Spiderman. Most people think of a hero as a steroid-riddled man in a tight suit and a cape, capable of flying, shooting lasers out of their eyes, or using some other kind of superhuman abilities. But a hero in a classic story is a completely different kind of archetype. Archetypal heroes are far from perfect – receiving supernatural help and making fatal flaws. A hero also embarks on an epic journey in which they face many issues, and are often honored after their death.

“The Hero’s Journey Defined” is an article by Anthony Ubelhor. The article goes over the way that John Campbell classified the way any story flows. It dips into the three main phases of the Journey, and the sub-phases within them. The first main idea and phase is the Departure, where the hero is hailed on to a journey, or quest. The Departure is the hero’s first step toward change and re-evaluation of themselves, and the world they live in, and they are helped along the way by many sources.

Without darkness, there is no light. Without cold, there is no hot. Without villain, there is no hero. Who and what dictates a hero? People try not to fathom whom they consider a villain, a hero in someone else’s perspective.

Story-telling is a pillar of human existence. Regardless of time, this methodical activity of the human race is what has enabled our species to understand the world around us. It is interesting to note in story-telling, an activity which is bound to our very existence, what themes, archetypes, and narratives have stood the test of time. Without a doubt, the mind subconsciously is drawn to the character build of the hero, a figure that most every story loses meaning without. While the archetypal hero has survived and often defined the act of story-telling, this is not to say that the characteristics of a hero and the way that the hero is portrayed have not changed. An unrivaled example of the similarities, differences, and progression of the heroic figure through the ages are found in Beowulf and Sir Gawain. While these tales of glory differ in age by roughly 700 years, they are similar in their pursuit of bravery, they differ in their ability to live up to their heroic codes, and when compared chronologically, Gawain is clearly a progression of the English heroic figure because of his dynamic character design and fallible nature.

The classical hero is a timeless description of human beings all around the world. Not only is it part of some human’s nature; it is used as a source of entertainment for people as well. The classical hero is seen both in the Iliad, as we have discussed, and in today’s world every day and in most cases everywhere. Heroes are seen today in TV shows, novels, movies, sports, in politics, and on the news, etc. As an audience, we love to study the classical hero whether we’re watching something or reading a novel or story about one. It always seems to be exhilarating because it’s part of our nature. The story of the hero motivates individuals to want to be like that person and strive to help

The hero archetype has prevailed throughout literature and media for thousands of years. This quixotic character completes a quest or expedition with little to no faults. In recent times, the ideal hero archetype is challenged by the untoward anti-hero archetype. Today, the anti-hero is largely represented and featured in recent film and society. The hero archetype is losing prevalence in modern fiction stories due to the increasing demand of the anti-hero.