Really excellent!!! Well thought out and very well written. Lydia Fish October 16, 2008, at 09:40 AM
Word count: 942
Joseph Campbell studied and compared stories and texts from different cultures of the world. He discovered similar plot structures and characteristics that underlie most, if not all, heroic tales. He referred to this as the “monomyth,” and viewed it as the typical hero’s journey. These characteristics are seen in both modern and ancient oral tales and written texts. Such characteristics include the concealed child with a heroic future, a place to assemble before the journey, an elder male advisor, and a cycle of death and resurrection. These ideas can easily be identified in both J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings and J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series.
One trait of the monomyth is a hidden child. This child is taken from his current home and transferred to a place of safe keeping, where his identity can be hidden. There he is protected from the evil forces until he is mature enough to be able to face them. This surfaces in The Lord of the Rings with Aragorn’s past. His mother transported him to Rivendell when he was a young boy after his father’s death. His identity was kept a secret, and even Aragorn did not know of his lineage until he was older. In the Harry Potter series, Harry is presented as a hidden child. He was delivered to the Dursley’s after his parents had been murdered and he survived the Avada Kedavra curse. Harry’s identity is also kept secret until he is old enough to attend Hogwarts. The purpose of hiding a child is to protect him from evil forces until he is mature enough to learn of his past and what is expected of him in the future. Yet, this acceptance of his true identity may take time.
The starting place of a journey is also a common element between different tales of heroism. Such a place is usually a setting where people congregate, such as a bar, where old adventurers tell their stories. In the Lord of the Rings the hobbits stay for a night in Bree, at the Prancing Pony. At the pub the hobbits engage with other guests, and Frodo exposes himself as the ring bearer to Aragorn. The Leaky Cauldron is a dingy inn that is a gateway between the muggle world and the wizarding world in the Harry Potter Series. Through this inn Harry enters for the first time into the realm of magic. These starting places are seen as a jumping pad. They create a sense of excitement for the characters and an urge to proceed forth.
Tales of heroism usually have a character that is a solo figure. This character is very individualistic, fights alone, and creates his own rules. Aragorn in The Lord of the Rings fits this description. He is not initially introduced as the rightful heir to the throne of Gondor. He is presented as a mysterious travelling ranger named Strider. In the Harry Potter series Sirius Black is presented as a solo fighter. After escaping from Azkaban prison he seeks to clear his name and prove Peter Pettigrew’s guilt in the murder of James and Lily Potter. He lives alone in a cave to protect his godson Harry during the fourth book. While this stock character is presented as an individual fighter, he is essential for the success of the greater group of people.
An old man that acts as an advisor to the main hero of the story is a similar trait of most heroic tales. This old man has a wealth of wisdom that was gained throughout his life, and tries to pass that wisdom onto the hero. In The Lord of the Rings Gandalf is a guide and mentor for Frodo, as Dumbledore is for Harry. Interestingly, both Gandalf and Dumbledore have magnificent beards. This long beard is a stereotypical feature, and suggests the passing of a great amount of time. A strong bond of respect and love forms between the advisor and the hero. The advisor isn’t always clear about his messages and the hero usually realizes the significance of the messages during the course of his adventure.
As part of the typical hero’s journey, there is a resurrection and rebirth. A character dies, or part of him dies, and a new and stronger version emerges. In The Fellowship of the Ring Gandalf falls in the mines of Moria and battles the Balrog. The characters and readers assume his death, and he does die. Yet, he is given another life. When he is reintroduced in The Two Towers he is no longer Gandalf the Grey, but the more powerful Gandalf the White. In Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Harry sacrifices himself, allowing Voldemort to strike him with the killing curse. The curse doesn’t kill Harry, only the part of Voldemort in Harry that was the final Horcrux. By sacrificing himself, he was able to save himself and the wizarding community. Through death and rebirth the typical hero grows stronger and is more capable to complete his task.
Joseph Campbell’s theory of the “monomyth” examines shared characteristics between all heroic stories both oral and written. These unifying characteristics create this stereotypical journey the hero undertakes that, if the reader understands the “monomyth”, is easily predictable. This gives rise to Campbell’s idea that the hero has “a thousand faces.” Campbell suggests that it’s the same hero and the same journey, surrounded by different settings, names, and circumstances. Another effect of the “monomyth” is the identification of a literary traditional, the classification of the form a heroic story employs. This tradition is evident in J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter texts and J.R.R Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings.
Annika Laughlin? October 01, 2008, at 03:13 PM
