I am, it will not shock you to learn, far from the first person to attempt to refine Campbell’s model of a hero’s journey. One of the giants on whose shoulders I hope to perch is Christopher Vogler, a Hollywood developer whose 7 page memo on the hero’s journey set the standard for practical applications of the archetype. He’s since written several books on the topic, but you can find a copy of his original memo here.
Vogler’s model goes as follows:
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- Ordinary world
- Call to adventure
- Refusal of the call
- Meeting with the mentor
- Crossing the first threshold
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- Tests, allies and enemies
- Approach to the inmost cave
- The ordeal
- Reward
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- The road back
- The resurrection
- Return with the elixir
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This is a much crisper and more succinct form of the hero’s journey, with my two primary objections to Campbell’s model (the shoehorned Freudian psychoanalysis and transcendental buddhism) neatly removed. Vogler also cut the odious elements introduced by the book’s 1949 publication, such as the entire section dedicated to the idea of Woman as Temptress.
Because of this, I’m going to use Vogler’s model as my starting point. However there are a few personal adjustments I’m considering to tailor the journey to my own vision. They are:
1) While there’s no set way for a Hero’s Journey to begin, the second half of The Hero with a Thousand Faces made some valuable observations about how the openings of such stories tend to go. Examples include portents of the hero’s birth, exile from a rightful kingdom, and a grueling, unhappy childhood. The stories don’t have to include these precursors, but they’re so common I think I’d be remiss if I failed to mention them. Therefore, I’m adding a new, optional section before the story begins called, ‘Setting the stage.’
2) The Refusal of the Call is a time-worn and honored trope, but it is not required. In my model, I’ll mark it as ‘optional.’
3) The ‘Meeting with the Mentor’ is a rare moment of regression in Vogler’s model, and winds up a bit overspecific. I prefer Campbell’s more general conception of simple ‘Supernatural Aid.’
4) There’s something about the closing of the story – roughly everything between The Ordeal and the Return with the Elixir – that seems off to me. Each element looks fine on its own, so it could just be that the order is flexible. Alternatively the outline might be better with a few elements added, modified, or removed. The Road Back is a strong candidate for an ‘optional’ tag, and I’m considering where and whether to add an explicit ‘Showdown with the Villain.’.
As my tentative tone probably indicated, this conception is not final. Instead it’s a starting point – or rather two.
First, I’ll use it for analyzing the stories I’ve chosen as primary sources for studying the hero’s journey in action. So far I’m including The Hobbit, Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s stone, the Star Wars films and The Matrix, with more to be added as time allows. As these sources attest to or challenge my model, I’ll make adjustments.
Second, I’m adding a new page to the Practice Write project, which I’m calling the Hero’s Journey Toolbox. You can find it on the main page, or by clicking the link here.
In On Writing, Stephen King introduced the metaphor of a ‘writing toolbox,’ filled over time with the implements needed to craft a story. I like the metaphor, so in its spirit I’m putting together a toolbox for creating a hero’s journey. It will be a curated collection of all the valuable information I’ve gleaned from Campbell, Vogler, and the stories I’ll be analyzing in the next several posts. As I gather information and make adjustments it should become more detailed and nuanced, and with any luck will eventually contain the tools I’ll need for my own project.
A stray thought occurs to me – I wonder if writers who are allergic to models might be a bit less offended by the term toolbox. Rather than the paint-by-the-numbers guide implied by the former, a toolbox suggests the presence of an artisan and the instruments it contains are aids to – not replacements for – their craftsmanship. Depending on how much sophistication you think models can claim this may be a distinction without a difference, but it might be a better way to frame the discussion going forward.
Speaking of forward, for the next two weeks I’ll be on a business trip to Nigeria and may not have the chance to update the blog or Practice Log. If this is the case, I’ll keep track of any writing manually and update the site on my return. See you in a fortnight.
