Hero’s Journey Reflection Paper In Jeff Hobb’s book, The Short and Tragic Life of Robert Peace, Robert Peace makes many distinct comparisons in Joesph Campbell’s model of a hero in The Hero’s Journey. Robert Peace’s “call to adventure”, “preparation”, and “crossing the threshold”, is when Jackie makes it her priority to focus on her son’s education and enroll him into a private school despite her financial circumstances. These are indeed the same because this can be seen as the beginning of Robert’s trials and tribulations, as well as, the preparation for his journey to Yale. Yale is where Robert begins a journey in very paradoxical environment from his life in Newark. Robert’s trials of his loss and separation of his father can be seen
as the center point of Robert’s struggles. The struggle of being separated from his father also starts to shape his personality as Robert shows to have an in-depth amount of anger that Robert subdues inside of him, but unintentionally vents it out through his actions by doing harmful behaviors such as: smoking marijuana, selling drugs, drinking, and selling weapons. These trials are somewhat aided by the help of Robert’s allies such as his mother Jackie, Oswaldo, Jeff, etc, are seen to be a powerful support mechanism in Robert’s life. Even though Robert seems to want to give a perception of a strong and willful appearance, his actions show us something of a different entirety. Robert’s allies are very crucial to his development as a person, motivations, and guidance.
In John Knowles’ A Separate Peace, characters Gene and Phineas begin their journeys to adulthood in a war-torn environment. The dynamic formed between a world full of struggle and the crucial age of development in high school proves to be an excellent setting to examine the abilities of both Gene and Phineas to “come of age.” Being a Bildungsroman, the theme of coping with war and death is highlighted via the imagery that surrounds both Gene’s epiphany moment at the marble stairs, and its introduction at the beginning of the novel. Additionally, Knowles employs a flashback to set a nostalgic and somewhat reflective mood, which further extends this meaning. In Knowles’ “coming of age” novel A Separate Peace, the use of imagery surrounding the marble stairs, and a reminiscent flashback aid Gene discovers that war and death can never be understood.
Griffin strikes all of these aspects in her essay. What is most compelling about the essay, however, is the way Griffin incorporated personal, family, and world history into a chilling story of narrative and autobiography, without ever losing the factual evidence the story provided. The chapter reads like an entire novel, which helps the audience to understand the concepts with a clear and complete view of her history, not needing to read any other part of the book. Two other authors, Richard Rodriguez, and Ralph Ellison, who write about their experiences in life can possibly be better understood as historical texts when viewed through the eyes of Griffin. Rodriguez explores his own educational history in his essay “The Achievement of Desire” and Ralph Ellison depicts his own journeys and personal growth in his essay, “An Extravagance of Laughter”. Both essays, which when seen through Susan Griffin’s perspective, can be reopened and examined from a different historical view, perhaps allowing them to be understood with a more lucid view of history and what it is really about.
Jeff Shaara’s novel, The Glorious Cause, takes the reader through the American Revolution, starting with the signing of “The Declaration of Independence” and going to Charles Cornwallis’ surrender at Yorktown. It also goes beyond telling a record of a historical event by putting the reader into the minds and situations of many historical figures at the time including: George Washington, Charles Cornwallis, William Howe, Nathan Hale, Nathaniel Green, Marquis de Lafayette, Benjamin Franklin, and several others. By doing this, Shaara can show perspectives from both sides of the war, and this allows the reader to fully understand the motives and decision behind the battles. This switch between characters and perspective makes The Glorious Cause
Assignment details: Analyze the components of the hero’s journey. Basically, support the argument that Jaws follows the epic hero cycle. Name specific examples from the movie and connect them to the hero’s journey. However, this is not a plot summary. You are not retelling the story, but selecting examples to support the analysis.
It is said that when a man returns from war he is forever changed. In the short story, “The Red Convertible,” Louise Erdrich demonstrates these transformations through the use of symbolism. Erdrich employs the convertible to characterize the emotional afflictions that war creates for the soldier and his family around him by discussing the pre-deployment relationship between two brothers Henry and Lyman, Lyman's perception of Henry upon Henry's return, and Henry’s assumed view on life in the end of the story.
Aristotle, an ancient Greek philosopher and scientist, conveys, “Knowing yourself is the beginning of all wisdom”. In other words, Aristotle states that the gaining of self-knowledge provides an individual with the ability to know one’s personal gifts and accountabilities. To start one’s adult life a person must pursue the journey of self-discovery to learn in depth about their skills and weaknesses. Individuals must find themselves through the limitations and ordeals that they face during their voyage for self-awareness. For example, in Tim O’Brien’s short story, “On the Rainy River”, the narrator shares his story about self-discovery. O’Brien looks back into his past, to the time when he was called to serve in the Vietnam War. O’Brien’s initial
The theme “rite of passage” was used in the novel A Separate Peace, by John Knowles. This moving from innocence to adulthood was contained within three sets of interconnected symbols: summer and winter, the Devon and Naguamsett Rivers, and peace and war. These symbols served as a backdrop upon which the novel was developed. The loss if Gene Forrester’s innocence was examined through these motifs.
Watching a film, one can easily recognize plot, theme, characterization, etc., but not many realize what basic principle lies behind nearly every story conceived: the hero’s journey. This concept allows for a comprehensive, logical flow throughout a movie. Once the hero’s journey is thoroughly understood, anyone can pick out the elements in nearly every piece. The hero’s journey follows a simple outline. First the hero in question must have a disadvantaged childhood. Next the hero will find a mentor who wisely lays out his/her prophecy. Third the hero will go on a journey, either literal or figurative, to find him/herself. On this journey the hero will be discouraged and nearly quit his/her quest. Finally, the hero will fulfill the prophecy and find his/herself, realizing his/her full potential. This rubric may be easy to spot in epic action films, but if upon close inspection is found in a wide array of genres, some of which are fully surprising.
In her essay, “The Wreck of Time,” Annie Dillard explains the significance of an individual and how a person determines the significance of the self. Dillard analyzes the points where the human race becomes insignificant and the importance of the population becomes questionable throughout the history. She is trying to evoke the reader to question his/her vitality in the world. Tim O’Brien illustrates the element of a true war story and what makes a war story true in his work, “How to Tell a True War Story.” A soldier’s war story will not be the exact story of a war but it is a collection of how the soldier perceives each war experiences. O’Brien illustrates how remarkable experiences are chosen by the soldier. In his novel, “Into the Wild,” Jon Krakauer analyzes Chris McCandless’s journey to Alaska and the purpose of this journey. McCandless could have searched for his own self by staying in the social world where he lived, nevertheless disconnects all his links with the external world and tries to discover himself. McCandless tried to stand out from the stereotypical people and make him a bit more significant. All three authors use various language techniques to make their argument. A text’s tone, syntax and diction strengthen the language of the text. Dillard poses numerous questions to readers. These questions can stimulate emotion that is similar to the one that is portrayed in the text. O’Brien uses stories with different plots and expresses his ideas. Different plots make readers think in various angles. Krakauer analyzes his thoughts about McCandless and reevaluate the misconception he had about McCandless. Since Krakauer uses voices of multiple individuals, readers will be exposed to different views. All three authors try...
It is said that when a man returns from war he is forever changed. In the short story, “The Red Convertible,” Louise Erdrich demonstrates these transformations through the use of symbolism. Erdrich employs the convertible to characterize the emotional afflictions that war creates for the soldier and his family around him by discussing the the pre-deployment relationship between two brothers Henry and Lyman, Lyman's perception of Henry upon Henry's return, and Henry’s assumed view on life in the end of the story.
Robert Ross’ is introduced to characters with varying outlooks on the world, based on their own social and economic backgrounds. The soldiers around Robert Ross differ greatly,...
Joseph Campbell made himself one of the chief authorities on how mythology works when he published his book The Hero with a Thousand Faces. In this book, Campbell describes what he believes to be the monomyth, known as “The Hero’s Journey.” Campbell wrote that this monomyth, the basic structure of all heroic myth, has three basic stages, which in turn have subcategories themselves. The heroic story of Katniss Everdeen, told in the movie Hunger Games, follows Campbell’s monomyth outline quite well.
“The Hero’s Journey.” Ariane Publications, 1997. Course handout. AS English I. Dept. of English, Woodside High School. 26 October 2013.
Joseph Campbell defines a hero as “someone who has given his or her life to something bigger than oneself ” (Moyers 1). The Hero’s Journey consists of three major parts: the separation, the initiation and the return. Throughout a character’s journey, they must complete a physical or spiritual deed. A physical deed involves performing a daunting and courageous act that preserves the well-being of another person. A spiritual deed calls for action that improves another individual’s state of mind. While fulfilling their journey, a hero must undergo a psychological change that involves experiencing a transformation from immaturity into independence and sophistication.Campbell states that these events are what ultimately guides a hero into completing
The Hero’s Journey is a pattern of narrative that appears in novels, storytelling, myth, and religious ritual. It was first identified by the American scholar Joseph Campbell in his book A Hero with Thousand Faces. Campbell also discussed this pattern in his interview to Bill Moyers which was later published as a book The Power of Myths. This pattern describes the typical adventure of the archetype known as The Hero, the person who goes out and achieves great deeds. Campbell detailed many stages in the Hero’s Journey, but he also summarized the pattern in three fundamental phases: Separation, Ordeal, and Return that all heroes, in spite of their sex, age, culture, or religion, have to overcome in order to reach the goal. Alice in Wonderland, written by Lewis Carroll, provides a good example of the Hero's Journey. This story describes the adventures of Alice, a young English girl, in Wonderland. Although she lacks some of the stages identified by Campbell, she still possesses many of them that are necessary for a Hero to be considered a Hero.