The Adolescent’s Journey
Many of the stories that have been told for centuries, or have recently been created, incorporate the story of a young innocent character who embarks on a journey and becomes a hero, known as The Hero’s Journey; a series of steps that all heroes follow. This journey not only shows the main character becoming a hero but also shows the hero move along a path similar to that of adolescence, the path between childhood and maturity. The Hero’s Journey was created by a man by the name of Joseph Campbell. He wrote a book called The Hero with One Thousand Faces, a novel containing a variety of stories that follow the steps of the Hero’s Journey. One famous creation that follows The Hero’s Journey is the science fiction film trilogy: Star Wars, created by George Lucas. Lucas depicts the struggles that take place along the path of adolescence through the story of a protagonist Luke Skywalker, who strives to become a Jedi Knight to show that Campbell’s Hero’s Journey reflects the struggles that youth go through whether they are depicted in a story or not.
There comes a time in every young man or women’s life where he begins to start building up and finding identity. Adolescence includes finding one’s identity because the youth really do not have much of a clue who they want to become as an adult. This is reflected in Joseph Campbell’s Hero’s Journey in the first step of The Ordinary World. The Ordinary World is where the story begins in The Hero’s Journey; it is where the hero lives their everyday life. In this world the hero is trying to figure out who they are and what they want to become. George Lucas’s first film in the Star Wars Trilogy is A New Hope. In this film the protagonist, Luke Skywalker, is introduced...
... middle of paper ...
...se the force (mind control) and has a sense of confidence and pride in being a Jedi Knight. After completing adolescence young adults have matured and can feel confident in being an adult, much like Luke can now that he is a Jedi Knight.
Works Cited
Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back. Dir. Irvin Kershner. Perf. Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford Carrie Fisher. DVD. Twentieth Century Fox, 2006.
Star Wars: A New Hope. Dir. George Lucas. Perf. Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford Carrie Fisher. DVD. Twentieth Century Fox, 2006.
Star Wars: Return of the Jedi. Dir. Richard Marquand. Perf. Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford Carrie Fisher. DVD. Twentieth Century Fox, 2006.
Wilson, Sarah. "Sigmund Freud and the oedipal complex." The Observer”. Guardian News and Media, 8 Mar. 2009. Web. 1 May 2014. <http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2009/mar/08/sigmund-freud-oedipal-complex>.
Pulp Fiction. Dir. Tarantino Quentin. Perf. John Travolta, Samuel L. Jackson, Uma Thurman, Tim Roth
Luke’s eventual departure is set in motion by the purchase of two androids that were previously involved in the rebellion. Luke receives a call to aid in the form of a prerecorded message stored in one of the android’s memory. Luke finds a traveling companion and a teacher in Obi-wan Kenobi. Luke is hesitant to leave his home planet until the empire kills his Aunt and Uncle, leaving him no option but to fight. Luke’s next step is initiation.
The “Star Wars” franchise is familiar to most, and may be the easiest in which to discover the hero’s journey. In “Star Wars,” we find young Luke Skywalker, a rebellious youth, living on a farm on the isolated planet of Tatooine, taken in by his aunt and uncle following the death of his mother and father. Luke grows up with dreams of flying through the stars, only dreams until his chance meeting with Ben Kenobi. Kenobi informs Luke of his real past: that his father was a Jedi knight and that Luke was destined to become great. Though Kenobi’s guidance and Luke own adventurous spirit, he finds himself pushed into an intergalactic quest to become a valiant Jedi in a galaxy controlled by the evil Empire.
Reichardt, Kelly (Director), Raymond, John and Reichardt, Kelly (Writers), Williams, Michelle and Robinson, John (Performances). 2008. Oscilloscope Pictures, 2009. DVD
Heroes are often perceived as characters who leap great distances in a single bound. However, they actually have three distinct stages where they develop into the character we grow to love. In George Lucas` “StarWars IV: A New Hope.” Luke Skywalker is a quintessence of of an archetypal hero because he goes through initiation stage through distinct phases of separation, transformation and the return stage. Luke Skywalker begins his journey as farmer boy on a remote planet and becomes the hero of the galaxy. However, this process the not happen quickly. Rather, it is a difficult journey where is is faced with multiple tests and obstacles and pushes his endurance to the limit.
I,Robot. Dir. Alexander Proyas. Screenplay by Jeff Vintar and Akiva Goldsman. Perf. WIll Smith. Twentieth Century Fox, 2004. DVD.
Crash. Dir. Paul Haggis. Perf. Don Cheadle, Sandra Bullock, Thandie Newton . Lions Gate Entertainment, 2005. DVD.
Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope. Screenplay & Dir. George Lucas. Lucasfilm & Twentieth Century Fox, 1977. Film
Quite possibly one of the most iconic openings in cinematic history is “A Long time ago in a galaxy far far away.” Of course, I am referring to Star Wars. It is such a fascinating and great movie going experience. There have been a total of seven Star Wars films, but in this essay I am going to be focusing on Star Wars: Episode 3- Revenge of the Sith. This film was written and directed by George Lucas and of the science fiction genre. Revenge of the Sith was released in theaters on May 19, 2005.
Introduced in the 1977 the movie Star Wars “A New Hope” came out with a character
The hero’s journey has different stages that make it up. One of those stages is known as crossing the threshold. Beauty and the Beast and Star Wars show ways that a hero crosses the threshold of their quest. In Star Wars Luke Skywalker joins a jedi named Obi-wan Kenobi on a journey away from his planet. Luke crossed the threshold when Obi-wan first took Luke to a cantina in Mos Eisley. The hero of the monomyth often faces trials after crossing the threshold. Luke faced his first
Stand By Me. Dir. Rob Reiner. Perf. Wil Wheaton, River Phoenix, Corey Feldman, Jerry O'Connell. DVD. Columbia Pictures, 1986.
Q&A: son of star wars. (2002, December 17). BBC News. Retrieved March 11, 2003, from http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/696028.stm
Back to the Future II. Dir. Robert Zemeckis. Perf. Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd, Lea Thompson and Thomas F. Wilson and. Universal Pictures, Amblin Entertainment, U-Drive Productions, 1985. DVD. (1)
The Hunger Games. Dir. Gary Ross. Perf. Jennifer Lawrence and Josh Hutcherson. Lionsgate, 2012. DVD.