Exploring the Monomyth Cycle in Literature

In literature, every story follows a cycle. Although some stories’ cycles can somewhat differ from others, they still contain the same aspects. All of these stories also incorporate archetypes through each character, which falls in line with Carl Jung’s psychological phenomenon, Jungian Archetypes. Upon further examination, all stories with a hero or heroine share the archetypes and the cycle, both in and outside of the world of literature. In A Hero with a Thousand Faces, author Joseph Campbell explains the cycle he calls the Monomyth Cycle in great detail. Joseph Campbell defines as an American mythologist, writer, and lecturer whose many works discusses the human experience, which gives him momentous credibility in explaining the psychological

The “Holy Grail” is a metaphor for what every character desires in life. At times, it can come in the form of an object, but for most novels, it is a lesson or a realization. The entire quest tests the hero’s and heroine’s abilities to see exactly how much they want it. To summarize the Monomyth in accordance to Campbell, the first step the hero or heroine experiences, the “Call to Adventure”, occurs when they first receive an invitation to embark upon their journey. The second stage, “Refusal of the Call”, shows whether the hero or heroine chooses to either take their quest or to refuse it. In most stories, the hero or heroine chooses to accept their quest and they continue along the cycle. If they do not want the “Holy Grail” as much as they should, they will refuse the call and remain the waste land, or purgatory, which is the land where nothing flourishes. In the third stage, the hero or heroine receives paranormal assistance, or “Supernatural Aid”. The next stage occurs when the hero or heroine first takes a step to officially begin their journey by “Crossing the First

The next stage, “Apotheosis”, occurs when the hero or heroine reaches a point of realization where they obtain a greater sense of understanding. The “Ultimate Boon” occurs when the hero or heroine achieves the primary goal of the entire journey. However, the quest still continues. In the Refusal of Return, the hero or heroine may not wish to return to their own world. The “Magic Flight” occurs when the hero or heroine leaves with their boon. The “Rescue from Without” refers to when a powerful guide assists in bringing the hero or heroine back to their normal life. “Crossing the Return Threshold” occurs when the hero or heroine integrates the wisdom they gain from their quest into their life. The final stage, “Master of Two Worlds”, refers to when they achieve a balance between the spiritual world and reality. Most, if not all, poems, novels, and other forms of literature follow all of these stages in some way with the quests that their hero or heroine