{"id":3928,"date":"2019-11-21T09:03:00","date_gmt":"2019-11-21T13:03:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/?p=3928"},"modified":"2022-03-11T14:48:25","modified_gmt":"2022-03-11T18:48:25","slug":"what-is-the-heros-journey","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/what-is-the-heros-journey\/","title":{"rendered":"What Is the Hero’s Journey? Complete Guide to Joseph Campbell"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

What is the hero’s journey<\/a>? How is it relevant today?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The hero’s journey is a template of the plots of ancient and current myths and legends. It was popularized by Joseph Campbell in The Hero With a Thousand Faces<\/em>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

We’ll cover what the hero’s journey entails and why it’s still relevant today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

What Is the Hero’s Journey?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The hero’s journey was made popular by Joseph Campbell. The Hero With a Thousand Faces <\/em>is a journey through the world\u2019s mythological traditions, from the ancient Egyptians, to the Romans, the Hindu and Buddhist legends of the east, and the folk-tales and foundation myths of the indigenous peoples of the Americas and Oceania.
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It explores the common themes and story elements that define the world\u2019s mythologies\u2014though cultures are separated by vast gulfs of space and time, they all tell their stories in similar ways, using the same essential mythological template: the hero\u2019s journey<\/strong>. 
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The Hero\u2019s Journey<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The archetypal myth is that of the hero\u2019s journey, which details the exploits of an exalted figure such as a legendary warrior or king. But the hero can also start out as an obscure figure of humble origins, on the fringes of society. Frequently, this hero is born to lowly circumstances in a remote corner of the world and is the product of immaculate conception and virgin birth. Thus, they start out with some essential element of the gods already inside them. <\/strong>
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The hero sets out on a journey to acquire some object or attain some sort of divine wisdom. This can be something material (like Arthur\u2019s quest for the Holy Grail) or something with far greater spiritual weight (like the Buddha\u2019s journey to find ultimate enlightenment). The hero undergoes great trials and tribulations during the course of their quest, undergoes a spiritual (and sometimes literal) death and rebirth, and transforms into an entirely new being. They gain new powers, and with those powers, achieve their goal\u2014they receive the ultimate boon<\/a>. They then return home to share this heavenly reward with their people\u2014and in doing so, redeem all mankind.<\/p>\n\n\n\n


What Is the Hero’s Journey? Stages:<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
  1. The call to adventure<\/a><\/li>
  2. Refusal of the call<\/a><\/li>
  3. Supernatural aid<\/a><\/li>
  4. Crossing the threshold<\/a><\/li>
  5. Belly of the whale<\/a><\/li>
  6. The road of trials<\/a><\/li>
  7. The meeting with the goddess<\/a><\/li>
  8. Woman as temptress<\/a><\/li>
  9. Atonement with the father<\/a><\/li>
  10. Apotheosis<\/li>
  11. The ultimate boon<\/li>
  12. Refusal of the return<\/a><\/li>
  13. The magic flight<\/a><\/li>
  14. Rescue from without<\/li>
  15. The crossing of the return threshold<\/a><\/li>
  16. Master of two worlds<\/a><\/li>
  17. Freedom to live<\/a><\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    What is the hero’s journey? Although the hero\u2019s journey is often filled with daring exploits, the slaying of fantastical monsters, and unions with strange and beautiful goddesses, it is at heart a deeply introspective and inward-looking adventure,<\/strong> one with profound spiritual and psychological implications. Through their arduous trial, the hero learns new things about himself or herself and discovers hidden strengths that were dormant within them the entire time<\/strong>\u2014in fairy tales, this is often made literal by the revelation of the hero to have been \u201cthe Chosen One\u201d or \u201cthe King\u2019s son.\u201d These new (but latent) powers enable a thorough transformation of the hero\u2019s outward being and psyche. 
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    When viewed this way, mythology is deeply egalitarian. It tells us who we are and the rewards that await us if we would only set aside our focus on the day-to-day humdrum of life and embrace the hero\u2019s journey. The hero, far from being just a literary character of long-dead civilizations, symbolizes the great godly potential within all of us.<\/strong>
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    The Hero With a Thousand Faces <\/em>breaks down this mythological template even further and also explores the creation and destruction stories that mankind has told since before the age of recorded history, from cultures all over the world. A few key themes emerge.
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    The Monomyth<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

    What is the hero’s journey? Another name for it is the monomyth<\/a>. The core structure of mythology is called the monomyth<\/em><\/strong>. <\/em>It involves three rites of passage\u2014separation, initiation, and return. From the myths of the ancient Egyptians and the medieval Arthurian legend<\/a> to the folk-tales of the native Maoris of New Zealand, the pattern of the hero\u2019s journey usually follows this cycle: a separation from the world he or she has always known (embarking on the quest), gaining some spiritual or other-worldly power, and a return in which they share the boon of the new power with humanity. 
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    There are familiar beats throughout world-legend<\/strong>\u2014the call to action; the initial reluctance of the hero; the aid of a supernatural helper; the crossing of the threshold into the world of the unknown; union with the mother-goddess; the slaying of the father-god; the return to the land of the living; and the sharing of the ultimate boon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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    Creation and Destruction<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

    What is the hero’s journey? The hero’s journey also points us to our place in the cosmos, our role in the great movement of the universe<\/strong>. Just as the monomyth shows the death, birth, and transformation of the individual in the form of the hero, so does mythology show the workings of all time and space\u2014the origin story of the universe, and the means by which it will be destroyed and rebuilt<\/strong>. This is often represented as a universe without end, a universal round. 
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    In a version of this cycle told among the Aztecs of pre-Columbian Mexico, each of the four elements\u2014water, earth, air, and fire\u2014in their turn marked the end of an age of the world: <\/p>\n\n\n\n