Archetypes & The Hero’s Journey · 2016-02-08 · Archetypes & The Hero’s Journey What Do Harry Potter, Luke Skywalker, Simba, King Arthur, Moses, Frodo, and William Wallace all
17
Archetypes & The Hero’s Journey What Do Harry Potter, Luke Skywalker, Simba, King Arthur, Moses, Frodo, and William Wallace all have in common?
What Do Harry Potter, Luke Skywalker, Simba, King Arthur,
Moses, Frodo, and William Wallace all have in common?
Presenter
Presentation Notes
The archetypal hero appears in all religions, mythologies, and stories of the world. He is an expression of our personal and collective unconscious, as theorized by Carl Jung and Joseph Campbell (see below). All archetypal heroes share certain characteristics. This fact has only come to light this century, after people like Joseph Campbell began comparing mythologies of the world. Heroes are constructions; they are not real. All societies have similar hero stories not because they coincidentally made them up on their own, but because heroes express a deep psychological aspect of human existence. They can be seen as a metaphor for the human search of self-knowledge. In other words, the hero shows us the path to our own consciousness through his actions. Jung called the process of forming a consciousness "individuation," which means the process by which we reconcile the conscious/unconscious aspects of the psyche (Davies, et al. 327-331). Thus, when the hero slays a monster, he is not literally killing it in the real world, but facing an aspect of the unconscious, such as lust or rage, in order to control that side of his being. The hero stories can be thought of as road maps to successful assimilation of the conscious, rational mind with the unconscious, animal mind. The images of the hero conquering death or returning from a successful battle provide the restricted conscious mind with new raw material into which to expand, thereby forcing the consumers of the hero stories to expand their conscious image of themselves (Davies, et. al. 331). The hero stories are both a record of primitive encounters with the unconscious and a prompt for individuals to enter into the struggle for higher consciousness. Functioning in this way, heroes give men and women hope for such things as life after death, reprieve from suffering, and a sense that order rules their lives.
Jung and Campbell
Carl Jung and Joseph Campbell developed the idea of the archetype Archetype: A recurring
pattern of images, situations, or symbols found in the mythology, religion, art, and dreams of cultures around the world
Joseph Campbell
Carl Jung
Presenter
Presentation Notes
Carl Jung and Joseph Campbell are two of the most prominent explorers of the psychoanalytical and mythological origins for human and social behavior. Carl Jung expanded the work of Sigmund Freud and the unconscious mind to emphasize the mythological forces working within the individual to shape his or her personality. Jung formed the concept of archetype and collective unconscious to explain the commonality of dream images and situations found in all people. Jung believed individual and social behavior and thought have their roots in a common palette of characters and situations the mind retains from early human consciousness development. To Jung, the archetypal hero represents the psyche's quest for individuation, the process that makes each person unique. Joseph Campbell built on Carl Jung's concept of the collective unconscious to encompass all the world's mythologies. Campbell studied the world's religions, art, and stories and discovered common threads throughout all, including the hero. Campbell believed that mythology is the collective "dream" of mankind, the "song of the universe." Campbell's work highlights mankind's common search, both personally and socially, for meaning and truth through the ages.
Archetypal Hero Traits Unusual Circumstances of Birth Leaves Family and Lives With Others Traumatic Event Leads to Quest Special Weapon Supernatural Help Proves Himself on Quest Journey and Unhealable Wound Atonement With Father Spiritual Apotheosis
Presenter
Presentation Notes
Simply put, an archetype is a recurring pattern of character, symbol, or situation found in the mythology, religion, and stories of all cultures. In the context of archetypes, Campbell defined his work as a search for "the commonality of themes in world myths, pointing to a constant requirement in the human psyche for a centering in terms of deep principles." (The Power of Myth xvi). Jung defined his concept of the archetype as a formula that is the result of "countless experiences of our ancestors. They are, as it were, the psychic residue of numberless experiences of the same type." (quoted in Gordon ii). Both men felt that the experience of being human can be examined collectively across time, space, and culture, and that our commonality can be traced to the most primitive origins of the human consciousness, where the archetypal themes originate in modern men and women. Archetypes can be thought of as the precursor to conscious thought, existing in the unconscious mind as expressions of psychic happenings, but without a basis in the physical world. Humans didn't "invent" archetypes, but they do express archetypes in the conscious world of art, literature, and religion. Unconscious energies are given form in this way. Therefore, the hero is not someone "out there" in the world; he is all of us and our need to grow and mature.
The Villain
Some people see the villain as representing the dark side of the hero.
According to psychologist, Carl Jung, each of us has a dark side or shadow to our personality.
Others see the villain as representing the fears of those watching the film.
With this idea in mind, consider the journey and characteristics of a hero such as Batman, Spiderman, or Superman.
Event Archetypes: Stages of the “Hero’s Journey”
Birth Discovery of Destiny/ Initiation
to Quest The Quest Romance The Goal and the Journey Home
Birth The hero is usually of
humble origin or comes from a disadvantaged situation. The hero is not “ready made” for great adventure.
Unusual Birth: often in danger or born into royalty. Luke w/ aunt and
uncle Symba born a prince Moses put in basket King Arthur doesn’t
know he’s royalty until he pulls sword from stone.
The hero sets out on a journey that is both a physical movement from one place to another and an interior journey in which the hero usually grows in wisdom, maturity, or insight.
Presenter
Presentation Notes
Sometimes the circumstances are traumatic that force the hero to leave, as with Simba in The Lion King or Wallace in Braveheart, both of whom lose their fathers violently. With Luke in Star Wars and Arthur in the legends of King Arthur, the circumstances are more for protection than anything else. Either way, the hero must leave his home temporarily. Simba's father is murdered by Scar, which leaves our little hero helpless and forces him to leave his kingdom. Have no fear, however, heroes always return to their land. On the right is a small portion of a painting by Michelangelo in the Sistene Chapel. Michelangelo covered the walls and ceiling of this chapel with paintings depicting Biblical stories so people could see their heroes in action. Moses also had to leave. Remember what he did that forced him out of Egypt? He slew an Egyptian slavemaster in anger. That's Moses with the sword at the bottom of the painting. He is also shown at the top of the painting, fleeing Egypt. Moses appears many times in the same painting because Michelangelo tells Moses' entire life story in one picture. He did this because at the time most people couldn't read and depended on images to understand their religion. Now, granted, he was a man when this happened, but he still was forced out of his "land." Michelangelo showed the story of a hero visually, just like modern-day movies show the hero in action. The hero has remained the same through time, even until today. Pretty neat, huh?
Turn to: Heroic Journey Handout In Section #1, The Lion King is documented. Tell
the story of two well known heroes (e.g., Superman, Spiderman), using the elements of the heroic journey to guide you.
Discussion Questions: What similarities do you see among the stories? What differences do you see? Are there any patterns? Are there similarities between the heroic journey and our
