Writer’s journey: Mythic structures for writers
The Writers Journey is such a compelling read ; Vogler truly does pattern what he preaches, transforming the larning experience into an gratifying journey instead than a dry academic survey.
He writes about the fabulous elements and originals of narratives, condensing Joseph Campbell ‘s work and theories, doing them more accessible and clear by supplying legion illustrations from popular films.
Vogler outlines 12 phases of the Hero ‘s Journey that he believes all heroes progress through. Offering a more advanced, elaborate version of the authoritative Three Act Structure of screenplay:
- Ordinary World
- Name to Gamble
- Refusal of the Call
- Meeting with the Mentor
- Traversing the First Threshold
- Trials, Allies, Enemies
- Approach
- Supreme Ordeal
- Wages
- The Road Back
- Resurrection
- Tax return with the Elixir
Populating the landscape of every narrative are the characters. Harmonizing to Campbell, who follows Carl Jung ‘s school of idea, these mythic originals are perennial personalities and energies throughout human history of storytelling:
Hero: supporter, answers the call to escapade and see the journey.
Mentor: flexible figure, provides motive, preparation, gifts to assist the hero in her advancement.
THRESHOLD GUARDIAN: they protect against the unworthy, supplying necessary challenges, leting for farther growing once the trial has been resolve.
Herald: They announce the coming of alterations and supply the hero with critical information.
SHAPESHIFTER: is the incarnation of mutual opposition, they can convey uncertainness and confusion with their powerful flow of energy.
Shadow: the adversary, it ‘s the dark force. This is a powerful original every bit of import as the hero.
Ally: they are comrades that aid the hero and supply different points of position.
Prankster: really powerful and flexible character, they are disputing by conveying alteration about and oppugning the position quo.
Vogler survey of mythology and etymology provides a strong classical foundation uncovering the manner to better make strong characters with deepness and substance.
We can non deny the relevancy of Storytelling in human development, narrative is hardwired in our species ‘ encephalon, and it has played a cardinal function in the development of human intelligence and civilisation. The forms of these narratives are profoundly rooted and are common in many different civilizations. The form can even be applied to the narrative of human development itself.
By dissecting and analyzing the common elements and originals in the creative activity of narratives, we get ever inspired with a greater awe of life itself. Understanding the theoretical account enables the narrator to tap deep into the dimensions of being human.
Like Richard Dawkins provinces in Unweaving the Rainbow, Isaac Newton did n’t destruct the beauty of the rainbow by explicating it, if anything he made it all the more interesting ; similarly Vogler does n’t rob the thaumaturgy of good narrations, this survey of mythic constructions reveals a certain poesy in the forms of life itself.
Alice Adventures in Wonderland
‘A journey to the True-self ‘
ACT ONE
An mute wish sets Alice ‘s escapade in gesture. Siting at the river bank with her sister she itches for a occurrence that will take away the ennui of the ORDINARY WORLD. Following the form of many common people narratives, an agent appears, in the signifier of the White Rabbit ( HERALD ) , to take Alice into the SPECIAL WORLD. She follows the CALL TO ADVENTURE without vacillation, strongly driven by wonder and scientific spirit, trailing grounds and logic wherever it leads ; although at times it might look to be neither apparent nor logical. She is a ‘SEEKER ‘ .
Alice personifies a strong female-hero that grows stronger and more self-confident during her pursuit. Her escapade is one of self-discovery. In resistance to that what she has been trained to be, or in carry throughing immaterial outlooks. The anchor of the narrative is Alice ‘s individuality ; a inquiry that is posed several times by different characters ( THRESHOLD GUARDIANS and MENTORS ) throughout the narrative.
In Heideggerian etymology, Aletheia ( Truth ) is explained as Unconcealment, Contrary to truth is, so, something concealed or disguised. This POLARITY is paramount in the development of our heroine and her CHARACTER ARC.
Alice is introduced, while still traversing the FIRST THRESHOLD, as unsure about whom she might be and on how she appears to others, uncovering her CHARACTER FLAWS and frights. Readers might portion her angst, her desire to ‘fit in ‘ ( IDENTIFICATION ) .
At her ROUGH LANDING into Wonderland, the SPECIAL WORLD, she is hurriedly confronted with the first CRISIS ; trapped, entirely, scared and enduring from a strong individuality job, Alice experience significant physical and emotional alterations ( SHAPESHIFTER ) . Wonderland seems to allow Alice with her every forgetful want ; this is the cause of much heartache and an of import lesson.
Alice uses a kind of Cartesian Dualism, ‘I reflect therefore I am ‘ – to happen out if she is herself in chapter 2.
She fails to traverse the 2nd THRESHOLD to prosecute her new end, – ‘the loveliest garden you of all time saw ‘ – . In order to traverse she must travel through a series of TESTINGS
ACT 2
After about submerging in her ain cryings, Alice meets some dwellers of Wonderland. Is clip for her to larn NEW RULES.
It ‘s rather important that, in general, Wonderland inhabitants are neither ENEMIES nor ALLIES ; Alice is chiefly on her ain. During the class of the escapade these characters fulfill different functions, sometimes they menace or reject her, others they offer insightful cognition, moving like a kind of MENTORS. The White Rabbit acts as a HERALD in several occasions, but he besides wants to fire the house where she is trapped in chapter 3. Something they all portion is their changeless oppugning about her character, her intelligence or her saneness. This perennial exposure to interrogation reasonably much force Alice to raise a new sense of consciousness and confidence, which will be important to decide the ORDEAL.
The Caterpillar it ‘s a unsmooth MENTOR, but gives her Advice and GIFTS.
Alice goes through another series of CHANGES and arrives to a THRESHOLD GUARDIAN. She meets the Duchess for the first clip and RESCUES the baby/piglet, a SHAPESHIFTER. Alice starts COMMITING TO CHANGE and EXPERIMENTING.
Meeting with the Cheshire Cat, a MENTOR-TRICKTERS and a CATALYST CHARACTER, presents her with a inquiry about her saneness and leads her to an brush with the Mad Hatter and the March Hare, another Trial for her confidence.
Some lessons learned, Alice APPROACHES THE INMOST CAVE, traversing the Second THRESHOLD into the garden.
ACT 3
Alice meets the Red Queen, eventually Confronting THE SHADOW, and the King, a junior-grade sub-villain. Our hero is stronger and more brave than when she started the escapade. During the croquet game she witnesses the queen ‘s unfairness and thirst for beheading, it ‘s the first portion of the ORDEAL, and Alice must play the crazed game fearing executing. The Cheshire Cat, her lone ALLY, appears, he gives Alice MOTIVATION, being confrontational with authorization himself.
Alice TRICKS the Queen into let go ofing the Duchess, who plays the function of an unintended and raging MENTOR, she furthers Teachs Alice to be her true-self and to look to others as what she is.
The brush with the Mock Turtle and the Gryphon sets the premises for THE ROAD BACK place, they remind her of the ORDINARY WORLD, and this gives her strength for the concluding portion of the ORDEAL, the test. From the beginning, Alice GREATEST FEAR has been to be judged, and by let go ofing all her revolutionist and lay waste toing energy in this last confrontation against the position quo, she literally grows into her true-self. She is no longer afraid.
Alice waking up in the ORDINARY WORLD is a symbolic RESURRECTION, she tells her dream-story, the ELIXIR, to her sister, animating her and giving her a gustatory sensation of Wonderland ( THE WORLD IS CHANGED ) . It ‘s a QUIET CLIMAX and an Open-ended STORY FORM.
Bibliography
- Vogler, Christopher, ( November 1, 2007 ) The Writer ‘s Journey: Mythic Structures for Writers ( 3rd Edition ) , Michael Wiese Productions.
- Pinkola Est ‘s, Clarissa, ( November 27, 1996 ) Womans Who Run with the Wolfs, Ballantine Books.
- Propp, Vladimir, ( June 1968 ) Morphology of the Folktale, University of Texas Press.
- Dawkins, Richard, ( April 6, 2006 ) , Unweaving the Rainbow ( First Edition. ) , Penguin.
- Carroll, Lewis ; Gardner, Martin, ( 25 Oct 2001 ) The Annotated Alice: “ Alice ‘s Adventures in Wonderland ” AND “ Through the Looking Glass ” : The definite Edition. Alice ‘s Adventures in Wonderland an Through the Looking-Glass, Penguin.
- Baker, Gordon ; Morris, Katherine, ( November 15, 2002 ) Descartes ‘ Dualism, Routledge ; 1 edition.
- Heidegger, Martin, ( 1927 ) Being and Time: A Translation of Sein und Zeit ( Suny Series in Contemporary Continental Philosophy and Culture ) , State University of New York Press ( Oct 1996 ) .
- Edited by Lewis P. Hinchman, Sandra K. Hinchman ( 1 April 1997 ) Memory, Identity, Community: Idea of Narrative in the Human Sciences ( SUNY Series in the Doctrine of the Social Sciences ) , State University of New York Press.