Have you ever wondered what the seemingly different societies of the Anglo-Saxons, ancient Greeks, and ancient Indians have in common? All three of these societies wrote epics that use the concept of a monomyth in the various stages through their stories. According to the American mythologist Joseph Campbell “The standard path of the mythological of the hero is a magnification of the formula represented in the rights of passage…” (Joseph Campbell’s Monomyth) is a monomyth. Different parts of a monomyth that describe a series of events in a character throughout a story include the ordinary world (what life was like before the story), crossing the threshold (the character leaving for a battle, adventure, etc.), the call to adventure (what caused the character to leave), mentor (who assists them in their journey), and reward (what do they receive as a result of their actions). Although epics differ between the ancient societies in which they came from, the cycle that the character takes will be similar in many ways throughout the story.
The ordinary world is an important beginning for all stories, as it shows what the main character’s life is like before the book, and gives readers a glimpse of their personality and more importantly, the values that are most important to them. The poem Beowulf depicts the ordinary world of Beowulf, stating that, “…Beowulf, Higlac’s Follower and the strongest of the Geats – Greater and stronger than anyone anywhere in this world…” (Beowulf 26). The poem later goes on to describe prior events, such as the race with Brecca, that show his honor. Achilles’ personal character from The Iliad is shown from a series of other pieces of Greek Literature preceding this story and shows that, “Achilles distingu...
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...to see that within all of those big differences are many similarities. This includes things such as the occurrence of different series of events, the actions that the main character will take throughout the story, and the traits that people from those societies honor within a hero. All of stages of the cycle that the hero takes produces similar stories within societies without the realization of it.
Works Cited
“Beowulf.” Elements of Literature 6th Edition Ed. Kylene Beers, et al. Austin, Tx: Holt, 2009. 23-49. Print.
Hunter, James. “Achilles.” Pantheon. Encyclopedia Mythica, 30 November 2005. Web. 8 March 2014.
“Joseph Campbell’s Monomyth.” Berkley. Web. 8 March 2014
“Ramayana.” The Language of Literature Ed. Arthur N. Applebee, et al. Boston: McDougal Littell, 1983. 130-140. Print.
The Iliad. Trans. W.H.D. Rouse. New York: Signet Classics, 2007. Print.
Frank, Roberta. “The Beowulf Poet’s Sense of History.” In Beowulf – Modern Critical Interpretations, edited by Harold Bloom. New York: Chelsea House Publishers, 1987.
The monomyth, or Hero’s Journey, is an outline or pattern of events that a hero may follow in a story or movie. This so called pattern takes place in two locations: the ordinary world and the supernatural world. Joseph Campbell was the first person to notice this outline and actually research it. Osmosis Jones is just one example of a movie which follows the monomyth. This movie also serves as a great lesson of perseverance because even throughout the trials and tribulations, Jones never gives up and in the end is rewarded.
Clark, Gorge. “The Hero and the Theme.” In A Beowulf Handbook, edited by Robert Bjork and John D. Niles. Lincoln, Nebraska: Uiversity of Nebraska Press, 1997.
Francis, Erik Max. Beowulf. From The Harvard Classics. Volume 49. P.F. Collier & Son, 1910. Etext version by Robin Katsuya-Corbet. Online. Internet. November 26, 1998. Available HTTP: http://www.alcyone.com/max/lit/beowulf/
Beowulf. Norton Anthology of World Masterpieces. Expanded Edition Volume 1. ED. Maynard Mack et al. New York: Norton, 1995. 1546-1613.
In every culture, there are stories that get past down from generation to generation (Campbell 1). Tales of knights who slay dragons and princesses who kissed frogs are a part of every culture. All over the world, stories share comment characteristic. Joseph Campbell introduces a theory based on this idea called the monomyth, the idea that stories all share the same narrative pattern, in the book The Hero with a Thousand Faces. Overall, this theory shows the same narrative pattern in stories throughout the world, which symbolically reveals all humans must tackle difficulties and overcome them many times throughout life (5). Specifically, Campbell’s hero’s journey is comprised of six steps, which, collectively
Clark, Gorge. “The Hero and the Theme.” In A Beowulf Handbook, edited by Robert Bjork and John D. Niles. Lincoln, Nebraska: Uiversity of Nebraska Press, 1997.
Beowulf. The Norton Anthology of English Literature, Volume A. Ed. Stephen Greenblatt. New York: W. W. Norton & Co., 2006. 34-100.
Throughout the years, certain writers were able to set off a deep sympathetic resonance within readers by their usage of archetypal patterns. One of those patterns is known as the hero's journey, which Joseph Campbell gave an understandable idea of in his book The Hero with a Thousand Faces. According to his book, while comparing world's mythology, he found that no matter how far cultures are from each other, they will still have the same structure of hero's journey in their legends (Voytilla vii).
Tolkien, J.R.R.. “Beowulf: The Monsters and the Critics.” In Beowulf – Modern Critical Interpretations, edited by Harold Bloom. New York: Chelsea House Publishers, 1987.
Abrams, M.H., ed. Beowulf: The Norton Anthology of English Literature. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, Inc., 2001.
The epic hero’s journeys hold the hopes for future of ordinary people’s lives. The Epic of Gilgamesh was written in approximately 2000 B.C.E which is highly enriched with Ancient Mesopotamian religions, and The Ramayana was written by ancient Indians in around 1800 B.C.E. The stories were written in two different parts of the world. However, these two stories etched great evidence that show people from generation to generation that different cultures and religions are interconnected; they share ideas with each other. Both Gilgamesh and Rama traveled long journeys in these tales. These epic journeys played a role in the creation of different archetypes. We can clearly see that these two tales share similarities between these archetypes. Although
The Ramayana is the most famous and well-known of all Indian epics, originally based on an epic poem it has taken many variations and forms over the centuries. Traditionally the story centers on the hero Prince Rama, who is the embodiment of virtue and perseverance, as he is wrongfully denied his birthright of being crowned king and instead is unjustly exiled into the forest where he encounters his fair share of dilemma. In R. K. Narayan’s condensed, modern version of The Ramayana the classic conflict of duality is a predominant theme, as Rama faces many instances of uncertainty and trivial chaos which are eventually balanced by order and goodness under the laws of karmic causation and dharma alike which he virtuously strives to uphold. Nina
Beowulf. Holt elements of literature. Ed G Kylene Beers and Lee Odeel. 6th ed. Austin: Holt, Rinehart, and Winston, 2008. 21-48. Print.
The literature of a culture is a reflection of its beliefs. This is true of its mythology. In a fantasy setting, the qualities that a society exalts in a protagonist, here the hero of the myth, can be fully manifested, without being restricted by reality. Although these qualities differ, the principle remains the same throughout these cultures. Despite the differences chronologically and geographically between India, ancient Greece, and modern America, their heroes are similar in their superhuman abilities and courageousness. As heroes, they find themselves obligated to save others who cannot save themselves. The burden of their heroic status is to take on challenges and defeat them.