Steve Jobs Archetypal Hero

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.

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

The use of Archetypes in literature is highly prevalent. A common archetype is the saviour archetype, also known as the messianic or Christ-like figure. Usually the protagonist, the Christ-like figure exhibits qualities that parallel that of the biblical Jesus, through characterization, and symbolic actions. There are a few common traits exhibited by this character, including, but not limited to, being self-sacrificing and loyal, manifestations of divine qualities, displaying kindness or forgiveness. With the advent of postmodern literature, authors tend to avoid the theme of resurrection, but rather focus on a symbolic martyr; sacrificing himself for the greater good. Authors frequently and consistently make use of this archetypal figure

The modern world is filled with different kinds of heroes. To some, heroes are sports figures who are winning not only on the playing field but also in life. To others, heroes are family members or in most cases fictional characters, (superheroes), who are fighting against evil. That being said everyone has a hero figure that he or she views as a role model, it is who they are striving to be like. An example of the modern hero that will be discussed in the remainder of this paper comes from The Batman Trilogy, which happens to be Batman himself.

The Western archetypal hero’s story teaching us to remain loyal, protect the weak and the innocent, and even the weak can achieve great success with help of others and the right mind set. The hero story also teaching us that good deeds are rewarded at the end and the bad ones are being punished (Janaro &Altshuler, 2017).

The word hero stimulates distinct ideas within each individual’s mind; some people may imagine a strong, muscular, super-powered, and confident human being. This type of thought process is what some people would believe is the ideal way to describe a hero, while other individuals may believe that a brave, honest, selfless, and courageous individual, that sacrifices him or herself for a good cause, to be the best way to portray a hero. In the article, “The Thematic Paradigm”, Robert B. Ray categorizes the official hero and unofficial hero. The introduction of the official and unofficial heroes allowed other types of heroes to be discussed such as the anti-hero and the reluctant hero. However, whether or not these heroes remain prevalent in

The stories of heroes are told everywhere; stories of caped men and dashing knights; the poor orphan who used his gift to save the world from the scheming villain, etc. When it comes to the topic of epic heros, most would unhesitatingly agree that heroes are static characters, they were destined for greatness since birth. This is not quite so, as heroes must be dynamic characters. They are made into who they are and they aren’t created from a prophecy or an anomaly that sets them apart from the norm. Heroes, like those around them are shaped by their past and present and are not determined by birth. Still there’s a common belief that the people one idolizes, their heroes, are distant and unreachable; otherworldly even. Some would say that the heroes were always like that, they were born to serve a purpose: to save the world. Humans change all the time but would a hero be the same? It seems to hard to believe that heroes are human too when people hear the grandiose tales of the epic heroes like the crafty Odysseus or mighty King Arthur. The heroes in the “Odyssey” and “The Once and Future King” seem to remain unaltered in their respective stories but that is not so. They are human and they do experience emotions and change throughout life just like any other person.

There is no original story. All stories derive themes and characters that go with the human situation, The Archetypes. An Archetype is undeniably a theme for the character, the common Archetypes that Author’s exhibit are; The Hero, The Mentor, The Villain, and The Innocence. Authors use Archetypes to develop meaning to their stories, for a much deeper connection between the reader and the characters. After reading Shakespeare’s Macbeth, There are many relations to Archetypes and Character meaning. Archetypal is approached being closely connected with psychological theory because different archetypes are inserted in human psyche and the mass of archetypes have individualities with the personalities, their actions, and behaviour

One of the most common aspects of any type of story is a hero. A hero is characterized as a person, typically a man, who is admired or idealized for courage, outstanding achievements, or noble qualities. Hero’s are in most cases faced with a conflict. However, no matter how difficult it may be or how many obstacles he/she may face along the road, the hero will always (almost always) rise to the occasion and come out victorious.

It it no surprise that the hero story is present in a variety of the arts ranging from the earliest surviving work of literature, to children’s books, to modern day motion picture masterpieces. The characteristics of a hero have withstood the test of time, and remained remarkably similar. Traits of a modern day hero can be traced back to “The Epic of Gilgamesh” which dates back to two-thousand BC. This reflects the power of a hero and its message that it portrays to audiences of all ages and backgrounds. The ability to capture the attention and resonate with a universal crowd is unique to a hero. That being said, even though there exists a multitude of hero stories, all of heroes in them share a common journey with distinct actions and

The making of a hero comes from the person who will be the hero themselves. When becoming a hero, you embark on a cycle known as the Hero’s Journey. This cycle leads through a simplistic route that most heroes take: The normal life, call to adventure, refusal, meeting the mentor, crossing the threshold, Tests/allies/enemies, approach,ordeal, reward, return, new life, resolution, and back to the normal life. There are some who don’t follow through this journey completely, but still manage to get some of the parts of this Journey into it’s story.

Joseph Campbell, a famous writer once said “In literature a hero is someone who has given his or her life to something bigger than oneself." Every hero story needs certain characters that show the chosen one what it says in the quote to the hero. Archetypes are certain things a hero story needs to make the story have a good plot and structure. For example a mentor is an archetype necessary in every hero story because the mentor is the character that makes the hero go through the change. An archetype of a hero is important in literature because it provides a common catalyst to the story.

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.

Steve Jobs has always been a hero to me because he is the perfect example of how the American dream is achievable though hard work and dedication. After dropping out of college, Jobs created Apple, a multi-billion dollar company, in his garage. After the company tried to seize Jobs's control over the company, he turned in his resignation and went on to create another multi-billion dollar company called Pixar and another smaller company named NeXT. Shortly after, Apple bought NeXT and Steve Jobs reclaimed his role as CEO. This led him to create to create the Iphone and Ipad which we all know and love today. But he is not my hero for doing all these great things. Steve Jobs is my hero because he always loved what he was doing. one of my favorite

A transformational leader is a person that lays his/her goals out and takes extraordinary measures to accomplish them. Their goals usually focus on the well being of the situation and their people. They strive to change the views of others and convince followers that the ethical behavior is morally correct of the leader's. An example of an exceptional leader would be Steve Jobs, the current CEO/co-founder of Apple Inc. Jobs is considered a leading figurehead in both the entertainment and computer industry. "Steve Jobs is listed as Fortune Magazine's most powerful businessman of 2007 out of twenty-five other top businessmen" (Wikipedia). Steve Jobs has made a large impact on our contemporary society due to his contributions, accomplishments