Monomyth

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The monomyth (often referred to as "the hero's journey") is a description of a basic pattern
found in many narratives from around the world. This universal pattern was described by
Joseph Campbell in his book The Hero with a Thousand Faces (1949).[1] A noted scholar of
novelist James Joyce, Campbell borrowed the term monomyth from Joyce's Finnegans Wake.

Campbell's work has been consciously applied by a wide variety of modern writers and
artists, for example, in creating screenplays for movies. The best known is perhaps George
Lucas, who has acknowledged a debt to Campbell regarding both the original Star Wars
trilogy and its prequels.

In addition, leaders in the men's movement, notably Robert Bly and Michael J. Meade, have
used Campbell's insight as a guide for personal spiritual growth.

Campbell's insight was that important myths from around the world which have survived for
thousands of years, all share a fundamental structure. This fundamental structure contains a
number of stages, which includes

1. A call to adventure, which the hero has to accept or decline

2. A road of trials, regarding which the hero succeeds or fails
3. Achieving the goal or "boon," which often results in important self-knowledge
4. A return to the ordinary world, again as to which the hero can succeed or fail
5. Application of the boon, in which what the hero has gained can be used to improve
the world

In a well-known quote from the introduction to The Hero with a Thousand Faces, Campbell
wrote:

A hero ventures forth from the world of common day into a region of supernatural
wonder: fabulous forces are there encountered and a decisive victory is won: the
hero comes back from this mysterious adventure with the power to bestow boons
on his fellow man.[2]
The classic examples of the monomyth relied upon by Campbell and other scholars include
the Buddha, Moses, and Christ stories, although Campbell cites many other classic myths
from many cultures which rely upon this basic structure.

Contents
[hide]
1 Summary of the monomyth
2 Other formulations
3 Use of the monomyth by modern artists
o 3.1 George Lucas and Star Wars
o 3.2 Chris Vogler, The Writer's Journey, and Hollywood films
o 3.3 Orson Scott Card and Ender's Game
4 Modern applications of the monomyth
o 4.1 Departure (or Separation)
4.1.1 The Call to Adventure
4.1.2 Refusal of the Call
4.1.3 Supernatural Aid
4.1.4 The Crossing of the First Threshold
4.1.5 Rebirth
o 4.2 Initiation
4.2.1 The Road of Trials
4.2.2 Marriage
4.2.3 Woman as Temptress
4.2.4 Atonement with the Father
4.2.5 Apotheosis
4.2.6 The Ultimate Boon
o 4.3 Return
4.3.1 Refusal of the Return
4.3.2 The Magic Flight
4.3.3 Rescue from Without
4.3.4 The Crossing of the Return Threshold
4.3.5 Master of Two Worlds
4.3.6 Freedom to Live
5 Use of the monomyth by the men's movement
6 "The hero's journey"
7 Criticism
8 Footnotes
9 References
o 9.1 Books based upon interviews with Campbell
o 9.2 DVD/Discography
10 See also

11 External links

[edit] Summary of the monomyth

Main article: The Hero with a Thousand Faces

In the monomyth, the hero starts in the ordinary world, and receives a call to enter an unusual
world of strange powers and events. If the hero accepts the call to enter this strange world, the
hero must face tasks and trials, and may have to face these trials alone, or may have
assistance. At its most intense, the hero must survive a severe challenge, often with help
earned along the journey. If the hero survives, the hero may achieve a great gift or "boon."
The hero must then decide whether to return to the ordinary world with this boon. If the hero
does decide to return, the hero often faces challenges on the return journey. If the hero is
successful in returning, the boon or gift may be used to improve the world. The stories of
Osiris, Prometheus, Moses, Buddha, and Christ, for example, follow this structure very
closely.

Campbell describes some seventeen stages or steps along this journey. Very few myths
contain all seventeen stages some myths contain many of the stages, while others contain
only a few; some myths may have as a focus only one of the stages, while other myths may
deal with the stages in a somewhat different order. These seventeen stages may be organized
in a number of ways, including division into three sections: Departure (sometimes called
Separation), Initiation and Return. "Departure" deals with the hero venturing forth on the
quest; "Initiation" deals with the hero's various adventures along the way; and "Return" deals
with the hero's return home with knowledge and powers acquired on the journey.

[edit] Other formulations

Campbell's proposed structure has been expanded and modified since its conception. Many
modern characterizations of it add in new steps (such as the hero having a miraculous birth) or
combine or prune others. For instance, Phil Cousineau, in his book, The Hero's Journey,
divides it up into the following eight steps:

1. The Call to Adventure

2. The Road of Trials
3. The Vision Quest
4. The Meeting with the Goddess
5. The Boon
6. The Magic Flight
7. The Return Threshold
8. The Master of Two Worlds

Another eight-step formulation was given by David Adams Leeming in his book, Mythology:
The Voyage of the Hero:

1. Miraculous conception and birth

2. Initiation of the hero-child
3. Withdrawal from family or community for meditation and preparation
4. Trial and Quest
5. Death
6. Descent into the underworld
7. Resurrection and rebirth
8. Ascension, apotheosis, and atonement[3]

Other formulations can get extremely complicated, such as Kal Bashir's 188-stage structure.
His extra stages include, among many others, Major and Minor Threshold Guardians,
Transformation Mentors, a complex stage that he calls Final Conflict, and an Afterlife Act.
Bashir also applies the template to a wider range of stories, such as The Godfather, American
Beauty and Lost in Translation, illustrating the point that the Hero's Journey is not simply a
template for fairytales and fantasy.
[edit] Use of the monomyth by modern artists
The monomyth has influenced a number of artists, musicians, poets, and filmmakers,
including Bob Dylan and George Lucas. Mickey Hart, Bob Weir and Jerry Garcia of the
Grateful Dead had long noted Campbell's influence and agreed to participate in a seminar
with him in 1986 entitled From Ritual to Rapture.[4]

[edit] George Lucas and Star Wars

George Lucas's deliberate use of Campbell's theory of the monomyth in the making of the
Star Wars movies is well-documented. In addition to the extensive discussion between
Campbell and Bill Moyers broadcast in 1988 on PBS as The Power of Myth (Filmed at
"Skywalker Ranch"), on Campbell's influence on the Star Wars films, Lucas, himself, gave an
extensive interview for the biography Joseph Campbell: A Fire in the Mind (Larsen and
Larsen, 2002, pages 541-543) on this topic. In this interview, Lucas states that in the early
1970's after completing his early film, American Graffiti, "it came to me that there really was
no modern use of mythology...so that's when I started doing more strenuous research on fairy
tales, folklore and mythology, and I started reading Joe's books. Before that I hadn't read any
of Joe's books.... It was very eerie because in reading The Hero with A Thousand Faces I
began to realize that my first draft of Star Wars was following classical motifs"(p.541).

Twelve years after the making of The Power of Myth, Moyers and Lucas met again for the
1999 interview, the Mythology of Star Wars with George Lucas & Bill Moyers, to further
discuss the impact of Campbell's work on Lucas' films [3]. In addition, the National Air and
Space Museum of the Smithsonian Institution sponsored an exhibit during the late 1990s
called Star Wars: The Magic of Myth which discussed the ways in which Campbell's work
shaped the Star Wars films [4]. A companion guide of the same name was published in 1997.

[edit] Chris Vogler, The Writer's Journey, and Hollywood films

Christopher Vogler, a Hollywood film producer and writer, created a now-legendary 7-page
company memo, A Practical Guide to The Hero With a Thousand Faces[5], based on
Campbell's work which inspired films such as Disney's 1994 film, The Lion King. Vogler's
memo was later developed into the late 1990s book, The Writer's Journey: Mythic Structure
For Writers, This story structure is evident in a vast number of successful Hollywood films
including the Matrix series.

[edit] Orson Scott Card and Ender's Game

In his book, Ender's Game, Orson Scott Card gives a very complete example of the
monomyth structure, with the main character, Ender Wiggin, fulfilling all eight primary stages
of it:

Miraculous Birth In a world where only two children are normally allowed, Ender
is born as the third child by special government decree
Initiation Ender shows remarkable intelligence at a young age
Withdrawal Ender is removed from his family and sent to Battle School
Trial and Quest Ender learns of the threat to humanity from the Buggers
Death Ender grows despondant after his unit is broken up, and he is sent back to
Earth
 Descent into the underworld Ender's sister helps him feel like part of humanity
once again
Resurrection and rebirth Ender refuses to play the "simulations" anymore, and
ends the "game" by destroying the Buggers' homeworld
Ascension, apotheosis, and atonement Ender realizes that the simulations were in
fact real and has to cope with this

The narrative structure within Ender's Game doesn't follow this structure perfectly linearly.
Many elements of it are actually repeated throughout the book. For instance, the latter four
steps can also describe the psychological states Ender went through after his realization of
what he'd done to the Buggers. [6]

[edit] Modern applications of the monomyth

Each of the seventeen stages of the monomyth (below) can be found in popular works,
including movie series such as the Star Wars movies, The Matrix movies and even the anime
Fortune Dogs.

[edit] Departure (or Separation)

[edit] The Call to Adventure

The adventure begins with the hero receiving a call to action, such as a threat to the peace of
the community, or the hero simply falls into or blunders into it. The call is often announced to
the hero by another character who acts as a "herald". The herald, often represented as dark
or terrifying and judged evil by the world, may call the character to adventure simply by the
crisis of his appearance.

Campbell: The Call To Adventure A blunder apparently the merest chance reveals an
unsuspected world, and the individual is drawn into a relationship with forces that are not
rightly understood (Joseph Campbell, The Hero With A Thousand Faces, 51).

Modern applications: In Star Wars, Luke Skywalker, the hero, begins the story in frustration
over being unable to leave home. The heralds are the two droids who carry a message from
Princess Leia. In The Matrix, the call comes in the form of Morpheus and his followers who
encourage the hero, Neo, to question reality. Morpheus literally calls Neo using a cell phone.

Classic examples: Sometimes the call to adventure happens of the character's own volition. In
the story of the Minotaur, Theseus learns the tale of the beast and the terrible sacrifice to
appease it, which sets him on a quest to destroy it. In Herman Hesse's book Siddhartha the
main character, Siddhartha, becomes weary of his way of life and decides he must venture
away from his accustomed life in order to attain spiritual enlightenment. Most Buddhist myths
describe the Buddha as becoming bored with his royal life and venturing into the world. Other
times, the hero is plunged into adventure by unforeseen events. In Homer's Odyssey,
Odysseus is caught in the terrible winds of the angered god Poseidon and sent off to distant
lands.

[edit] Refusal of the Call

In some stories, the hero initially refuses the call to adventure. When this happens, the hero
may suffer somehow, and may eventually choose to answer, or may continue to decline the
call.

Campbell: Refusal of the Call Refusal of the summons converts the adventure into its
negative. Walled in boredom, hard work, or culture, the subject loses the power of
significant affirmative action and becomes a victim to be saved (Joseph Campbell, The Hero
With A Thousand Faces, 59).

Modern applications: In Star Wars, Luke is refused adventure by his uncle, a man who seeks
to protect Luke from the inevitable dangers of fate. Subsequently, Luke's family is killed by
stormtroopers. In The Matrix, Neo refuses to take the window washing scaffold to escape and
is captured by the Agents.

Classic examples: Myth and history are rife with examples of what happens to those who
refuse the call too long or do not take it seriously. A Persian city was turned to stone,
inhabitants and all, for refusing the call of Allah. Daphne was pursued by the Greek god
Apollo (a herald), but refused his advances at all costs. She prayed to her father, Peneus, to
take away her beauty to be rid of Apollo; Peneus turned the nymph into a tree, the only
semblance left of her past self being her beauty. In Judeo-Christian mythology, Lot's wife is
turned into a pillar of salt for looking back with longing to her old life when she had been
summoned forth from her city by Yahweh. One of the clearest references to the refusal and its
consequences comes in the voice of Yahweh in Proverbs 1:24-27 and 32:

Because I have called, and ye refused ... I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock
when your fear cometh; when your fear cometh as desolation, and your destruction
cometh as a whirlwind; when distress and anguish cometh upon you. ... For the
turning away of the simple shall slay them, and the prosperity of fools shall destroy
them.

[edit] Supernatural Aid

After the hero has accepted the call, he encounters a protective figure (often elderly) who
provides special tools and advice for the adventure ahead, such as an amulet or a weapon.

Modern applications: In Star Wars, Luke encounters the Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi who
presents Luke with a lightsaber and teaches him the ways of the Force. In The Matrix Neo
meets with The Oracle who gives him advice which proves invaluable in his journey. In The
Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, Ford Prefect gives Arthur Dent the copy of the guide.

Classic example: In Greek mythology, Ariadne gives Theseus a ball of string and a sword
before he enters the labyrinth to confront the minotaur.

[edit] The Crossing of the First Threshold

The hero must cross the threshold between the world he is familiar with and that which he is
not. Often this involves facing a "threshold guardian", an entity that works to keep all within
the protective confines of the world but must be encountered in order to enter the new zone of
experience.
Modern applications: In Star Wars, the threshold is Mos Eisley, a spaceport that acts as a
doorway between Luke's home planet and the wider universe; Luke must avoid capture by the
threshold guardians, the Imperial stormtroopers. In The Matrix, Neo must choose the red pill
to leave the Matrix and enter the real world.

[edit] Rebirth

The hero, rather than passing a threshold, passes into the new zone by means of rebirth.
Appearing to have died by being swallowed or having their flesh scattered, the hero is
transformed and becomes ready for the adventure ahead.

Biblical applications: In the gospels, John the Baptist baptizes Jesus before Jesus begins his
public ministry.

Modern applications: In Star Wars, it is the Death Star, in which Luke is engulfed and in
which he learns how to be a hero. In The Matrix, Neo finds himself waking up in a bio-
electric cell where he is one of the humans being harvested by the machines.

[edit] Initiation

[edit] The Road of Trials

Once past the threshold, the hero encounters a dream landscape of ambiguous and fluid
forms. The hero is challenged to survive a succession of obstacles and, in so doing, amplifies
his consciousness. The hero is helped covertly by the supernatural helper or may discover a
benign power supporting him in his passage.

[edit] Marriage

The ultimate trial is often represented as a marriage between the hero and a queenlike, or
mother-like figure. This represents the hero's mastery of life (represented by the feminine) as
well as the totality of what can be known. When the hero is female, this becomes a male
figure.

Modern applications: In The Matrix, Neo confronts the Oracle. In The Matrix Reloaded, Neo
takes Trinity as a lover.

[edit] Woman as Temptress

His awareness expanded, the hero may fixate on the disunity between truth and his subjective
outlook, inherently tainted by the flesh. This is often represented with revulsion or rejection of
a female figure.

Modern applications: In The Matrix Reloaded, Persephone attempts to seduce Neo. In Star
Wars, there is tension between Luke and Han Solo over their love for Princess Leia -- this is
resolved in Episode VI, Return of the Jedi when Luke finds out that Leia is actually his sister.
Luke is also tempted by the dark side itself, as demonstrated by his vision in the cave on
Dagobah. [5]

[edit] Atonement with the Father

The hero reconciles the tyrant and merciful aspects of the father-like authority figure to
understand himself as well as this figure.

Biblical applications: In the gospels, Jesus wrestles with his impending death in the Garden of
Gethsemane, before submitting to his Father's will.

Modern applications: In The Empire Strikes Back, Luke confronts Darth Vader and learns that
he is his father and a former Jedi; in Return of the Jedi, he is reconciled with the reformed
Vader. In The Matrix Revolutions, the Oracle explains to Neo that she and the Architect are
two programs that work together to keep the Matrix working, the latter to "balance the
equation" and the former to "unbalance" it.

[edit] Apotheosis

The hero's ego is disintegrated in a breakthrough expansion of consciousness. Quite

frequently the hero's idea of reality is changed; the hero may find an ability to do new things
or to see a larger point of view, allowing the hero to sacrifice himself.

Modern applications: In The Empire Strikes Back, Luke sacrifices a part of himself (losing his
hand) rather than turn to the dark side. In The Matrix, Neo faces off against Agent Smith
resulting in his death and resurrection as the One.

[edit] The Ultimate Boon

The hero is now ready to obtain that which he has set out, an item or new awareness that,
once he returns, will benefit the society that he has left.

Modern applications: In the climactic scene of Star Wars, Luke uses the Force to successfully
destroy the Death Star by firing torpedoes down a narrow ventilation shaft of the Death Star.

[edit] Return

[edit] Refusal of the Return

Having found bliss and enlightenment in the other world, the hero may not want to return to
the ordinary world to bestow the boon onto his fellow man.

Classic examples: After obtaining Nirvana, Buddha doubted whether he could communicate
the path to enlightenment. (Actually, some Buddhist traditions hold that this was only cunning
politics by Buddha: by saying this he gave people the impression that he didn't want to teach
them, which made them curious and eager to hear all about it).

[edit] The Magic Flight

When the boon's acquisition (or the hero's return to the world) comes against opposition, a
chase or pursuit may ensue before the hero returns.

Classic examples: In many fairy tales and folktales, it is literally a magic flight, with the hero
or heroine transforming objects to stop the pursuit (The Master Maid, The Water Nixie) or
transforming himself and any companions to hide themselves (Farmer Weathersky or
Foundling-Bird).
Modern examples: In the Metroid video game series, Samus Aran frequently has to outrun the
destruction of a collapsing structure after defeating the final boss.

[edit] Rescue from Without

The hero may need to be rescued by forces from the ordinary world. This may be because the
hero has refused to return or because he is successfully blocked from returning with the boon.
The hero loses his ego.

Modern application: In The Empire Strikes Back, Luke is rescued by the Millennium Falcon
as he hangs on an antenna beneath Cloud City after a battle with Darth Vader. In The Matrix:
Revolutions, Neo is physically trapped in the limbo-like Mobil Avenue subway station
construct, and Morpheus and Trinity have to help him escape.

[edit] The Crossing of the Return Threshold

The hero returns to the world of common day and must accept it as real.

[edit] Master of Two Worlds

Because of the boon or due to his experience, the hero may now perceive both the divine and
human worlds.

Modern application: In Return of the Jedi, Luke becomes a Jedi. He has mastered the force
and defeated the one true temptation, the Dark Side. In The Matrix Neo returns from death
now able to see and control the world of The Matrix, stopping bullets and defeating the
Agents. In The Matrix Reloaded, Neo destroys several Sentinels in the real world using only
his mind.

Classic example: In the Christ story, Jesus is able to return to the ordinary world after
resurrection.

[edit] Freedom to Live

The hero bestows the boon to his fellow man.

Modern application: In "The Return of the Jedi" Luke has overcome the Empire and his
rebellion is free to live and thrive, the ending scene establishes the peace restored by Luke's
victory. In The Matrix Revolutions, Neo realizes that machine life is as valid as human life
and gives his own life in order to reconcile the worlds of man and machine.

According to the Gospels, Christ returns to the ordinary world after his resurrection, but not as
an ordinary man. He can seem to be as others are and interact with them, but his body is a
"glorified" body, capable of assuming visible and palpable form, but freed from the bonds of
space and time; he is able to appear and disappear at will, for example. Other traditional
examples of something similar, are Elijah, Enoch, and Khidr, the "immortal prophet" of the
Sufis.

[edit] Use of the monomyth by the men's movement

Poet Robert Bly, Michael J. Meade, and others involved in the men's movement have applied
and expanded the concept of the hero's journey and the monomyth as a metaphor for personal
spiritual and psychological growth, particularly in the mythopoetic men's movement.

Characteristic of the mythopoetic men's movement is a tendency to retell fairy tales and
engage in their exegesis as a tool for personal insight. Using frequent references to archetypes
as drawn from Jungian analytical psychology, the movement focuses on issues of gender role,
gender identity and wellness for modern men. Advocates would often engage in storytelling
with music, these acts being seen as a modern extension to a form of "new age shamanism"
popularized by Michael Harner at approximately the same time.

Among its most famous advocates were the poet Robert Bly, whose book Iron John: A Book
About Men was a best-seller, being an exegesis of the fairy tale "Iron John" by the Brothers
Grimm.

The mythopoetic men's movement spawned a variety of groups and workshops, led by authors
such as Bly and Robert L. Moore. Some serious academic work came out of this movement,
including the creation of various magazines and non-profit organizations, such as the
Mankind Project.

[edit] "The hero's journey"

The phrase, "the hero's journey," to describe Campbell's theories first entered into popular
discourse through two documentaries. The first, released in 1987, The Hero's Journey: The
World of Joseph Campbell was accompanied by a 1990 companion book, The Hero's
Journey: Joseph Campbell on His Life and Work (with Phil Cousineau and Stuart Brown,
eds.). The second was Bill Moyer's series of seminal interviews with Campbell, released in
1988 as the documentary (and companion book) The Power of Myth. The phrase was then
referenced in the title of a popular guidebook for screenwriters released in the 1990's, The
Writer's Journey: Mythic Structure For Writers, by Christopher Vogler [7]. Though they used
the phrase in their works, Cousineau, Moyers, and Vogler, all attribute the phrase and the
model of The Hero's Journey to Joseph Campbell.

[edit] Criticism
Thoughtless use of monomyth structure is often blamed for lack of originality and clichs in
popular culture, especially big-budget Hollywood films. In addition to the popularity of
Campbell-influenced guides such as The Writer's Journey, the influential book Screenplay by
Syd Field also proposed an ideal three-act structure, which is easily compatible with modern
screenwriters' attempts to craft a monomyth. However, since the peak popularity of cinematic
monomyth narratives in the 1990s, some would-be blockbuster movies that have been seen as
conscious attempts to follow the structure have met with indifference from critics and often
disappointing performance at the box office, as in the case of Cinderella Man and George
Lucas' three Star Wars prequels.

[edit] Footnotes
1. ^ Monomyth website accessed November 28, 2006.
2. ^ Campbell, Joseph. The hero with a thousand faces. Princeton: Princeton University
Press, 1949. p. 30.
 3. ^ Leeming, David Adams. Mythology: The Voyage of the Hero. New York: Harper &
Row. 1981.
4. ^ [1]
5. ^ There is some debate as to whether this is truly a universal feature of myths, or a
specific example of a broader category of "temptation away from the true path".
Although most of Campbell's book uses examples from many cultures, his chapter on
"Woman As the Temptress" draws examples exclusively from Judeo-Christian stories.
See [2].

[edit] References
Campbell, Joseph. The hero with a thousand faces. Princeton: Princeton University
Press, 1949.
188+ stages of the Hero's Journey / Monomyth
--with Henry Morton Robinson. A skeleton key to Finnegans Wake. 1944.
Joyce, James. Finnegans wake. 1939.
MacKey-Kallis, Susan. The hero and the perennial journey home in American film.
University of Pennsylvania Press (2001). ISBN 0-8122-1768-3
Vogler, Christopher. The writer's journey: mythic structure for writers. Studio City,
CA: Michael Wiese Productions, 1998.
Voytilla, Stuart and Vogler, Christopher. Myth & the Movies: Discovering the myth
structure of 50 unforgettable films. Studio City, CA: Michael Wiese Productions,
1999. ISBN 0-941188-66-3

[edit] Books based upon interviews with Campbell

The hero's journey: Joseph Campbell on his life and work. Edited and with an
Introduction by Phil Cousineau. Forward by Stuart L. Brown, Executive Editor. New
York: Harper and Row, 1990.
The power of myth (with Bill Moyers and Betty Sue Flowers, ed.), 1988

[edit] DVD/Discography

Joseph Campbell and the power of myth (1988)

The hero's journey: The world of Joseph Campbell (1987)

[edit] See also

Vladimir Propp

[edit] External links

188+ stages of the Hero's Journey / Monomyth
[Link] - Unraveling MonoMyths in Past and Modern Stories and Movies
The Monomyth Cycle
Examples of Each Stage of a Heros Journey in Star Wars and The Matrix
Hero's Journey
Monomyth, U.C. Berkeley
Retrieved from "[Link]

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