The Hero's Journey : Summary of the Steps

In Joseph Campbell’s 17 Stages of a Hero’s Journey, Campbell indicates the first step of the hero/heroine's journey the “Call to Adventure” in which the hero receives calling to the unknown ("Joseph Campbell’s 17 Stages of the Hero’s Journey." David R. Jolly. N.p., 21 May 2013. Web. 11 May 2017.) . For instance, recalling back towards Wilde’s hedonistic novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray, Wilde

All heroes around the world go through a journey of their own. Those journeys can be a physical, , mental, emotional journey, and lots more. These types of personal journeys are demonstrated in an epic poem, The Odyssey, by Homer, an interview, The Hero’s adventure by Joseph Campbell and Bill Moyers, a short poem, Courage by Anne Sexton, a graphic novel, The Odyssey by Gareth Hinds. They all show how journeys can be transformative and show a person’s strengths and/or weaknesses.

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.

The next stage of the Hero Cycle is called Call to Adventure. This is when something disrupts the hero’s ordinary world and presents a challenge for him to undertake. This call to action throws the hero’s everyday life off balance, and initiates what will happen if the hero ignores the call. Many times, the hero must choose between two different calls.

Hero faces most dangerous meeting with death – this shows the hero can apply all the wisdom

The usual hero adventure begins with someone from whom something has been taken, or who feels there is something lacking in the normal experience available or permitted to the members of society. The person then takes off on a series of adventures beyond the ordinary, either to recover what has been lost or to discover some life.

The helper helps the hero during their journey. They are providing the Hero support on clearing his tasks. The good Witch of the South, The Guardian of gate, the Winged monkeys, farmer’s wife and Glinda’s Soldier. They all carry The spatial transference of the hero (G) function. The Cowardly Lion, the Tin Woodman, the Scarecrow, the Winkies also Marked as helper because they carry the function rescue from pursuit

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.

A quest hero is someone who has the courage to try, and stay determined. Another aspect of a quest hero is that they have a call, an impulse, or a summon, that sends them on a journey. Mattie Ross represents the quest hero in this novel. For example, as Mattie realizes nothing is being done about Tom Chaney on the loose, she decides to take matters into her own hands. She states ‘“Nobody here knew my father and I am afraid nothing much is going to be done about it except I do it myself”’(65). The fact that no one is chasing her father’s murderer, is her call. If there are ten marshals out looking for Chaney, Mattie would have been satisfied, and gone home without embarking on this journey. Since he is still on the loose, she wants to go and find him herself, proving that this is her call. Another way Mattie shows she is the quest hero is she is determined. For instance, even though she is told that she is not to go on the expedition, she stays steadfast. Mattie says ‘“I aim to get Tom Chaney and if

world and returns to offer wisdom and experience. This otherworldly character or magical guide regularly gives the hero the way to conquer the adventure. As a less than dependable rule the blessing is just insight. In each occurrence it is something the hero needs to succeed. As Campbell says,

The boon is the reward gained from surpassing their toughest trial throughout the trials brought forward. This “boon” can be a goal, a power, treasure, or even just a feeling. The boon is usually the climax of the story, also known as the highest point of tension in the story. Once the hero has achieved the boon, the hero must then decide whether to return to the ordinary world with the boon. If he chooses to return he will often face challenges on the return journey as well. If the hero succeeds in returning to the ordinary world with the boon, it can improve the world and change it forever. Again these are only some of the 17 stages of the monomyth. Campbell states that it is very rare the myth will contain all 17 stages; they can also be presented in various orders. This makes it sometimes difficult to spot the monomyth structure within a story. (Martin)

In times of peril, a hero rises to protect those who cannot protect themselves. Movies tell us heroes are from a different world, wear a suit of armor/cape, or wield superhuman abilities; however, real-life heroes do not fit that mold. In reality, heroes, come in many forms and need little more than courage and boldness to do what is right when no one else will.

In Greek Mythology, the story of a quest came in the form of Hercules’ 12 Labors. Hercules had gotten into a blind rage and he accidentally killed his family. Because of his transgressions against his family, he was made to do twelve impossible labors to redeem himself including slaying a lion. His bravery and determination drove him to be able to complete all of the labors and become immortal. This shows that if you are brave and determined, you can do everything that you set your mind to.

In all Hero myths, Seger argues that the hero always receives some kind of help from a person in the myth that guides and steers the hero in the right direction. In Star Wars, Luke has the help of Obi-Wan Kenobi in order to teach him the way of the force. Similarly, in Harry Potter, Harry gets the help from Hagrid who is one of the teachers at Hogwarts. Hagrid helps show Harry where to go in order to get his books,

The call to adventure is a big change, often by accident. After the change, the herald tells the hero about their adventure.