Transcript Archetypal or Hero`s Journey

Hero’s or Archetypal
Journey
Key Vocabulary
Hero, archetype, tragedy, quest,
and the eight-step transformation
Hero
• someone that is distinguished by
exceptional courage, nobility, and
strength
Archetype
• representing an original type after
which other similar things are
patterned
• recurring patterns of human behavior,
symbolized by standard types of
characters in movies and stories
Quest
• the act of searching for something
Tragedy
• an event resulting in great loss and
misfortune
Freewrite
(5 Minutes)
What journey in life have you experienced?
What was the end result of your journey?
Did you experience or undergo a change or
transformation?
Eight-Step Transformation
“Every challenge or change
we face in life is a journey.”
“Every move to a new school, job, or
city opens the chance to stop being
what we were and to start being what
we can become.”
“The journey is a process of selfdiscovery and self-integration, of
maintaining balance and harmony in
our lives.”
“As with any process of growth and change, a
journey can be confusing and painful, but it
brings opportunities to develop confidence,
perspective and a new way of being in our
world.”
“Understanding the Journey pattern can
help us understand the literature we read,
the movies we see, and the experiences
which shape our life.”
REMEMBER: “The journey is a single
process, an individual adventure towards
growth and transformation.”
The hero is called to adventure although
he is reluctant to accept.
Departure 1: Superman leaves Planet Krypton in the crystal star even
though he is a child and does not fully comprehend this experience.
Departure 2: Superman leaves his aging mother behind in his small town
of Smallville.
The hero crosses a threshold into a new,
more dangerous world, gaining a more
mature perspective.
1st Threshold: He leaves his home
in Smallville as Clark Kent and
creates a new home as Superman
(initiation).
2nd Threshold: He leaves his home
once again and moves to the city of
METROPOLIS to work at the Daily
Planet and to live a dual life (Clark
Kent & Superman).
2nd Threshold: He leaves his home
once again and moves to the city of
METROPOLIS to work at the Daily
Planet and to live a dual life (Clark
Kent & Superman).
He leaves his world in Smallville and finds his first (new) love
in Lois Lane.
The hero is given supernatural aid, and
he endures tests of strength,
resourcefulness, and endurance.
The hero descends into the innermost
cave, an underworld, or some other
place of great trial. Sometimes this
place can be within a hero’s own mind.
Because of this trial, the hero is reborn
in some way—physically, emotionally,
or spiritually. Through this experience,
the hero changes internally.
The hero uses his new wisdom to
restore fertility and order to the
land.
SEPARATION (from the known)
1. The Call
2. The Threshold (with guardians,
helpers, and mentors)
INITIATION AND TRANSFORMATION
3. The Challenges
4. The Abyss
5. The Transformation/Apotheosis
6. The Revelation
7. The Atonement
THE RETURN (to the known world)
8. The Return (with a gift) to assume new role
in life
1. THE CALL
SEPARATION (from the known)
1. The Call
•Invites us into the journey willingly
or by force
•Gives us a chance to face the
“unknown” and gain something
new
•May be a quick or traumatic
change or it may “sneak up on us”
Departure 1: Superman leaves Planet Krypton in the crystal star even
though he is a child and does not fully comprehend this experience.
Departure 2: Superman leaves his aging mother behind in his small town
of Smallville.
2. THE
THRESHOLD
(guardians and helpers)
SEPARATION (from the known)
2. The
-once we are “called,” we must PASS
Threshold OVER the threshold into the
(with
UNKNOWN which may be filled with
guardians,
challenges and dangers; the “jump
helpers, and
start” for the journey
mentors)
-we encounter “threshold
guardians”; they protect us by
keeping us from taking journeys for
which we are unready or unprepared
-once we are READY, the guardians
step aside and point the way = Helpers
and Mentors
1st Threshold: He leaves his home
in Smallville as Clark Kent and
creates a new home as Superman
(initiation).
2nd Threshold: He leaves his home
once again and moves to the city of
METROPOLIS to work at the Daily
Planet and to live a dual life (Clark
Kent & Superman).
3. THE
CHALLENGES
-SERIES of challenges
-experiences TEMPTERS that try
to pull you away from your path
using fear, doubt, or distraction
INITIATION AND TRANSFORMATION
3. The
-face a series of challenges or
Challenges
temptations that strike our
greatest weakness
-Problem = trying to tell the
difference between
“guardians” and “tempters”
-Tempters try to PULL US
AWAY from our path using
fear, doubt, or distraction
TEMPTER
(Physical) Weakness =
Kryptonite
4. THE
ABYSS
THE GREATEST
CHALLENGE
(must face it ALONE)
INITIATION AND TRANSFORMATION
4. The Abyss
-GREATEST CHALLENGE of the
journey
-we must face it “ALONE”
GREATEST
(mental/emotional)
CHALLENGE:
Lois Lane dies in the
earthquake caused by
Lex Luthor. Superman is
angry that his
“superpowers” cannot
save her. (He
remembers the death of
his adopted father.)
He decides to FIND A
WAY to save her.
5. TRANSFORMATION /
APOTHEOSIS
6. REVELATION
7. ATONEMENT
INITIATION AND TRANSFORMATION
5.
Transforma
tion or the
Apotheosis
6.
Revelation
-when we conquer the Abyss and overcome
our fears, our transformation becomes
complete
-final step in this process = a moment of
death and rebirth (a part of us dies so that
a new part can be born) / EXAMPLE: fear
dies to make way for courage
-Apotheosis is the realization that we are now
“godlike”
-we experience a REVELATION (dramatic
change in the way we think or view life)
-we are not just changed, but we are
DIFFERENT
INITIATION AND TRANSFORMATION
7. The Atonement
-We are “AT ONE” with our
new self
-We are FULLY reborn
-We have been restored to
harmony in our life and in
our world until “our next
call”
TRANSFORMATION / APOTHEOSIS:
He is transformed because he
conquers the Abyss (he saves Lois
Lane using his super powers). This
represents a moment of “death”
(disillusioned when Lois Lane dies)
and “rebirth” (he CAN and DOES save
Lois Lane). The transformation is
complete.
He experiences the Apotheosis
because his super powers have
become LIMITLESS (he saves a life).
He becomes “god-like.”
REVELATION
He experiences a dramatic change in the way
he thinks or views life.
He father “reveals” to him that he must NEVER
use his powers to change the natural course of
human life. He DISOBEYS, and he decides to
think for himself.
RESULT: He matures. He becomes
DIFFERENT. He becomes a MAN.
ATONEMENT
He knew that what he did went against
everything that he had been taught. However,
he finds a sense of PEACE or CLOSURE to his
decision. With Lois Lane alive, he feels that
HARMONY exists in his life once again.
THE RETURN (to the known world)
8. The Return (with a gift) to assume NEW ROLE in life
•FINAL STAGE OF OUR JOUNEY = RETURN TO
EVERYDAY LIFE
•We discover our gift (new level of skill or awareness)
•BEGIN CONTRIBUTING TO OUR SOCIETY (save or
renew a city/community)
•DISADVANTAGES: 1) may be rejected by society
2) society may not be able to grasp/accept your
gifts 3) HERO may become frustrated and leave
society to be on his/her own
Warden: “This country is safe again, Superman, thanks to you.”
Superman: “No sir. Don’t thank me, Warden. We’re all part of the
same team. Good night.”
What is this hero or
archetypal journey?
“It is the pattern that we follow in our own
lives as we face challenges and move from
child to teenager, from teenager to adult, from
adult to old age, and from old age into death.”
RESOURCES
Life’s Great Adventure
The Hero’s Journey by Reg Harris
Link: http://www.yourheroicjourney.com/