Sethe's Hero Cycle

Sethe’s Hero Cycle

The Hero Cycle is a term used in literature to describe “the typical adventure of the archetype known as The Hero, the person who goes out and achieves great deeds on behalf of the group, tribe, or civilization,” according to Joseph Campbell ("INTRODUCTION." Hero's Journey). In Beloved, Toni Morrison creates the character Sethe, who shows qualities of the hero cycle and unveils the horrors of being a mother during slavery.

Sethe’s life as a slave would be known as the ordinary world. She was raised there by other women since her mother was always working in the fields. At age fourteen she was bought by Mr. Garner and moved to Sweethome. At Sweethome Halle and Sethe form a “union” and have four children, Howard, Burglar, Denver and Beloved. When Paul D walked into Sethe’s house for the first time he got an odd feeling and asked Sethe “What kind of evil you got in here?” At dinner that night Denver begins to cry and pleads that she can't stay in this house any longer. Sethe’s call to adventure is when Paul D suggests moving. Sethe instantly rejects this suggestion. This rejections would be Sethe’s refusal of the call.

Before and even after her death Baby Suggs would be known as Sethe's mentor.

Baby Suggs acts as a mother figure for Sethe and uses nature to help Sethe find the beauty in herself. Before Baby Sugg’s death she gives her house to Sethe. Later even after her death, Sethe contacts Baby Sugg’s spirit, which gives her strength. When Mr. Garner dies back at Sweethome, Mrs. Garner gives over the plantation to Schoolteacher who is much more cruel than Mr. Garner ever was. The cruelty at Sweethome causes Paul D, Halle, Paul A and Sixo to contemplate an escape. After being beaten for sending her children to Cincinnati she attempts to escape with the others. As she is leaving she sees Paul D shackled for trying to escape. She then flees from Sweethome thus crossing the

threshold.
The tests that Sethe had to overcome are escaping from her old slave plantation, killing her daughter, and taking care of Denver in a house that is haunted by the ghost of her baby. Some allies that help her get through these obstacles are Paul D, Denver, Stamp Paid, and Baby Suggs. Her enemies are her old slave overseer Schoolteacher and Beloved who drains the life away from Sethe after living with them.
The approach would be all the moments leading up to Sethe killing Beloved, Schoolteacher shows up and corners Sethe. In order to protect her children from Schoolteacher, Sethe then takes them into the shed where she kills her daughter Beloved. She would have ended up killing Denver too but fortunately Stamp Paid stopped her. The Ordeal would be Sethe killing Beloved to protect her from slavery. The Death would be Beloved being killed by her mother. Eighteen years later when Beloved shows up in front of Sethe's house at 124 would be the rebirth. The reward for Sethe would be knowing that since she killed her child, her daughter wouldn’t have to live through slavery.
The Road back would be Paul D walking to Sethe's house to see her after hearing that Beloved has fled. On his way there he thinks about all the times that he has had to run and escape. He even wonders why he ran from Sethe.
In Beloved, Toni Morrison creates the character Sethe, who shows qualities of the hero cycle and unveils the horrors of being a mother during slavery. Morrison’s book is an example of the Hero Cycle as described by Joseph Campbell.