Foundations of Story

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Foundations of Story Friday, September 5 The
Heros Journey Part 1 - The Origins of Story
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Stories of the Hunt

• Earliest narrative Cave Paintings of Lascaux -
  17,000 years old.
• Representations of numerous animal scenes, and
  interactions between animals and humans.
• Tools an understanding of causality.
• Awareness of cause and effect relationships
  inspires a search for meaning in everyday life.

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From Meaning to Myth

• Story the search for answers to ultimate
  questions why do we die?
• Our brains are hardwired for belief we see
  effects and seek the causes.
• Myths are sacred stories that express the beliefs
  and values of a particular culture.
• The oldest surviving written myth is the Sumerian
  Epic of Gilgamesh (4,000 years old).

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Comparative Mythology

• In 1949, mythologist Joseph Campbell published
  The Hero With A Thousand Faces, in which he
  observed common themes and forms shared by the
  myths of humanitys many cultures. He distilled
  these commonalities into a pattern he called the
  monomyth.
• Campbells model also drew from the works of
  early 20th century pychologist Carl Jung, who
  sought to identify common archetypes present in
  the collective unconscious of humanity in an
  attempt to interpret dreams and mythology.

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Campbells Monomyth

• In the Departure Stage, we meet the hero in the
  ordinary world, where he receives a call to
  adventure and must cross a threshold into an
  extraordinary world. The hero may or may not
  cross the threshold willingly.
• In the Initiation Stage, the hero must endure
  trials and overcome obstacles, often withstanding
  the temptations of a woman and undergoing a
  reconciliation with a father-like figure. He
  reaches a greater sense of awareness and receives
  a reward that he must take back with him to the
  ordinary world.
• In the Return Stage, the hero must return to the
  ordinary world and often must face a final trial
  and cross a second threshold. Upon the heros
  return, the ordinary world is better than when he
  left it.

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Voglers Industrial Model

• ACT ONE
• Ordinary World
• Call to Adventure
• Refusal of the Call
• Meeting the Mentor
• Crossing the Threshold
• ACT TWO
• Tests, Allies, Enemies

• Approach to the Inmost Cave
• Ordeal
• Reward
• ACT THREE
• The Road Back
• Resurrection
• Return with the Elixir

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The Archetypes

• Hero
• Mentor
• Threshold Guardian
• Herald

• Shapeshifter
• Shadow
• Trickster