Hero's journey

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The deeds of a hero in myths , novels , films and video games take place on a hero's journey or hero's journey , sometimes also called a quest , which is characterized by typical situations and characters. This archetypal basic structure is also referred to as a monomyth , after a term used by James Joyce .

The American mythologist Joseph Campbell (1904–1987) researched the motif of the hero's journey as a basic pattern of mythologies worldwide . Based on this, the Hero's Journey has achieved popularity and great influence in literature and film - especially in (especially American) cinema. For example, George Lucas's Star Wars films are based on the hero's journey. In Hollywood, Christopher Vogler , in particular, introduced the model with his book The Writer's Journey (The Odyssey of the Screenwriter) . In the German-speaking countries, the model was further developed by the media scientist Michaela Krützen ( dramaturgy of the film ), who used the hero's journey to analyze films such as Das Schweigen der Lämmer or Pretty Woman . Campbell's cycle of the heroic journey was further developed by numerous therapists and coaches (such as Paul Rebillot or Martin Weiss) into a psychological and initiatory training.

The concept of the hero's journey follows on from preliminary narratological work such as the Morphology of the Fairy Tale , published in 1928 by Vladimir Propp .

The "Hero's Adventure" according to Campbell

According to Campbell, the stages of a hero's journey (not all of them take place in every mythologically relevant story) are as follows:

  1. The call of adventure (vocation) : experience of lack or sudden appearance of a task
  2. Refusal : The hero hesitates to answer the call, for example because he has to give up securities.
  3. Supernatural help : the hero unexpectedly meets one or more mentors .
  4. Crossing the first threshold : he overcomes his hesitation and sets off on the journey.
  5. The whale's belly : The troubles the hero faces threaten to overwhelm him - for the first time he realizes the full extent of the task.
  6. The path of trials : the appearance of problems that can be interpreted as trials (arguments that can turn out to be battles against one's own internal resistance and illusions)
  7. The encounter with the goddess : the hero (or heroine) reveals the power of the opposite sex.
  8. The woman as a tempter : the alternative to the hero's path can also reveal itself as a supposedly very pleasant time at the side of a (seductive) woman (cf. Odysseus / Kirke)
  9. Reconciliation with the father : the hero is faced with the knowledge that he is part of a genealogical chain. He bears the legacy of his ancestors, or his opponent is actually himself.
  10. Apotheosis : In the realization of the hero's journey, it becomes clear to him that he has divine potential (in fairy tales often symbolized by the knowledge that he has royal blood).
  11. The final blessing : receiving or stealing an elixir or treasure that could save the everyday world from which the hero set out. This treasure can also consist of an internal experience symbolized by an external object.
  12. Refusal to return : The hero is reluctant to return to the world of everyday life.
  13. The magical escape : the hero is moved to return by internal motives or external compulsion, which takes place in a magical flight or by fleeing from negative forces.
  14. Salvation from outside : An act or a thought of the hero on the way there now becomes his salvation on the way back. Often it is an empathic act towards a supposedly “lower being”, which now pays off.
  15. Return over the threshold : The hero crosses the threshold to the everyday world from which he originally set out. He encounters disbelief or incomprehension and has to integrate what has been found or achieved on the hero's journey into everyday life. (In fairy tales : the gold that suddenly turns to ashes)
  16. Lord of the two worlds : The hero combines everyday life with his newly-found knowledge and thus the world of himself with the external requirements.
  17. Freedom to live : the hero's elixir has changed the “normal world”; by letting them share in his experiences, he has led them to a new freedom of life.

The cycle of the hero's journey according to Vogler

Christopher Vogler designed this path of the hero as a guide for screenwriters, which is particularly popular in Hollywood. Its concept is based on the model designed by Joseph Campbell .

  1. The starting point is the usual, boring, or inadequate world of the hero.
  2. The hero is called to adventure by a herald .
  3. At first he refuses this call.
  4. A mentor persuades him to go on the journey and the adventure begins.
  5. The hero crosses the first threshold after which there is no turning back.
  6. The hero is put to the first test and meets allies and enemies.
  7. Now he penetrates to the deepest cave, the most dangerous point, and meets the enemy.
  8. This is where the decisive test takes place: confrontation and overcoming the opponent.
  9. The hero can now steal the “treasure” or “the elixir” (in concrete terms: an object or abstractly: special, new knowledge).
  10. He starts the way back, during which there is his resurrection from near death.
  11. The enemy is defeated, the elixir is in the hero's hand. He has matured into a new personality through the adventure.
  12. The end of the journey: the returnees are rewarded with recognition at home.

BS2 - Blake Snyder Beat Sheet

In “Save the Cat! Goes to the Movies ”, Blake Snyder combines the hero's journey with the plot points and the three-act structure of Syd Field . 15 beats are described in BS2:

  1. Opening Image - A representation (image) of the struggle (for existence) and the tone (the timbre) of the story. A snapshot (snapshot) of the main character's problem before the adventure begins.
  2. Development - Enrich the "before" snapshot. Present the world to the main character as it is and what is still missing in their life.
  3. Set a theme (happens during development) - what your story is about; the message, the truth. Usually it is said to the main character or spoken in their presence, but they do not understand the truth ... until some personal experience and understanding of the context mature the realization.
  4. Catalyst - The moment when life is changed. It is the telegram that convicts her lover of cheating, a monster goes on board the ship, she meets the true love of her life, etc. The “before” world is no more, change is underway.
  5. Doubt (Discussion) - The change is scary, and for a moment, or a brief series of moments, the main character doubts that they need to make the journey. Can I face this challenge? Do I have what it takes? Should i go at all? It's the last chance for the hero to pinch.
  6. The second act breaks in (decision, second act) - the main character makes a choice and the journey begins. We leave the world of the “thesis” (see thesis) and enter the inverted world, the opposite world of act two.
  7. "Subplot" (B-Story) - When there is a discussion of the subject, the gist of the truth. Usually this discussion flares up between the main character and his / her lover. The "subplot" is usually called the "love story" or "love story".
  8. What the premise promises - This is the fun part of the story. When Craig Thompson's relationship with Raina blossoms ( blankets ), when Indiana Jones tries to beat the Nazis with the lost treasure, when the detective finds most of the clues and dodges most of the bullets. This is when the main character is exploring the new world and the audience is entertained with the promise the premise made them.
  9. Center (Center) - Depending on the story, this is when everything is "big" or "terrible". The main character gets everything (“big”) or nothing (“terrible”) of what he thinks he wants. But not all that we think we want is what we really need in the end.
  10. Bad guys emerge - doubt, jealousy, fear, enemies both physically and emotionally are forming to fight the main character's goals and the “big” / “terrible” situation the main character falls apart (or gets worse).
  11. Everything is lost - the counter-moment to "Terrible" / "Big". Situation in the center. The moment when the main character realizes that they have lost everything they have gained so far, or that everything they own in the moment no longer matters. It now seems completely impossible to achieve the original goal and something or someone dies. It can be physical or emotional, but the death of the old clears the way for the birth of something new.
  12. Dark Night of the Soul - The main character is devastated (destroyed) and wallows in hopelessness. The "Why did you leave me, Lord?" Moment. Grief over the loss of what “died” - the dream, the goal, the mentor (figure, mentor character), the love of their life, etc. You must be completely down before you can get up and try again . (cf. The dark night of the soul , John of the Cross)
  13. Breaking in of the third act (decision, third act) - thanks to a new idea, fresh inspiration or relevant last minute thematic advice from the “subplot” (usually the beloved), the main character decides to try again.
  14. Finale - This time the main character has completely internalized the subject - the core of the truth now makes sense in their struggle for the goal because they can gain experience from the main plot (A-story) and make connections to the subplot (B-story) . Act 3 is about synthesis .
  15. Result image - the opposite of the opening image, proves visually that the protagonist has changed.
  16. the end

Use of the hero's journey in counseling and therapy

Paul Rebillot developed the self-experience process of the hero's journey from gestalt therapy , psychodrama and the mythical cycle depicted by Campbell. Through fantasy journeys, staging, dance, body work , methods of gestalt therapy and creative techniques such as painting, the participants working in the group should be able to recognize their unconscious “true” goals as well as restrictive, negative self-images and worldviews and to dissolve and approve them through rituals change.

Other therapists and counselors generally refer in their adaptations to the structural scheme of the hero's journey, such as Martin Weiss in "Quest" or Stephen Gilligan and Robert Dilts. An explicit connection of the hero's journey with methods and models of systemic therapy and counseling was developed by Holger Lindemann in the "Systemic Hero's Journey".

literature

Basics
Application in film
Use in literature
  • Małgorzata Marciniak: The hero's journey in the work of Joachim Hammann. Volume I. Between Myth and Everyday Magic. Volumina, Szczecin 2014, ISBN 978-83-7867-212-8 .
Use in the theater
  • Sonja Thöneböhn: Stories of the moment: structure and dramaturgy in improvisation theater using the example of the hero's journey. AV Akademikerverlag, Saarbrücken 2016, ISBN 978-3-639-87964-3 .
Application in therapy and education
  • Franz Mittermair : The country needs new heroes. Personal development and healing through ritual Gestalt therapy. The manual for the “great hero's journey”. Corrected new edition, 1st edition. Eagle Books, Wasserburg 2011, ISBN 978-3-9813672-1-8 .
  • Paul Rebillot , Melissa Kay: The Hero's Journey. The adventure of creative self-awareness. Revised new edition, 1st edition. Eagle Books, Wasserburg 2011, ISBN 978-3-9813672-0-1 .
  • Holger Lindemann: The great metaphor treasure chest. Systemic work with language images. Volume 1: Basics and Methods. Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, Göttingen, 2016, ISBN 978-3-525-40275-7 .
  • Holger Lindemann: The great metaphor treasure chest. Systemic work with language images. Volume 2: The Systemic Hero's Journey. Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, Göttingen, 2016, ISBN 978-3-525-40264-1 .
  • Holger Lindemann: The big metaphor treasure chest - 60 picture and structure cards for the systemic hero's journey. Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, Göttingen, 2016, ISBN 978-3-525-40266-5 .
  • Christian Peitz : Childhood - Hero Time. Fairy tales, education and development. TimpeTe, Minden, 2014, ISBN 978-3-944055-14-5 .
  • Martin Weiss: Quest. The longing for the essential. Junfermann, Paderborn 2004, ISBN 3-87387-570-5 .
  • Thomas Walden: Hollywood Education. How blockbuster films organize learning of learning. Kopaed publishing house. Munich 2015. ISBN 978-3-86736-301-3
  • Carina El-Nomany: The essence of the hero's journey Life: An instrument for personal development and healing. Kreutzfeldt digital, Hamburg 2017, ISBN 978-3-86623-581-6 .

Web links

Footnotes

  1. ↑ 1999, ( ISBN 978-1-932907-36-0 ); 3rd edition 2007. ( ISBN 978-1-932907-36-0 ).
  2. ↑ Joseph Campbell: The hero in a thousand shapes (= Insel-Taschenbuch 2556). Insel-Verlag, Frankfurt am Main et al. 1953/1999.
  3. ↑ Tim Stout Blog / BS2 (English)
  4. ↑ Martin Weiss: Quest. The longing for the essential. Junfermann, Paderborn 2004, ISBN 3-87387-570-5 .
  5. ↑ Stephen Gilligan, Robert Dilts: The Hero's Journey. On the way to self-discovery. Paderborn: Junfermann. 2013. ISBN 978-3-873-87778-8 .
  6. ↑ Holger Lindemann : The great metaphor treasure chest. Systemic work with language images. Volume 2: The Systemic Hero's Journey. Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, Göttingen, 2016, ISBN 978-3-525-40264-1 .