I am impressed! This is an extremely well thought out and beautifully written essay. Lydia Fish October 16, 2008, at 09:49 AM
Word Count: 1420
Joseph Campbell was a world renowned scholar on mythology. He was best known for his studies in the fields of comparative mythology and comparative religion. In 1949 his book The Hero with a Thousand Faces was published, in which he utilized the term monomyth from James Joyce’s book Finnegans Wake. A monomyth, in its most basic form, means “the hero’s journey.” Campbell discovered seventeen stages of a hero’s journey, which can be arranged in various ways, one being departure, fulfillment, and return. Some monomyths focus on only one step, while others include almost all seventeen or just a few. The basic aspects of a monomyth include the hero being presented with the option of venturing from the original world to a world unknown on a specific quest. The hero encounters many challenges along the way, with the help of others or alone. Eventually, the hero reaches some ultimate task, in which if he succeeds is presented with a special gift. He can take this gift back with him, and on the way home often comes across even more obstacles. When he arrives at his final destination (where he began his journey), he can use his gift to further help the world.
The monomyth is prominent in many modern forms of literature and multi media. Two are The Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter. In both of these works, it is obvious that many elements of the monomyth are infused throughout. The first aspect which is present is the beginning of the journey. The hero is suddenly found in the midst of an adventure, deliberately sets out on a quest, or is thrown into a sequence of events. In “The Lord of the Rings,” Frodo is at first somewhat thrown into this quest. He is given the ring by Bilbo, and Gandalf basically gives him a set of instructions based on his need to get away, and his duty of transporting the ring because he is the chosen ring bearer. When Frodo reaches Rivendell, though, the task of taking the ring to Mordor is not expected to include him or be his burden. It is through his own choice that he decides to take the ring to Mount Doom, and perhaps he felt it his calling or predestination to do so.
What sets off Harry Potter’s adventure is quite different: he is marked by a scar from birth and prophesy to become the savior for the wizarding world. He does not seem to have a great choice in this at the beginning of his journey, but he does ultimately choose good over evil. When he is sorted in the first book, the Sorting Hat is considering placing him in the house of Slytherin, thinking of how much he could accomplish there. Harry knows the reputation of this house, and desires to be chosen for Gryffindor. By doing so, this moment is actually a choice of his own destiny. In one of the later books, Dumbledore asks Harry why he has decided to keep fighting against Voldemort, and the reason which Harry gives is that he will never rest until Voldemort is defeated, and as long as Voldemort is alive, Harry will fight until the end to destroy him. Much of this stems from Harry’s parents’ death and the need for revenge, but it also comes from his knowledge of the evil of Voldemort and his own good heart. The unrest that Harry describes is yet another element of the monomyth. It is that the reason behind the journey is ultimately to find a place of rest in yourself, or your “center.” Frodo also will keep going towards Mordor until he dies, as he has chosen this path for himself and will not achieve consolation until he completes his task.
Heroes have evolved throughout the centuries, and evolve as the culture evolves. The early culture hero goes around slaying monsters, and the more recent culture hero must commit some heroic act, either physical (sacrifice, saving a life), or spiritual (going and return). Both include a moral objective, of sacrificing himself for something, either to save a person or an idea. The heroes in both “Harry Potter” and “The Lord of the Rings” are a composite of both kinds of hero. Both Frodo and Harry Potter must slay various monsters on their journey, but this is not the extent of their deeds. The monsters are only small obstacles compared to the ultimate act which they must perform: for Frodo, the destruction of the ring and the strength to resist such a powerful item, and for Harry Potter, the destruction of Voldemort. Both involve the possibility of death and self sacrifice. Frodo destroys a ring, but also destroys an evil entity and the idea of power and selfishness, and saves Middle Earth from destruction. Harry destroys Voldemort, and with it the ideas of evil and bigotry. Both, in their journies, save many lives, but looking at the quests as a whole, protect the ideas of good as opposed to evil.
Several other components to each of these books include the fact that the hero goes for a purpose and some others come along for the ride, but the hero must be the one to perform the ultimate act. Another is the standard mythological figure of the old man as the advisor, who gives the hero a physical object to aid him. In Frodo’s case, the fellowship assists him throughout the first two books, and then breaks up and helps him in more indiscrete ways through the fourth through sixth books, by keeping the Eye of Sauron away from Frodo and Sam. Gandalf comes to his aid numerous times, but eventually Frodo must fend for himself. This is why Frodo is led to believe that Gandalf has died from the Balrog in Mordor, and does not find out that he has come back until after his mission is complete. Sam is sometimes seen as the hero of the series, but assuming that Frodo is the hero, Sam does assist him on the way to Mordor, but Frodo must be the one to throw the ring into the flames. If Aragorn is considered the hero of the story, he must fulfill his destiny of becoming king, and Elrond gives him the sword Anduril to aid him in this task.
Harry Potter is helped in many ways by his friends Hermione and Ron, and other kindred spirits along the way. One person who helps him immensely is Dumbledore, the “old man as the advisor” figure. Throughout the books, Dumbledore often saves Harry’s life and advises him in his tasks. He also gives Harry the sword of Gryffindor to use, and the many other tidbits of knowledge about Voldemort which will help Harry to destroy him. Dumbledore’s death in the sixth book is necessary for the seventh book because Harry must become more independent and prepare himself for his last encounter with Voldemort. Ron and Hermione assist him in the seventh book, but they all know that Harry must be the one to kill Voldemort in the end.
Both The Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter include many elements of the monomyth idea which was explored by Joseph Campbell. Some of these include the figure of the old man as the advisor, a journey accompanied by others but committing the ultimate act alone, achieving a sense of rest within oneself, being a physical and spiritual hero, the beginnings of the journey being one of choice or one of chance, and the moral objective of sacrifice. By the conclusion of both of these books, it is clear that both characters have changed throughout the journey. Both have aged (Harry more so than Frodo), and both have been through many obstacles and been tested in various ways. Frodo is even seen as changed by Saruman, when he decides to spare Saruman’s life in the Shire: “ There was a strange look in his eyes of mingled wonder and respect and hatred. ‘You have grown, Halfling,’ he said. ‘Yes, you have grown very much. You are wise, and cruel.’” (325). This shows that Frodo is not the same Hobbit that he was in the beginning of the novel, and that this journey has changed him immensely, to the point that his enemy is acutely aware of this change. The alterations in Frodo and in Harry Potter are a display of the difficulties of their journeys and the extent to which they sacrificed themselves for the bettering of their worlds.
Kelsey Till October 01, 2008, at 09:34 PM
