The Hero s Journey: A Guide to Literature and Life 1

Transcription

1 The Hero s Journey: A Guide to Literature and Life 1

2 Contents Rit ual and Rites of Pas sage The Hero's Jour ney Gawain and the Green Knight Demeter & Persephone The Leg end of Bud dha Group Work Film Pro ject Notes and group work Open Head: Char ac ter trans for ma tion Char ac ter anal y sis Stores and char ac ters worth re mem ber ing Write your own Hero's Jour ney Story In vent ing your char ac ter De scrib ing your char ac ter RE veal ing Char ac ter Con flict: fac ing chal lenges Plot Log: plot ting your story Il lus trate your story Fi nal draft of your story A Final Reflection The Call Re fused Group Work Film Pro ject Minos and the Mi no taur Hero's Jour ney Pre sen ta tions: Group Pro ject Pre sen ta tion A Mem ber of the Team Per sonal Journey Es say Eval u a tion and Grad ing The Hero's Jour ney: A Guide to Lit er a ture and Life is pub - lished by Har ris Com mu ni ca tions, 2765 Elks Way, Napa, Cal i - for nia aripub@napanet.net. Copy right 2009 by Reg Har ris. All rights re served. No por tion of this pub li ca tion may be re pro duced in any man ner, in clud ing elec tron i cally, with out the ex pressed writ ten per mis sion of the pub lisher. Cover de sign and il lus tra tions on pages 12, 15-18, 20-22, 24-26, 34, 48, 49 and 57 are by Ruth Gar ri son. Unit Timetable Rit ual and Rites of Pas sage Read ma te rial by An swer ques tions by Writ ing about a Rite of Pas sage..... Cre ate Your Own Rit ual The Hero's Jour ney, read by Gawain and the Green Knight Read ma te rial by An swer ques tions by Demeter and Persephone Read ma te rial by Food for thought Writ ing about com pro mise Bud dha Leg end Read ma te rial by An swer ques tions by Film Pro ject Group Work fin ished by Char ac ter anal y sis fin ished by..... Write Your Own Hero's Jour ney First draft and peer re sponse by.... Fi nal draft fin ished by A Fi nal Re flec tion fin ished by The Call Re fused, read by Film Group Work, fin ished by An swer ques tions by Minos and the Mi no taur Read ma te rial by An swer ques tions by Hero's Jour ney Pre sen ta tion Prep a ra tion fin ished by Pre sen ta tion on A Mem ber of the Team fin ished by... Per sonal Jour ney Es say Notes and pre-writ ing by Fi nal Draft of es say The Hero s Journe: A Guide to Literature and Life

3 Rituals and Rites of Pas sage Two worlds, one ex pe ri ence A high school se nior steps onto the stage to re ceive her di ploma. Nearby, dressed in the robes of their uni ver si ties, sit the teach ers who guided her. Her di ploma is pre sented to her by the school prin ci pal. As he gives it to her, he looks into her eyes, one adult to an other, and shakes her hand. From the au di ence, her par ents and other com mu nity mem bers watch, shar ing her pride and pre par ing to wel come her into the so ci ety of adults. Af ter the cer e mony, the girl will at tend a grad u a tion party where she and fel - low grad u ates will join par ents, teach - ers, and friends to ac knowl edge and cel e brate this ma jor life pas sage. In the high lands of West Af rica, a 14-year-old boy of the Dagara tribe re turns to his vil lage af ter a six-week ini ti a tion or - deal. He has med i tated in the blaz ing sun, en dured pain, faced dan ger, and seen the spirit world from which all life co mes. Now he is home, and the whole vil lage ex cit edly awaits the re turn of a new adult mem ber. For the boy, it is like re turn ing to the hu - man world. He is ac cepted and re spected. Ev ery body knows that he has changed, that he is aware. He joins his fam ily, com mu nity and other ini ti ates in dance and cel e bra - tion. These young peo ple live in dif fer ent worlds, both geo graph i cally and cul tur ally, but the ex pe ri ence they are hav ing is the same. It is the Rite of Pas sage, the tran si tion from child to adult. The sig nif i cance might be missed by the Amer i can girl and her friends, but that does n't make it any less im - por tant. These two rites of pas sage, dif fer ent as they are, carry the same mes sage. They tell the teen ag ers that it is time to change the way they think and live, and they tell the com mu - nity that the chil dren are now adults, to be treated with equal sta tus and equal rights. Rit ual in our cul ture The Rite of Pas sage is just one of many rit u als we go through dur ing our lives. Rit u - als are im por tant to us, but they have been ma ligned in our cul ture. They are of ten as so - ci ated with witch craft and cults. Now, if some one speaks of per form ing rit u als, he is seen as a de vi ant. The truth is that we all rit u al ize. We just don't call it that. Any reg u lar ac tiv ity which is per formed in a set man ner, for mally or in - for mally, is a rit ual. Grad u a tion cer e mo nies, church ser vices, school pag eants, and me mo - rial ob ser vances are all per formed in a set man ner and are all rit u als. What's more, we need rit u als. Hu mans are ritualizing crea tures. Rit u als put us in har mony with what is hap pen ing in our lives and en vi ron ment. Try to imag ine mar riage with no wed ding, death with no fu neral, grad u a tion with no cer e mony, or re li gion with no ser vices. Rit u als add sig nif i cance and mean ing. With out them, these events lose much of their im por tance, and we feel that the ex pe ri ence is some how hol low or in com - plete. Why we need rit ual Rit u als help us to un der stand the changes in our lives and to give mean ing to ex pe ri ence. Grad u a tion, for ex am ple, helps us make the tran si tion from stu dent to adult and tells us how to view it. Mar riage guides from in di vid ual life to fam ily life and pre - pares us for the changes we must make Rit u als also im pose the or der we need to live in a shared world. We use rit ual to stan dard ize the way we re late to our en vi - ron ment and each other so that we can all get along and live to gether. To see this, imag ine the pro cess of earn ing your driver's's li cense as a rit ual. Like the Dagara boy in the ex am ple ear lier, The Hero s Journey: A Guide to Literature and Life 3

4 you must study, learn the signs, laws and pro ce dures of the road. You prac tice with a men tor, who helps you de velop the skills you need. Then you take the test to dem on strate that you can as sume this re spon si bil ity. Fi - nally, where the Dagara boy might be tat - tooed, you are finger printed and pho to graphed, con firm ing that you are ini ti - ated. In a sense, earn ing a driver's li cense is a rit ual whereby so ci ety ini ti ates you into the or der and state of mind we all must have if we are to share the roads safely. Ev ery driver trusts that ev ery other driver knows the code and will fol low it. If not, the sys tem col - lapses. Rit ual helps main tain the sys tem. We all ri tu al ize As teens, you rit u al ize all of the time. The way you greet friends, be have at par ties, or pre pare for ath letic con tests are all rit u al - ized ac tiv i ties. For ex am ple, there is a style of dress and be hav ior that is ap pro pri ate for an af ter-game dance and an other style for the se nior prom. The per son who ar rives at the prom wear ing the blue jeans and sweat shirt she would wear to an af ter-game dance vi o - lates the rit u al ized stan dards of the prom. There are count less other ac tiv i ties which have been ritualized. Decorating a Christ mas tree is an an nual rit ual. The birth - day party with its songs, games, cake and can dles is a rit ual. Even where you sit at the din ner ta ble may be rit u al ized. Rit u als are cru cial to the func tion ing of our com mu nity struc tures, whether that struc - ture is a sin gle fam ily or an en tire coun try. The or der, di rec tion, and sig nif i cance they give to our shared lives form the glue which holds us to gether. With out ef fec tive rit u als, the pat terns we need for re la tion ships dis ap - pear and our sense of com mu nity you and I shar ing a com mon space and ex pe ri - ence van ishes. Ritu als in na tive cul tures In na tive cul tures, the com mu nity pro - vided the rit u als. Fam i lies stayed to gether, and peo ple worked in small, sup port ive groups. Peo ple were in ter de pen dent, not in - de pend ent be cause they re lied on each other for sup port and sur vival. Ev ery one had to be part of the group, share the load, and work to gether or the group died. Be cause of this need, so cial roles were well-de fined and the tran si tions be tween them were clearly marked with elab o rate rit u - als. Birth, nam ing, pas sage into adult hood, mar riage and death all de manded com mu nity rit u als to help ev ery one un der stand and re - spect the tran si tion. Rit u als sanc ti fied (made holy) these changes and gave them mean ing. They kept in di vid u als and com mu ni ties in har mony with the pat terns of life. Rit u als bonded one gen er a tion to an other and were passed on as part of a group's cul tural and spir i tual leg acy. Un for tu nately, our mod ern cul ture has di min ished the value of rit ual, which has cre - ated many prob lems. If the so ci ety does n't pro vide guid ing rit u als, we in vent or find them for our selves. Drugs, sex, and al co hol be come rit u al is tic ex pres sions of in de pend - ence and self iden tity, per sonal Rites of Pas - sage. Much of the in crease in gang ac tiv ity, our ob ses sive fas ci na tion with sports, or the growth of for mal re li gion can be traced to a search for rit ual struc ture and mean ing. The Rite of Pas sage For na tive cul tures the most im por tant rit ual was the Rite of Pas sage. To in sure its sur vival, the tribe needed ca pa ble adults, so when a child could take on adult re spon si bil i - ties, ev ery one re joiced. Rites of Pas sage rit u - als marked this im por tant tran si tion. Na tive peo ples saw the Rite of Pas sage as a sym bolic death and re birth: the death of the child's weak, de pend ent self and the re - birth of the strong, ca pa ble adult. The rit ual told the child that he had to learn to think in a new way. To have the power and depth needed to make this dif fi cult tran si tion, the Rite of Pas - sage had to be long, fright en ing and mys te ri - ous. For many tribes, this meant act ing out sym bol i cally the child's death and re birth: a myth i cal mon ster swal lowed the child and dis gorged the adult, or a fear some spirit killed the youth and af ter wards brought him back to life as a new per son. This pro cess had three stages: 1) the sep a ra tion, when the 4 The Hero s Journey: A Guide to Literature and Life

5 ini ti ate is sev ered from ev ery day life; 2) the ini ti a tion/trans for ma tion, where con scious - ness is changed and the ini ti ate's old self is de stroyed so that the new self can emerge, and, 3) the re turn, when the new adult is re - united with life, but at a higher sta tion. The Sep a ra tion In the sep a ra tion, the ini ti ate is dragged (some times lit er ally) from her home, fam ily, and nor mal life to con front the mon ster of growth and change. This is a mo ment of great mean ing to the fam ily. The par ents know that their child will "die" and be come an adult in the tribe with adult sta tus and roles. Phys i cal and psy cho log i cal sep a ra tion are es sen tial. The ini ti ate must be fully ab - sorbed by the rit ual, so she has to be re moved from all dis trac tions. Sep a ra tion also strips the ini ti ate away from the frame work of re la - tion ships that sup ports her old self, the self that has to die. The Ini ti a tion/trans for ma tion Once separated, the initiate undergoes the long and dif fi cult pro cess of ini ti a tion and trans for ma tion. This may take weeks or even months. In cer tain Aus tra lian Ab orig ine tribes, boys had to com plete a walk about to be come men. They had to walk alone across a desert wil der ness. They car ried only a spear and the sur vival skills they had learned. The walk about of ten lasted sev eral months, and there was only one re quire ment to pass: you must sur vive. If the boys lived through the walk about, they were men; if not, well... Dur ing the trans for ma tion, the ini ti ate dies as a de pend ent, ego-cen tered child and is re born as a re spon si ble adult mem ber of the com mu nity. This psy cho log i cal change is of ten marked by a phys i cal change, such as by tat too ing, cir cum ci sion, or scar ring. Some times psy cho log i cal death and re - birth were acted out sym bol i cally. In some Na tive Amer i can tribes, the ini ti ate had to kneel be fore the chief. The chief told him that he was go ing to face a spirit who would strike him dead and then im me di ately re store him to life. As the chief, he be came an i - mated by the spirit and shook vi o lently. Then the spirit/chief threw a bean or stone at the ini ti ate. When the ini ti ate was hit, he fell, be liev ing he was dead. Mo ments later, the chief would be gan strik ing the dead boy, and the boy would come back to life as a new per son, ready as sume adult re spon - si bil i ties and help sup port the tribe. The Re turn Af ter their ini ti a tion/trans for ma tion, the ini ti ates re turn to their vil lage. They have made the men tal and emo tional ad just ments needed to take on the vi tal adult tasks of pro tect ing and sus tain ing their so ci ety. In tra di tional cul tures, the re turn was im por tant for both the ini ti ates and the com mu nity. The welcome ceremony secured the initiates in their new roles and told the vil lage that they were now adults, en ti tled to the re spect and rights of adult hood. Bene fits of Pas sage Al though the Rite of Pas sage was pain - ful and dif fi cult, chil dren were anx ious to make it. An adult who had not been ini ti ated was con sid ered a non-per son, un wor thy of re spected or rec og ni tion. Adult hood brought rights and priv i leges that were de nied to chil dren. In most cul tures, the un ini ti ated could not marry or own prop erty, nor were they al lowed a voice in tribal af fairs. The tribe, too, was anx ious for the children to make the pas sage. Its ex is tence de pended on adults who could pro tect and pro vide for the group. The Rite of Pas sage, and the be stow ing of the rights of adult - hood, was an honor for the child and a time of cel e bra tion for the tribe. Take the jour ney Our cul ture no lon ger has for mal Rites of Pas sage. Events which would nor mally be con sid ered tran si tions into adult hood have lost their power and mean ing. With no rit u als to pro vide mean ing, we must cre ate mean ing for our selves. Un der stand ing how the Rite of Pas sage puts us in har mony with our so cial and nat u ral worlds can help us do that. Un der stand ing our points of pas sage can help us make difficult tran si tions and keep us on the path to growth, dis cov ery and greater understanding. The tribes of the west coast of Can ada hon - ored the salmon, call - ing it the "swim mer." The swim mer won their re spect be cause of the great jour ney it took, from its birth in the streams to its life in the sea and its death back in the streams af ter giveing birth to new salmon The Hero s Journey: : A Guide to Literature and Life 5

6 Food for Thought: The Rite of Pas sage 1 List the three stages of the Rite of Pas sage and briefly describe each. 3. In the Rite of Pas sage, na tive cul tures sym bol i cally act out psy cho log i cal death and re birth. How does this help the ini ti ates un der stand the changes they must un dergo to be come adults? 2. In na tive cul tures, why was the Rite of Pas sage im - por tant to the in di vid ual? To the tribe? 4. List sev eral ex pe ri ences in our cul ture which you feel might be con sid ered rit u als or Rites of Pas sage. Write about an event in your life that might be seen as a "Rite of Pas sage," an event which taught you some thing im - por tant or made you grow. This may have been a time when you re al ized that you "were n't a kid any more." The Hero s Journey: A Guide to Literature and Life

7 Rites of Pas sage A death and re birth A com mu nity s most im por tant rit ual is the Rite of Pas sage be cause through its or - deals and rev e la tions, it trans forms raw ad o - les cents into re spon si ble adults, which the com mu nity needs to sur vive. Most Rites of Pas sage act out a death and re birth. Of ten this in volves spend ing a long pe riod of time in a hut or cave, sym bolic of re turn ing to the womb for re birth. For ex - am ple, nov ices in the Makua tribe in Su dan were taken to a hut far from their vil lage where they spent sev eral months. Dur ing that time they re ceived new names and for got their fam ily re la tion ships. For get ting the past rep re sents the death of child hood and the birth of the in fant adult hood. When the nov ices left the hut, they were re born as adults. The Mon ster Nov ices in other tribes are sym bol i cally swal lowed and dis gorged by a myth i cal mon - ster. A tribe in New Guinea builds a hut about 30 yards long, usu ally in a lonely part of the for est. The hut is shaped like a myth i - cal mon ster, high at the head and ta per ing away to the tail. A na tive art ist paints eyes and a gap ing mouth on the open end of the hut. The young men are taken from their tear ful moth ers, be liev ing that they will be de voured by a mon ster. Each boy is brought to face the fear some crea ture, which emits a threat en ing growl (made by a man swing ing a bull-roarer deep in the mon ster s belly). The mon ster, rep re sented by a man stand ing on a scaf fold ing above the door, drinks some wa ter and sym bol i cally swal lows the boy. At the last min ute, how ever, he is of fered a pig to re lease the boy. He ac cepts the gift and the boy is splashed with wa ter and re leased. Once free of the mon ster, the boys face the most dan ger ous part of ini ti a tion, for im - me di ately af ter be ing re leased they are cir - cum cised. The cut rep re sents the wound which the mon ster in flicted on them as they were dis gorged. Af ter the op er a tion, the boys re main in se clu sion for sev eral months, liv ing in the long hut and learn ing what they need to know to be come adults. When fully ini ti ated, they re turn to the vil lage with great cer e mony and cel e bra tion. How ever, they keep their eyes closed, as if asleep, and ap pear to have for got ten their lan guage. Grad u ally, they awaken to be gin their lives as adults. Fe male Rites Through out the world, Rites of Pas sage are mostly male, per haps be cause girls go through a clear phys i cal "pas sage" when they reach pu berty. How ever, many cul tures have im por tant pas sage rites to move girls into wom an hood. For ex am ple, when they reach age fifteen, Mexican girls celebrate the Quinceañera, a festival signifying that the girl has reached sex ual ma tu rity and mar - riageable age. The celebration includes a mass, a party, and other rit ual el e ments such as a tra di tional waltz and a cake. Like many rit u als, the quinceañera strength ens fam ily bonds as well as mark ing the pas sage into wom an hood. Among the Na vajo of the South west (Ar i zona and New Mex ico), when a girl is ready for wom an hood, she goes through a cer e mony called Kinaalda. Dur ing the rit - ual, she re-en acts the myth re count ing the time when White Shell Girl be came Chang - ing Woman. The cer e mony be gins with the girl hav ing her hair washed in yucca (cac tus) suds and in cludes en dur ance run ning (Chang - ing Woman taught that the lon ger a girl runs at her Kinaalda, the lon ger she will live a healthy life), sing ing and chant ing, and a large, rit ual cake, which is baked ac cord ing to an cient tra di tions all shared joy ously by the mem bers of the fam ily and tribe. The com mon mo tifs De spite their dif fer ences, Rites of Pas - sage around the world share two com mon mo tifs: the child s death and re birth as an adult and the com mu nity s ac cep tance and cel e bra tion of the new adult among them. The Hero s Journey: A Guide to Literature and Life 7

8 Cre ate Your Own Rit e of Passage Applying what you know You have stud ied rit u als and the Rite of Pas sage and seen how theys work in tra di tional cul tures. Now you re go ing to cre ate a Rite of Pas sage for a mod ern ex pe ri - ence. Your rit ual will have a spe cific goal and con tain rit u al is tic el e ments like the ones you have stud ied. De sign your rit ual Step One: Se lect a sig nif i cant event from mod ern life that in volves a tran si tion: get ting a driver s licence, buy - ing a first car, en ter ing high school, grad u a tion, get ting a job, achiev ing an ath letic or other goal, re turn ing from war, re tire ment, death, etc. Write your choice be low. Step Two: List at least three rea sons why this event or ex pe ri ence is im por tant in an in di vid ual's life. Step Three: List two or three rea sons why the com mu - nity or so ci ety needs for the in di vid ual to suc cess fully com plete this rit ual. Step Four: Rit u als must change the way a per son un - der stands him self and his re la tion ships with oth ers and life in gen eral. The rit ual you de sign must help the ini ti - ate make this change. List sev eral ways a per son s be - hav ior and/or think ing should change by go ing through this rit ual and ex plain why is each change im por tant? Step Five: On a sep a rate sheet of pa per, cre ate a Rite of Passage with activities, rituals and challenges designed to ac com plish the changes you listed in step three. Your rite must in clude el e ments 1, 2, 3, 5 and 8, but in clude as many of these el e ments as prac ti cal. Be as clear and spe cific as you can. 1. An in tro duc tory para graph or two ex plain ing the pur - pose of your rit ual and why it is im por tant to both the per son and to his or her com mu nity, 2. A rit ual sep a rat ing the ini ti ate from his or her ev ery - day life. The rit ual sep a ra tion should in clude im por - tant peo ple in the ini ti ate's life and com mu nity. You must also de cide who will pre side over the sep a ra - tion rit ual and what will be said and done, 3. A phys i cal lo ca tion for the Rite of Pas sage that is away from ev ery day life, 4. A sense of mys tery and/or dan ger and risk (per haps even real dan ger or risk), 5. A se ries of at least three chal lenges, tests, games or ac tiv i ties de signed to make the ini ti ate aware of the changes he or she is mak ing and which he or she must complete successfully; 6. Ac tions and items which sym bol ize the changes the in di vid ual is mak ing, 7. A fi nal step in which the ini ti ate sym bol i cally as - sumes the new role and is changed sym bol i cally by the rite (i.e., a fake tat too) or ac cepts a tal is man (ring, neck lace, etc.) as a sym bol of change. 8. A rit ual cel e bra tion af ter the Rite of Pas sage when the ini ti ate, who is now changed, re turns to his or her com mu nity and as sumes his or her new role (As with the sep a ra tion rit ual, im por tant peo ple from the in di - vid ual's life and com mu nity should be in volved). As part of the rit ual, you could pres ent the ini ti ate with some thing that will help him or her re mem ber what was learned dur ing the Rite of Pas sage. 8 The Hero s Journey: A Guide to Literature and Life

9 The Hero s Jour ney: What makes a hero? 1. List the qual i ties that you feel a per son should have to be con sid ered a hero? 4. Pick one per son from your list (num ber 3) and ex - plain why you feel that per son is he roic. 2. Who do you know that is in some way a hero? Ex - plain why that per son is he roic. 5. De scribe a time when you did some thing that might be con sid ered he roic. 3. List the names of five pub lic fig ures liv ing now who you feel are heroes. 6. What qual i ties do you have that might be con sid ered he roic? The Hero s Journey: A Guide to Literature and Life 9

10 The He roic Jour ney The Great Ad ven ture In my thol ogy, heroes take great jour - neys: to slay Medusa, to kill the mi no taur, to find the golden fleece, to res cue the sun. But The Hero s Jour ney (or Quest) is n t just a pat tern from myth. It s the pat tern of life, growth and ex pe ri ence for all of us. We see it re flected ev ery where, from a sim ple tele vi sion com edy to the great works of clas si cal lit er a ture. Par al lels the Rite of Pas sage The Jour ney has the same three stages as the Rite of Pas sage. First the ini ti ate faces sep a ra tion from his own, fa mil iar world. Once sep a rated, he un der goes in i ti - a tion and trans for ma tion, where the old ways of think ing and act ing are al tered or de stroyed, open ing the way to a new level of aware ness, skill and free dom. Af ter suc - cess fully meet ing the chal lenges of the in i - ti a tion, the ini ti ate takes the jour ney s fi nal step, the re turn to his world. When he does, he will find that he is a more con fi dent, per - ceptive, and capable person. A map to ex pe ri ence Why study the Hero s Jour ney? Why learn a pat tern that dates back to be fore re - corded his tory? The an swer is sim ple: we should study it be cause it s the pat tern of hu man ex pe ri ence, of our ex pe ri ence, and we will live it for the rest of our lives. In a sense, ev ery chal lenge or change we face in life is a Jour ney: ev ery fall ing in or fall ing out, ev ery birth or death, ev ery move to a new town or school ev - ery sit u a tion which con fronts us with some - thing new. Some jour neys are lon ger and more dif fi cult than oth ers, but they are all jour neys we must face through out life. As with any pro cess of change, jour - neys can be con fus ing and pain ful, but these chal lenges bring op por tu ni ties for dis - cov ery and growth. The strug gle helps us de velop con fi dence, per spec tive and un der - stand ing. It is a pro cess of self-dis cov ery and self-in te gra tion, of main tain ing bal ance and har mony in our lives. Un der stand ing the Jour ney pat tern can help you un der stand the lit er a ture you read, the mov ies you see, and the ex pe ri ences which shape your life. By rec og niz ing the Jour ney s stages and how they func tion, you will de velop a sense of the flow of your own ex pe ri ence and be better able to make de ci sions and solve prob lems. More im por tantly, you will be gin to rec og nize your own points of pas sage and re spect the sig nif i cance they have for you. Eight-step transformation We usu ally di vide the Jour ney into eight steps, but you must re mem ber that the jour ney is an in di vid ual pro cess of growth and trans for ma tion. The se quence and du ra - The Hero s Journey: A Guide to Literature and Life 10

11 tion of the ex pe ri ences will vary from one per son to an other. Here are the ba sic el e - ments in the Hero s Jour ney: Sep a ra tion (from the known) The Call The Thresh old (with guard ians, help ers, and men tor) Ini ti a tion and Trans for ma tion The Chal lenges The Abyss The Trans for ma tion The Revelation The Atone ment The Re turn (to the known world) The Re turn (with a Gift) It s im por tant to re mem ber that the jour ney is a pro cess of sep a ra tion, trans for - ma tion, and re turn. It is a pro cess where each stage must be com pleted suc cess fully if the ini ti ate is to be come a hero. To turn back would mean that the ini ti ate is re ject - ing her own need to grow. Un less the ini ti - ate sets out again, he may be lock ing him self into un end ing ad o les cence and giv - ing up the ben e fits, free dom and ful fill ment of adult hood. The Sep a ra tion The Call The Call in vites the ini ti ate into the ad - ven ture, of fers her the op por tu nity to face the un known and gain some thing of phys i cal or spir i tual value. The ini ti ate may choose will - ingly to un der take the quest, or she may be dragged into it un will ingly. In gen eral, the Call co mes as a re al i za - tion of an im bal ance or in jus tice in her life. The Call can take many forms: the ini ti ate has had some thing taken from her, her fam ily, or her so ci ety. Her quest is to re claim it. the ini ti ate senses that there is some thing lack ing in her life, and she must find what is miss ing. the ini ti ate wants to save or re store honor her own, her fam ily's, her coun - try's. the ini ti ate re al izes that some thing is not per mit ted to mem bers of her so ci ety, and she goes out to win these rights for her peo ple. The Thresh old Once called to the ad ven ture, the in i ti - ate must pass over the Threshold. The Thresh old is the jump ing off point for the ad ven ture. It is the in ter face be tween the known and the un known. In the known world, the ini ti ate feels se cure be cause she knows the land scape and the rules. Once past the thresh old, how ever, the ini ti ate en - ters the un known, a dif fer ent world full of dan gers and chal lenges. Of ten at the thresh old, the ini ti ate may en coun ter peo ple, be ings, or sit u a tions which block her pas sage into the jour ney. These thresh old guard ians have two func - tions. They pro tect us by keep ing us from tak ing jour neys be fore we are ready. How - ever, once we are ready to meet the chal - lenge, they step aside and point the way. More im por tantly, to pass the guard ian is to make a com mit ment, to say: I m ready. I can do this. Early in our lives, our par ents are our thresh old guard ians. They try to keep us from do ing things which would cause us harm. As we get older, our par ents job be - comes more dif fi cult. They must both pro - tect and push, mea s ur ing our ca pa bil i ties against the chal lenges we want to face. The Jour ney is like being taken apart and re as sem bled. Dur ing the process, ineffective parts of our char ac ter are dis carded, and stronger, more ca pa ble elements emerge. The Hero s Journey: A Guide to Literature and Life 11

12 "When you look into the abyss, the abyss also looks into you." Friedrich Nietz sche The Dis ney film The Lion King of fers an other ex am ple of a thresh old guard ian: the king s ad vi sor, Zazu. Zazu seems to be a busy-body, but he is ac tu ally try ing to pro tect the over-ea ger Simba from tak ing on chal lenges he is not ready to as sume. Also at the thresh old (and very of ten later dur ing the jour ney), the ini ti ate will en coun ter a helper (or help ers). Help ers pro vide as sis tance or di rec tion. Of ten the help co mes in the form of a di vine gift, such as a tal is man, which will help her through the or deal ahead. The most im por tant of these help ers is the mentor or guide. The men tor keeps the ini ti ate fo cused on her goal and gives her sta bil ity, a psy cho log i cal foun da tion for when the dan ger is great est. Help ers and guides may ap pear through out the jour ney. For tu nately, they tend to ap pear at the most op por tune mo - ments, just when the ini ti ate is about to be killed, for ex am ple. We call this for tu nate tim ing synchronicity. The Ini ti a tion The Chal lenges Once past the Thresh old, the ini ti ate be gins the jour ney into the un known. The voy age can be out ward into a phys i cal un - known or in ward to a psy cho log i cal un - known. Which ever di rec tion the voy age takes, as the ini ti ate goes deeper into the un known, he puts him self more and more at risk, emo tion ally and phys i cally. On his quest, the ini ti ate faces a se ries of chal lenges or temp ta tions. The early chal lenges are rel a tively easy. By meet ing them suc cess fully, he builds ma tu rity, skill and con fi dence. As his jour ney pro gresses, the chal lenges be come more and more dif - fi cult, test ing him to the ut most, forc ing him to change and grow. Thus be gins the pro cess of trans for ma tion. The jour ney s chal lenges al ways seem to strike the ini ti ate s great est weak - ness: his poor est skill, his shak i est knowl - edge, his most vul ner a ble emo tions. Chal lenges al ways re flect the ini ti ate s needs and fears, for it is only by di rectly fac ing these weak nesses that they can be over come. If they can t be over come, the ini ti ate can t go on: the ad ven ture ends and the ini ti ate must turn back. Into the Abyss When he reaches the Abyss, the ini ti - ate faces the great est chal lenge of the jour - ney. The chal lenge is so great at this point that our ini ti ate must sur ren der him self com pletely to the quest, lose him self in the ad ven ture and be come one with it. In the Abyss he must over come his great est fears, and he must face them alone. Here is where he must slay the dragon, which of ten takes the shape of some thing he dreads or needs to re solve. There is al ways the pos si bil ity that the ini ti ate is not ready or has a flaw in his char ac ter, and the chal lenge beats him. Or per haps he can t sur ren der him self to it and must re treat. In any case, un less he sets off to try again, life be comes a shadow of what it should be, and he will be come dis sat is - fied and bit ter. Trans for ma tion and Revelation As the ini ti ate con quers the Abyss and over comes his fears, his trans for ma tion be - comes com plete. Of ten the fi nal step in the pro cess is a mo ment of death and re birth: a part of the ini ti ate dies so that a new part can be born. Fear must die to make way for cour age. Ig no rance must die for the birth of en light en ment. De pend ency and ir re spon si - bil ity must die so that in de pend ence and power can grow. This part of the Jour ney is sim i lar to the Rite of Pas sage, where the child moves from de pend ence to in de pend ence, from self ish to giv ing; he ac cepts in de pend ence and the re spon si bil ity it brings. Part of the Trans for ma tion pro cess is a Revelation, a sud den, dra matic change in the way one thinks or views life. This change in think ing is cru cial be cause it makes the ini ti ate a truly dif fer ent per son. The Rev e la tion usu ally oc curs dur ing or af - ter the Abyss, but some times it may ac tu - ally lead the ini ti ate into the Abyss. 12 The Hero s Journey: A Guide to Literature and Life

13 The Rev e la tion leads to a change in be hav ior, a change in be ing, called the Trans for ma tion. Our be hav ior is dif fer ent not be cause we know we should act dif fer - ently, but be cause we are dif fer ent. Our new self leads to a new way of act ing. The Atone ment Af ter the ini ti ate has been trans - formed, he goes on to achieve Atonement, that is he is at-one with his new self. He has ab sorbed the changes caused by the Jour ney and he is fully re born. In a spir i - tual sense, the Trans for ma tion has brought the ini ti ate into har mony with life and the world. The im bal ance that sent him on the jour ney has been cor rected un til the next call. The ini ti ate is now truly a hero. At this he re ceives or be comes aware of a boon, a gift which is his based on his new level of skill and aware ness. He may be come richer or stron ger, he may be - come a great leader, or he may be come en - light ened spir i tu ally. The Re turn Af ter Trans for ma tion and Atone ment, the hero faces the fi nal stage of her jour - ney: her Re turn to ev ery day life. The es - sence of the re turn is to be gin con trib ut ing to one s so ci ety. In my thol ogy, the ini ti ate may re turn as a great hero be cause she has saved or re newed her com mu nity in some way. Other myth o log i cal heroes re turn to cre ate a city, na tion, or re li gion. Some times, how ever, things don t go smoothly. For ex am ple, she may re turn with a great spir i tual mes sage, but find that her mes sage is re jected and that she is os - tra cized or even cru ci fied for her ideal. The hero also runs the risk of los ing her new un der stand ing, hav ing it cor rupted by putt ing her self back in the same sit u a tion or en vi ron ment she left ear lier. Be cause she is on a higher spir i tual level than her peo ple, the hero may be - come dis il lu sioned or frus trated and leave so ci ety to be on her own. Yet, other great heroes such as Bud dha and Je sus have sac - ri ficed bliss or heaven to re main in the world and teach oth ers. The Jour ney is a Map We know the story of the Jour ney orig i nated with the an cient myths and leg - ends, but it is still around us to day. It is the ba sis for al most all of the books and plays we read. We see it in tele vi sion pro grams we watch ev ery day, and we see it in the mov ies we en joy again and again. All are fic tional de pic tions of the Hero's Jour ney or of el e ments of the Hero's Jour ney. The Jour ney gives you a means for un - der stand ing and ben e fit ting from these fic - tional ad ven tures. Even if the char ac ters aren t real, the jour neys they take and chal - lenges they face are re flec tions of the real jour neys and chal lenges we all face in life. As you share their quests with them, you can learn from their ex pe ri ences. Per haps most im por tantly, though, the Jour ney is the pat tern that we fol low in our own lives as we face chal lenges and move from child to teen ager, from teen ager to adult, from adult to old age, and from old age into death. The ad ven tures you face in life will be chal leng ing and ex cit ing. They can open the doors to knowl edge and un der stand ing. If you un der stand the Jour ney pat tern, you will be better able to face dif fi cul ties and use your ex pe ri ences to be come stron ger and more ca pa ble rather than fear ful and de fen sive. Un der stand ing the pat tern can help you achieve wis dom, growth, and in - de pend ence. The Jour ney helps us be come the peo ple we want to be. Hero ism is a mat ter of in teg rity be com ing more and more at each step ourselves. Jo seph Camp bell The Hero s Journey: A Guide to Literature and Life 13

14 Gawain and the Green Knight A clas sic leg end from Eng land Re told by Su san Thomp son King Ar thur and the Knights of the Round Ta ble had en joyed many years of peace. Tales of their honor and brav ery had spread far and wide. No one dared to chal - lenge the bor ders of the king dom, so the knights days were of ten spent en gaged in joust ing and other games, es pe cially at Christ mas. King Ar thur par tic u larly en joyed such merry-mak ing. His love of fine tales of quests was leg end ary. It was said that the king would not sit down to feast un til he was prom ised the tale of a great ad ven ture. One year, the New Year s Eve feast had just be gun when the great doors to the hail were flung wide by a huge green knight astride a pow er ful green horse. The knight was per fectly pro por tioned and many of the women in the hall thought him un com monly hand some. He wore no ar mor, hel met, or hau berk. In his great hands he car ried only a sprig of holly and an ax of mon u men tal size. He wore a beau ti ful man tle lined with white fur and em broi dered with green jew els and gold thread. His hand some fea tures and fine silk gar ments daz zled the rev el ers. The Green Knight gave no greet ing, but, in stead, rode to the cen ter of the hall. Who is lord of this cas tle? he asked in a voice deep and fierce. I would speak with him. I am the one you seek, Ar thur re plied, his hand fall ing un con sciously to the hilt of his sword. I do not come to wage war, said the knight, stop ping his horse be fore the dais where Ar thur feasted with his great est knights. I pro pose only a game. Come, sit, join us in our feast, said Ar thur. We will talk of this game af ter we eat. I do not wish to feast with you, said the knight. He turned to ward the knights in the hall. I pro pose a chal lenge. I will give this fine ax, which has no equal, to any man who will strike one blow against me un chal - lenged. If I sur vive the blow, this man will agree to meet me twelve months and one day hence to re ceive the same from me. Who among you will ac cept my chal lenge? King Ar thur laughed. Surely, he thought, this was a joke. The Knights of the Round Ta ble chuck led with their king, but no one an swered the chal lenge. A look of scorn dark ened the Green Knight s face, and Ar thur and his knights be came un easy. The Green Knight spurred his horse round the room, his horse s hoof beats echo ing through out the now si lent hall. I have heard much talk of the Knights of the Round Ta ble, of their brav ery and chiv alry. I see now that it is only leg end. Not one of you is brave enough to strike this blow. Had I thought you were se ri ous about this game, I would have been the first to ac - cept your chal lenge, Ar thur re plied, his face red with shame and an ger. Un cle, let me stand in your stead and strike the blow, said Ar thur s young nephew, Gawain. Gawain was not yet a knight, but Ar thur, see ing the con vic tion on the boy s face and the em bar rass ment of the other knights, com manded his nephew to kneel be fore him. Ar thur knighted him and Gawain turned to the Green Knight. I ac cept your chal lenge. Gawain s voice rang through out the hall. The other knights of the Round Ta ble ad mired this young knight, who had shown more brav - ery than they who had more ex pe ri ence. The Green Knight dis mounted and bent so that his neck was clearly ex posed. Gawain took up the ax, raised it high and 14 The Hero s Journey: A Guide to Literature and Life

15 brought it down with such force that the Green Knight s bones and ten dons were cleanly sev ered. His head rolled to the foot of the dais where King Ar thur was seated. The knight s head less body straight ened and strode to the dais where he lifted his sev ered head by its glit ter ing green hair, and tucked it be neath his arm. His eyes opened and gazed forth at Gawain. A fine blow, in deed, his lips spoke. Take heed of our agree ment, Sir Knight. I am known as the Green Knight of the Green Cha pel. When you ride out to meet me twelve months hence to re - ceive the re ward you surely de serve, you will find me there. The Green Knight mounted his horse and rode so swiftly from the hall that sparks flew from his horse s hooves. The hall was si lent for a stunned mo - ment be fore those gath ered re turned to their merry-mak ing, con grat u lat ing Gawain on his brav ery. The months of the year flew swiftly, and soon it came time for Gawain to set out to find the Green Knight. On All Saints Day, Ar thur gath ered his knights and the la dies of the court to gether for feast ing and fel low ship. No one talked of the se ri ous ness of Gawain s quest, but teased and laughed with him, all the while fear ing that they would never see the young knight again. Af ter eat ing, Gawain for mally asked the King if he might leave Cam e lot to go in search of the Green Knight. With a heavy heart, Ar thur gave his per mis sion. Gawain pre pared him self, dress ing in his fin est gar ments. He heard mass, bid the mem bers of the court good-bye, and then gal loped away on his horse, Gringolet. For seven weeks, Gawain rode through un known lands search ing for the Green Cha pel. The road was not easy, and he en coun tered great hard ship. He fought many fierce chal leng ers, sev eral who might have slain him if he had not been such a brave and no ble knight. He tra - versed rug ged ter rain and saw won drous sights. He slept where he could find lit tle com fort, in his ar mor, in caves, even on solid rock. The win ter weather was mer ci - less, ham mer ing him with sleet and rain. Thus Gawain wan dered, search ing, in pain and alone. On Christ mas Eve, dis - heart ened and nearly ex hausted, he stopped by the side of a lonely trail, knelt down and prayed for shel ter and a place to hear mass. No sooner had he risen from his prayers than he saw a cas tle in the dis - tance. En cour aged, Gawain re mounted Gringolet and rode to the cas tle. The man who greeted Gawain at the door was fierce of face but gra cious and cul tured in his speech. He in vited Gawain to join his fam ily for Christ mas and Gawain grate fully ac cepted. They feasted and made merry that day and the next. On the third day, the lord of the cas tle asked Gawain what dark deed had driven him to wan der alone with such cour age when he could have been feast ing with the King. I am search ing for the Green Cha pel and the Green Knight who abides there. I have agreed to meet him there on New Year s, but I do not know where to find him. Do you know of this Green Cha pel? Aye. It is not more than a half day s ride from here. Stay with us a lit tle lon - ger, rest, and on New Year s Day ride out to meet this Green Knight. This is good news you have given me, laughed Gawain in re lief. My quest is at an end. I will gladly stay, and I thank you for your hos pi tal ity. Won der ful! To mor row you must rest, sleep late, and, af ter you eat, amuse your self by keep ing my wife com pany un til I re turn to the cas tle. The lord paused a mo ment, think ing. Sir Knight, he said, smil ing, let us make an agree - ment. What ever I bring back from hunt - ing in the woods shall be yours, and what ever good for tune be falls you dur ing the day, shall be mine in ex change. Let us strike this bar gain, what ever good or bad hap pens to ei ther of us, we will hon estly ex change. The Hero s Journey: A Guide to Literature and Life 15

16 I agree hap pily for it sounds a pleas - ant way to pass the time, said Gawain. The next day, Gawain whiled away the day in the com pany of the lady of the cas tle. That af ter noon, while they sat be fore the fire, he was star tled when the lady asked, My lord, Gawain, do you not find me at - tractive? My lady, your beauty is be yond com - pare, re plied Gawain hon estly. Then why have you not tried to win my heart? You are in deed beau ti ful, my lady, and if you were not mar ried to my gra cious host, I would most cer tainly woo you for my self, Gawain re plied. My lord has made ev ery thing in his cas tle avail able to you, Sir Knight, said the lady. Gawain did not wish to an ger or in sult his host by mak ing am o rous ad vances to - ward his wife, but nei ther did he wish to hurt the lady s feel ings. One kiss then, he said, and the lady was sat is fied. When the lord of the cas tle re turned home, he pre sented Gawain with a deer, and Gawain gave the lord a kiss. The lord laughed lust ily. In deed, that is good for - tune, Sir Gawain. The sec ond day went much as the first. The lord re turned with a fox, and Gawain gave the lord the two kisses that he had re - ceived that day. Again the lord laughed at Gawain s good for tune. On the third day, New Year s Eve, Gawain sat be fore the fire with the lady of the cas tle. Her beauty pleased him, and, as she rose to kiss him, warmth of feel ing for her spread through out his body. He felt noth ing but joy in her pres ence. I have en joyed our time to gether, Gawain. I shall miss your con ver sa tion and hand some pres ence. Do you not have a to - ken that you might give me to re mem ber you by? Gawain re plied that he did not. The lady of fered him a ring to re mem ber her by, but Gawain re fused it. At last she brought forth a finely sewn gir dle of green silk. See - ing that he was about to re fuse this gift also, she made light of its im por tance. This is but a mere scrap of cloth of lit - tle value. It s the feel ing that went into its mak ing that makes it spe cial, for no man who wears it will ever be cut down by an - other of this world. Gawain re al ized that such a gar ment would be valu able pro tec tion for him when he went to face the Green Knight. The lady pressed him to ac cept the gir dle, and he con sented. She asked that he al ways keep it con cealed, es pe cially from her hus band, and that he never tell any one about its ex is tence. Gawain agreed that no one would know of it ever. That night the lord re turned with the spoils of his day s hunt ing, and Gawain be - stowed upon him three of the sweet est kisses a man could give. He said noth ing of the green gir dle. By God, you have had hap pi ness this day, laughed the lord. They all sat down to din ner and Gawain gra ciously thanked his hosts for mak ing his stay such a pleas ant one. He asked the lord if he could pro vide a guide to show him the way to the Green Cha pel, and the lord agreed. The world was swept with brew ing storms that night as Gawain lay awake wor - ry ing over the con fron ta tion to come. At dawn he rose and asked for his horse and his ar mor. He donned the green gir dle be - neath his man tle, not for its rich color or fine cloth, but for the pro tec tion it would pro vide when he was un able to take up his sword to de fend him self The morn ing was gloomy with mist as Gawain and his guide rode forth to the Green Cha pel. Deep in the for est, at the edge of a dark glade, the guide stopped. I have brought you as far as I dare, said the guide. Ahead lies the Green Cha - pel. As one who knows you and has come to love you, I warn you to be care ful, for the knight who dwells here is fierce and quick to strike. Take a dif fer ent road, Sir Gawain, and ride safely away from this place. I swear that I will tell no one that you fled from this con fron ta tion. 16 The Hero s Journey: A Guide to Literature and Life

17 Thank you for your help and your good wishes, said Gawain, but I can not turn back, for that would make me a cow - ard. Such an act would be un for giv able. This is my fate, and I will not evade it. Af ter say ing good-bye, Gawain rode into the clear ing and saw the Green Cha - pel. It sat at the back of the glade, in the shel ter of two large oaks. A tan gle of ivy laced its rough stone walls and its court - yard was over grown with herbs. It ap - peared de serted. Such a gloomy, ugly place be fits its mas ter, he thought. But I have agreed to this meet ing, and God s will be done. No mat ter what hap pens, I will show no fear. Who is the mas ter here? Gawain called out. Where is the one who agreed to meet me on this day? I am here, called a voice from the slope above Gawain. Gawain looked up, and there stood the Green Knight. Shortly you will get what you de - serve, said the Green Knight be fore turn ing to con tinue sharp en ing his ax with long, pow er ful strokes. Gawain had never seen a knight take such care or joy in the la bor of sharp en ing a weapon. While the rhyth mic whir ring of the ax strok ing the whet stone clearly brought plea sure to the Green Knight, the high-pitched sound sent a shiver down Gawain s spine. Yet, no sign of fear showed upon his face. Soon the Green Knight emerged from a cav ern car ry ing a great Dan ish ax with which to re turn Gawain s blow. So great in size was the ax that when Gawain saw it, he could not con ceive of any mor - tal man be ing able to lift it. The back of his neck be gan to tin gle as he an tic i pated the blow to come. Gawain, said the Green Knight, you are a man of your word and I am pleased to see you. You have timed your ar rival per fectly, as I knew you would. Now, you re mem ber our agree ment. Take as lit tle time to pre pare as I did when you gave your sin gle blow that took my head. Re move your hel met. Yes, you may strike your one blow, and rest as sured it will meet with no re sis - tance from me, said Gawain. Gawain the Good re moved his hel - met and calmly bent for ward, ex pos ing his neck for the knight. The Green Knight swiftly raised his ax and brought it down with such strength and fe roc ity that, had it met with Gawain s vul ner a ble neck, his life would surely have been for feit. But, as the ax came down, Gawain looked from the cor ner of his eye to see the shin - ing blade de scend ing and turned his shoul der in fear. The Green Knight, see - ing Gawain flinch, stayed the blow. Gawain the Good, who is known for his great cour age, who has never shown fear when con fronted by a host of foes, you are flinch ing in fear. Never would I have thought it of you. When I stood for your blow, no fear did I show, never did I flinch. When it co mes to cour age, I be - lieve that I am the better man, said the Green Knight. I will not flinch again, Sir Knight, prom ised Gawain sav agely. You can be sure of that even though I know that if you sep a rate my head from my body, I can not re trieve it and put it on again. Gawain bent again and no move did he make in any part of his body as he waited for the Green Knight s blow to de scend. The Green Knight noted Gawain s de ter mined still ness. In truth, I be lieve it is your own fear that you fear most, he said, al most gently. There fore, I will de - lay this no lon ger. The Green Knight again raised his ax and brought it down quickly. Gawain did not flinch, even when the cold blade of the ax grazed the skin of his neck. When he felt his blood trickle over his shoul ders and saw it drib bling to the ground, Gawain moved swiftly, jump ing out of the reach of the Green Knight and his ax. He quickly re placed his hel met, and held his shield be fore him. You have had your one blow, sir, he said. If you at tempt an other, I prom ise that it shall be re turned in full mea sure. The Hero s Journey: A Guide to Literature and Life 17

18 The Green Knight laughed. Come, Gawain, do not be so fierce. No one here has given you any thing that you did not de serve. The taunt ing I gave you when I sharp ened my ax was for the kiss you took from my wife on the first day of our agree ment. The blow from which you flinched was for the day you took two kisses. The blow that wounded you was for the third day, when your honor failed, Gawain the Good. You re turned the three kisses, but the gir dle you kept for your self was none other than my own, made for me by my beau ti ful wife. I know of ev ery mo ment you spent in my cas tle while I was hunt ing, for I de vised these tests for you. I sent my wife to try you, and you fared well. Gawain slowly low ered his sword and bent his head in deep shame. Sud - denly he ripped off the of fend ing gir dle and flung it at the knight. I have failed, Gawain cried. I have been a cow ard and have cov eted. Fear of your stroke has caused me to for - sake in my self all that a knight should be: loyal and giv ing. I con fess to be ing false and afraid. Only your good will has let me win this day. I as sure you that any harm that I have suf fered has quickly healed, said the Green Knight, of fer ing the gir dle back to Gawain. Your sins are for given. You are in deed Gawain the Good, and I give to you this green gir dle. Wear it in good faith, Sir Knight, as a re minder of the chal lenge you faced at the Green Cha pel. I will wear it not for its beauty but to re mind me of my fears and my de ceit, said Gawain, tak ing the gir dle. When I feel proud of my ac com plish ments in bat - tle, I will look upon this gir dle and it will hum ble me. In deed, that is why I was sent to Cam e lot, to try your pride and to see if the tales that peo ple told of the Knights of the Round Ta ble were true, ex plained the Green Knight. What is your name, no ble knight, so that when I tell this tale, I may tell them of you? asked Gawain. That I will gladly tell you, the Green Knight said. I am Bercilak de Hautdesert. The two knights em braced, and then parted there in the cold. The Green Knight re turned to his wife and his cas tle, and Gawain ven tured into the for est to be gin the long jour ney back to Cam e lot. Along the way, Gawain met with many ad ven tures and won many vic to ries. He slept in lodges or out in the open. The wound on his neck healed quickly, and he took to wear ing the green gir dle as a bal - dric tied un der his left arm. He ar rived safely at Cam e lot where the King and Queen greeted him joy ously and lis tened to his tales of ad ven ture. Gawain gave an hon est ac count of all that had be fallen him, in clud ing show ing ev ery one pres ent the scar on the back of his neck from the blow the Green Knight had given him be - cause of his de ceit. I must wear this badge al ways, Gawain told the King, for noth ing good be falls a man who hides from his fears. The King of fered words of so lace to his nephew. Mem bers of the court also of - fered com fort and agreed that hence forth the lords and la dies of the Broth er hood of the Round Ta ble would wear bright green bal drics in honor of Gawain the Good and his great quest. 18 The Hero s Journey: A Guide to Literature and Life

19 Understanding Gawain's Journey Part 1: Briefly log Gawain's journey The Call: The Thresh old: The Thresh old Guard ians: The Help ers: The Men tor: The Chal lenges and Temp ta tions: The Talisman: The Abyss: The Revelation: The Atone ment: The Gift and Re turn: Part 2: Food for Thought 1. When Gawain set out on his jour ney, what was his goal? Did his goal change by the end of his quest? 2. Gawain had to face his fears in the Abyss. What were his fears? 3. The Green Knight only nicked the back of Gawain s neck. What do you think would have hap pened to Gawain if he had not ac cepted the green gir dle from the Green Knight s wife? 4. What does Gawain learn about him self and about life from his en coun ter with the Green Knight? 5. As a re sult of Gawain s jour ney, how does his com - mu nity, the Broth er hood of the Round Ta ble, ben e - fit? The Hero s Journey: A Guide to Literature and Life 19

20 The End of Eter nal Spring The story of Demeter and Persephone Re told by Reg Har ris In search of a wife Hades, dark god of the Un der world, heard the sound of laugh ter from a nearby meadow. He reigned in the two black horses that pulled his char iot, dis mounted, and crept through the trees to the edge of the glade. There he saw a group of maid ens play ing and pick ing flow ers. His eyes were drawn to the edge of the trees where a girl gath ered flow ers alone. Though he had not seen her for years, he knew that this was Persephone, daugh ter of his sis ter Demeter. Her hair was corn gold, like her mother s, and she was tall and proud, a true child of gods. It was then that Hades, the lord of death, fell in love with the daugh ter of life. Brother Zeus, he said later that day on Mount Olym pus. I come to ask per mis - sion to make Persephone my queen. Were my con sent all that you needed, Zeus said, you would have it. How ever, our sis ter would never agree. Her daugh ter is her joy, a child of light. I am too shy and hum ble to ap proach the girl, Hades said, yet I know that I can - not re main with out her. I can nei ther hin der nor aid, Zeus said, with a shrug. Hades knew Zeus well enough to un - der stand that he had given his ap proval. But Hades was un schooled in the arts of love. In the end he fell upon a plan that was brut ish but ef fec tive. He con vinced Gaea, his grand - mother, to cre ate a beau ti ful nar cis sus plant, which he placed in Persephone's fa vor ite meadow. Then he waited. A kidnaping Persephone was a child of life. She and her mother lived in Earth's eter nal spring, where grain grew lush and full, and where trees bore sweet fruit with out end. But it was in flow ers that the girl found her great est joy. She loved to cre ate new ones, paint them in daz zling col ors, and then weave them into beau ti ful bou quets. It was a golden time for her, yet as she grew older, she felt a stir ring within her. She be - gan to sense that she was ex pe ri enc ing only one side of life, that there was more to dis - cover and experience. One af ter noon, with her mother and a group of friends, Persephone re turned to the isle of Sic ily, to her fa vor ite spot for gath er - ing flow ers. As the other maid ens played in the eter nal bloom, Persephone and Demeter talked qui etly. Will I ever leave you, mother? the girl asked. Leave? Demeter was puz zled. Our life is beau ti ful, Persephone said, and I love you very much, but each day I feel a grow ing dis con tent. Persephone, what better life could you want? Demeter asked. We have sweet fruits, soft grasses, and bright flow ers. Trees give us shade and gen tle breezes cool our skin. Life is com plete? I'm not sure that it is, Persephone said. I sense that there is more for me to know and un der stand. I can't ex plain. Stop wor ry ing, Demeter said. Run now to your meadow and bring back some of those won der ful red flow ers you painted on our last visit. Persephone hugged her mother and then jumped to her feet and dis ap peared into the trees. Her meadow was not far, and when she reached it she be gan to gather her flow ers. Then she paused. Grow ing at the far edge of the meadow was a mys te ri ous flower, one she had never seen. It's long leaves and ra di - ant gold and white blos soms beck oned her. Persephone ran to it, won der ing how it had come into her meadow. En chanted, she knelt and be gan to pick its blos soms. As she did, the ground be neath her trem bled and a great chasm opened in 20 The Hero s Journey: A Guide to Literature and Life

21 the earth. Out of the dark ness thun dered a golden char iot drawn by two fi ery black horses. The driver was Hades, wrapped in his cloak of in vis i bil ity. He seized Persephone and car ried her scream ing into his un der world king dom. De me ter's quest Demeter heard her daugh ter's cries and rushed to the meadow, but she was too late. The chasm had al ready closed, leav - ing no clue to the girl's where abouts. I must find my daugh ter, said the god dess. I won't rest un til I do. Demeter be gan her search. For nine days and nights, with no food or rest, she wan dered the Earth, a torch in each hand, search ing for Persephone. On the tenth day, ex hausted and dis - cour aged, she re mem bered Helios, god of the sun, who sees ev ery thing. He would know what had hap pened. Demeter trav - eled east, to the land of the ris ing sun, and there she found Helios pre par ing for his daily jour ney across the sky. I saw noth ing, he told her. I know better than that, Demeter said. You see all. Tell me what you know. Helios hes i tated, think ing of the an - ger he would in cur from Zeus, but when he saw the wrath grow ing in Demeter's eyes, he feared the pow er ful god dess even more. It was Hades, he said fi nally, and prob a bly with Zeus' con sent. He took your daugh ter to the Un der world. De me ter goes on strike Demeter was fu ri ous. In a rage, she re turned to Olym pus to con front her brother. Why are you so up set, sis ter? Zeus said. Hades will make a fine hus band for our daugh ter. I want her re turned, Demeter said. She can not live in a world with out sun. I can do noth ing, Zeus shrugged. Take some time, dear sis ter. I'm sure that, once you re flect, you will re al ize that this is a fine match for our daugh ter. Demeter left, re fus ing to re turn to Olym - pus. In stead, she wan dered the earth, for bid - ding it to grow any thing. Slowly the fields of grain with ered and died. Fruit trees be came dry and bare. The earth was dy ing. Drought and fam ine fol lowed, and the hu man race was on the edge of death. Zeus faced a di lemma. He was re luc tant to con front his pow er ful brother, but he was too ashamed to face his sis ter. He de cided, fi - nally, to try to per suade Demeter to do as he wished by send ing a con tin gent of gods with con cil ia tory gifts, beg ging her to re turn. De me ter stands firm Demeter con sid ered her brother's wishes, but de spite the risks of an ger ing the most pow er ful god, she re fused to yield. The earth would re main bar ren un til her daugh ter was re turned. Faced with the earth's ruin and the death of hu man ity, Zeus knew that he must re turn Persephone to his sis ter. He sent for his mes - senger, Hermes. Go to the Un der world, he told Her mes. Tell Hades that if Persehpone has eaten noth - ing in the land of the dead, she must re turn to her mother. Per se phone is re leased Hades was heart bro ken. He had of fered Persephone ev ery del i cacy, but he had been un able to per suade her to eat while in his king dom. Though she had re sisted his ev ery over ture, she had brought the spark of love and life to his dark world. He felt the pain of los ing one who is loved, and he re al ized what his sis ter must be feel ing at the loss of her daugh ter. Re luc tantly he called Persephone to him. Your mother is sick over your loss, he be gan. She has chal lenged Zeus him self and has aban doned her du ties un til you are re - turned. The world is near death. Zeus has com manded that you re turn. Persephone looked up. She was to be re leased, but the news did not bring the joy she would have ex pected. She was still an gry at be ing ab duc ted. but she had come to find Hades strangely ap peal ing. She looked at him The Hero s Journey: A Guide to Literature and Life 21

22 and saw the deep sad ness in his eyes. For the first time she saw him as he was, with out his fear some cloak of night and his mask of death. She saw a shy, gen tle Hades, whose years of iso la tion had left him un re fined and awkward. When do I re turn? she asked. Zeus and your mother will be here soon, Hades re plied. He hes i tated, look ing at her gently. I was wrong to have taken you as I did, but I saw no al ter na tive. I knew that nei ther you nor your mother would con - sider a mar riage with me and a life in the Un der world, away from the flow ers and sun light that are your life. Persephone said noth ing. Now you will be leav ing, Hades con - tin ued slowly. You are the light which bal - ances dark ness, the life which coun ter vails death. You are in all ways the mel ody to my har mony, and though you have hated me, I will miss you as much as your mother misses you now. I have not found my stay here un - pleas ant, Persephone said, I have en joyed your gen er ous gifts, but I have also found peace here. With my mother I re joiced in life alone, in the un fad ing beauty of the flow ers and trees. Now I see that life was un bal anced. I think I sensed that, even be - fore you brought me here. The pome gran ate seeds Hades looked up, a sud den spark of hope in his eyes. This may be a place of dark ness and death, he said, but dark ness and death are only dif fer ent as pects of light and life. They can not be sep a rated. Per haps Demeter and I have lived apart too long. You liv ing here has re stored a bal ance. It has brought the nat u ral ness of death to her world and the prom ise of life to mine. Is that such a loath some ex is tence? No, it was n't, Persephone thought to her self. While in the un der world she had come to love the dark peace, il lu mi nated only by the flick er ing torch light. Sud denly, she sensed a flow in life much deeper than the bright col ors of her flow ers or the dark shad ows of Hades' king dom. He was right. There was a har mony in her be ing here. Marry me, Hades urged, as he sensed her chang ing feel ings. You shall have the power of the Queen of the Un der world. To - gether we shall re store to the world a bal - ance of dark ness and light. He paused, watch ing the girl. Then he reached to a cor nu co pia at the side of his throne, se lected a pome gran ate and broke it open, ex pos ing its bright red seeds. You have not eaten here, he said, of - fer ing the pome gran ate to Persephone. You must be very hun gry. Persephone looked at the fruit. To eat food in the Un der world would force her to re main there, but not to eat it would leave a deeper hun ger un sat is fied. She looked into Hades' eyes, saw the dark ness, saw the seed of life in death, and saw her own im age re - flected there as if in a mir ror. Slowly she ex tended her hand. Hades held it gently in his own and placed the pome gran ate in her up turned palm. There was strength in his grasp, a power which both ter ri fied and de lighted her. Will you eat the fruit of the Un der - world? he asked again. Its seeds bring knowl edge and in sight. Be my queen, Persephone, and gain un der stand ing be yond life and death. Persephone grasped the fruit in one hand and with the other plucked out four blood-red seeds. As she looked into Hades' eyes, she placed the seeds in her mouth and bit into them. The rich, sweet juice filled her mouth with fla vor. My queen, Hades said, press ing her hand to his lips. Demeter's pain But why? Demeter cried, cling ing to Persephone. Why did you eat the fruit here? Hades must have tricked you. Mother and daugh ter stood in Hades' gar den. From a dis tance in side the pal ace, Hades and Zeus watched. Mother, Persephone said, her voice no lon ger the voice of a young girl, Hades did not trick me. I chose to eat the seeds. Yes, this is a world of dark ness and death, just as yours is a world only of light and life. One can not ex ist with out the other. 22 The Hero s Journey: A Guide to Literature and Life

23 They are as pects of one ex pe ri ence, each in - com plete with out the other, just as I was in - com plete un til now. I be long here, Mother. I am a child of the sun and the flow ers, but that is only half of my life. Here I find har mony and peace. Demeter looked at her daugh ter and saw not the child she had lost, but a young woman who had tasted the fruit of both life and death. She knew that Persephone was right, but she grieved for the loss of the daugh ter who was a part of her. I un der stand your sor row, said Hades as he joined them. I have lived most of my life with out love, and now that I have known it, I can not let it go. But, sis ter, I feel your grief and of fer you a com pro mise. Persephone shall spend four months of the year with me, one for each pome gran ate seed she ate. Dur ing that time she will give me light and joy to carry me through her ab sence. The other eight months she will spend with you. Demeter looked at her brother, her ha tred turn ing to a grudg ing re spect. I ac cept your com pro mise, she said, but I will al ways grieve for my daugh ter when she is away from me. I un der stand, Hades nod ded. He turned to Persephone. Go now. The world needs your light to re store its bal ance and life. When you re turn to me, you shall re store life to my world. He kissed her gently and then watched as the two women left the king dom of dark - ness. So it was that the child of spring brought bal ance to life and the sea sons to the earth. When Persephone is with her mother, Demeter re joices and the earth re joices with her in the sym phony of spring and warmth of sum mer. But while she is in the un der world, Demeter grieves and the world grieves with her, bring - ing fall and win ter, when the sun loses its warmth and snow cov ers the land. Food for thought 1. Both Demeter and Persephone had quests. What were they? 2. Ex plain why Persephone's jour ney is more sig nif i cant than her mother's. 3. Demeter could have re jected Hades' com - pro mise and con tin ued her strike to force the re turn of her daugh ter. Why did she ac - cept Hades' of fer? Write about a time in your life when you (or some one you know) had to com pro mise. De scribe the sit u a tion and then ex plain what would have hap pened if you (or they) had not com pro mised. The Hero s Journey: A Guide to Literature and Life 23

24 The Leg end of Bud dha Re told by Reg Har ris The Di vine Child The leg end of Bud dha be gins 2,600 years ago in a re gion of north ern In dia. Bud dha was a his tor i cal fig ure, the son of a re gional king, but as hap pens with many heroes and sav iors, the facts of his life were en hanced with myth and sym bol to make his life more mean ing ful to his fol low ers. Bud dha was born in 560 B.C. Ac cord - ing to tra di tion, he was con ceived in his mother by the gods and born of a vir gin birth. He walked im me di ately, and wher - ever he stepped, a lo tus flower grew. Bud - dha was not called Bud dha un til much later in his life. His real name was Gautama, but he was better known as Siddhartha, or he who will achieve. Pow er ful King or World Sav ior When Siddhartha was a child, his fa - ther wished to know his son's fate. The king sum moned the Brah mans, the high est or der of Hindu priests, to fore tell the fu ture. The Brah mans told the king that Siddhartha's life would take one of two di rec tions. If he re mained at tached to the world, he would unify In dia and be come the coun try's great - est king. How ever, if he aban doned the world, he would be come not a king but a world sav ior. Siddhartha's fa ther wanted his son to be come a great ruler, so he spared no ef fort to bind the prince to worldly things. Three pal aces and forty thou sand danc ing girls were placed at the prince's dis posal. The king com manded that no ug li ness in trude upon the boy's world of beauty and plea - sure. In par tic u lar he wanted the prince shielded from old age, sick ness and death. Even the use of the words death and grief were for bid den. Thus Siddhartha was raised in a world of lux ury and plea sure, un aware of pain, suf fer ing and death. He was an ex tremely hand some young man, and mar ried a neigh - bor ing prin cess at age six teen with whom he had a son. Siddhartha had ev ery thing: wealth, power, and a beau ti ful fam ily. In ad di tion, as heir to his fa ther's throne, he was des - tined for power and fame. De spite all this, how ever, Siddhartha be gan to feel a deep dis sat is fac tion. He yearned for a life with deeper mean ing. The Four Pass ing Sights One day, many years later, the prince de cided to visit the town. His fa ther or dered ser vants to go ahead to clean and dec o rate the road and to re move any ugly or sad sights from his son's path. The ser vants did as they were told. Some how, how ever, they over looked an old man. The man was crooked and trem bling with age, and when Siddhartha rode by and saw him lean ing on his staff, he was as ton - ished. He had never seen what years could do, and he re al ized that fee ble ness was the fate of all who lived to old age. On the prince's next ride, the king ex - tended his guard, but again his ef forts failed. Siddhartha met an in cur able in valid, and he learned the suf fer ing of pain and dis - ease. On a third ride, the young prince en - coun tered a fu neral pro ces sion, and he saw the im per ma nence of all life. Fi nally, on a fourth ride, Siddhartha saw a Hindu monk with shaven head, wear - ing a yel low robe and car ry ing a beg gar's bowl. The monk told the prince that he had aban doned worldly con cerns to pass be yond suf fer ing and joy. On that day Siddhartha learned the pos si bil ity of free dom from the suf fer ing of life. The im per ma nence of all things From these four pass ing sights, Sid - dhartha realized that impermanence and suf - fer ing were con di tions of all life. He re al ized that he could never find peace in physical pleasure and material objects. The 24 The Hero s Journey: A Guide to Literature and Life

25 mu sic, the danc ing, the feasts, the royal pro - ces sions and elab o rate fes ti vals only in - creased his dis con tent. The bright flow ers, the frag ile but ter flies, and the melt ing snows re minded him of the im per ma nence of all things. Fi nally, Siddhartha de cided to break free of sen sual dis trac tions, so he went to his fa ther. Ev ery thing in the world is chang ing and tran si tory, he said. Let me leave to fol low the call of the truth seeker. His fa ther re fused. You hold all of my hopes for the royal line, he said. I can not let you throw that away. How can I con tinue to live here in splendor know ing that oth ers are suf fer - ing? Siddhartha said. I must go. The Great Go ing Forth To keep the prince from leav ing, the king dou bled the guards on the pal ace walls and brought in even more dis trac tions to con vince his son to aban don all thoughts of leav ing. But the prince would not change his mind, and one night in his twenty-ninth year, Siddhartha made his break, a break now known as the Great Go ing Forth. In the early-morn ing hours he went to where his wife and son were sleep ing and bade them both a si lent good-bye. Then he or dered the gate keeper to bri dle his great white horse, and the two es caped from the cas tle and rode off to ward the for est. Reach ing its edge by day break, Siddhartha changed clothes with the gate - keeper, who re turned to break the news to the fam ily. The prince, dressed as a pau per, shaved his head and plunged into the for est in search of truth and en light en ment. The Search Siddhartha was no lon ger a young prince. Now he wan dered through In dia as Gautama, a monk and beg gar. Dur ing these years, he mas tered yoga med i ta tion and stud ied at a re li gious her mit age, but re li - gious stud ies did not teach him what he wanted to know. He left the her mit age and lived alone for six more years. Dur ing that time he pushed pov erty to the ex treme. One day, starv ing and near death, Gautama sat down to rest on the bank of a broad river. As he sat, a young vil lage girl named Sujata saw him and of fered him a bowl of rice. Gautama ac cepted. That meal saved his life. Gautama ate the rice slowly, think ing about his ex pe ri ences. He had not found hap pi ness as a rich prince, and he had al - most died as a pau per. What, he won dered, had he failed to un der stand? Then, as he sat, he heard voices. Look - ing up, he saw a raft float ing by him on the river. On the raft an old man was teach ing a boy how to tune a stringed in stru ment. "If you tighten the string too much, it will break," he was say ing. "If you don't tighten it enough, it will not make mu sic." When he heard those words, Gautama re al ized that liv ing at life's ex tremes would not bring peace or en light en ment. He saw that ful fill ment in life was to be found only on the path of mod er a tion. The Immovable Spot With that re al iza tion, Gautama knew that he was near to the en light en ment he sought, so he set off for the town of Gaya in north east ern In dia, where he would find the tree of wis dom. The ex haust ing trip took many days, but fi nally, one eve ning, he reached the sa cred fig tree. He spread fresh grass un der the tree, seated him self, and vowed, Here, on this seat, may my body wither, my skin and flesh dis solve, if I rise be fore I have ob - tained en light en ment. The Bat tle with Mara To achieve en light en ment, Gautama had to mas ter the de sires and im pulses which chain the hu man spirit to the ma te - rial world. The strug gle was not easy, for he had to bat tle Mara, the Evil One, god of death, de sire, and il lu sion. Mara knew that if Gautama at tained en light en ment, his own power over peo ple would be bro ken, so he went im me di ately to the sa cred tree. He ap peared be fore Gautama mounted on an el e phant and car - ry ing weap ons in his thou sand hands. He was sur rounded by his ter ri fy ing army, which stretched around him as far as the The Mid dle Path The Bud dha taught that the path to peace, hap pi ness and en light - en ment avoided the ex tremes in life and fol lowed the The Hero's Journey: A Guide to Literature and Life 25

26 eye could see. Gautama, how ever, re mained un moved. Then Mara at tacked him, seek ing to break his con cen tra tion. First the Evil One tried sen sual temp ta - tion. He dis played his beau ti ful daugh ters De sire, Long ing, and Lust sur rounded by their at ten dants. They sang and danced be fore Gautama, but the mind of the Great Be ing was not dis tracted. The daugh ters of Mara with drew. Then Mara at tacked with fear. He hurled whirl winds, rocks, thun der and flame, boil ing mud, blis ter ing sands and ut - ter dark ness against the Sav ior, but the mis - siles were trans formed into flow ers by the power of Gautama's per fec tion. Fi nally, the Evil One chal lenged Gautama's right to be on the Im mov able Spot. You are a prince. You have a so cial duty to your peo ple, Mara chal lenged. You have no right to seek lib er a tion. But Gautama was not swayed. He sim - ply touched the ground with his fin ger tips, ask ing the mother god dess Earth to con firm his right to be where he was. She did so with a hun dred thou sand roars. At the sound, Mara's el e phant fell to its knees in rev er ence, and Mara's army dis ap peared. Enlightenment Af ter de feat ing Mara, Gautama worked through the night, med i tat ing on life and death, re birth, and on karma (the chain of cause and ef fect). Then, as the sun rose, he experienced perfect enlightenment. Gautama now be came the Bud dha, the awak ened or en light ened one. For seven weeks he med i - tated on his ex pe ri ence, on life, and on nir vana, the state of free - dom from pain, worry, and the im - per ma nence of the phys i cal world. Near the end of his med i ta tion, a great storm raged for seven days. Naga Mucilinda, a gi ant co bra who was King of Ser pents, emerged from the roots of the tree to pro tect him. The ser pent made a seat with his body and a can opy of his out spread hood to shel ter the Bud dha from the storm. Know ing that Bud dha had achieved en light en ment, Mara tried one more temp ta - tion. This time he ap pealed to rea son. Who will un der stand truth as com plex as that which you have dis cov ered? he asked Bud dha. What you have ex pe ri enced goes be yond words and hu man un der stand - ing. Why bother to spread this mes sage be - fore un com pre hend ing eyes? Why not leave man kind to the devil and slip at once into nir vana? Bud dha saw the truth in these words. Peo ple were slow to ac cept wis dom. Why sac ri fice nir vana to preach his mes sage to those who could not un der stand or ap pre ci - ate it? As he con sid ered, the Hindu gods ap - proached, beg ging him to re main. You must save hu man ity from the hell of at tach - ment and the sin of ig no rance, they said. You hold the path to peace and spir i tual lib er a tion. Bud dha was per suaded to re main and preach, and Mara, see ing that he had lost, left Bud dha's life for ever. Buddha's Preaching Bud dha gave his first ser mon at Benares, in the Deer Park. He taught life's mid dle path as the way to lib er a tion. Avoid the un wor thy life of plea sure and the use less life of fast ing and pov erty, he told his monks. Per fec tion avoids life's ex tremes. Fol low the mid dle path. Af ter that ser mon, Bud dha took his mes sage through out In dia. For forty-four years he preached mod er a tion and lib er a - tion, con vert ing those who heard him to his new phi los o phy. He founded a re li gious or - der and main tained a rig or ous sched ule of preach ing and coun sel ing. Bud dha Passes to Nir vana One eve ning, about 480 B.C., in the town of Kusinagara, Bud dha ate din ner at the home of Cunda, a vil lage black smith and one of his dis ci ples. Some how, poi son mush rooms got into his dish, and the Bud - dha fell mor tally ill. 26 The Hero's Journey: A Guide to Literature and Life

27 Near death, he was taken to a grove of trees where his dis ci ples had pre pared a couch for him. Even as he was dy ing, Bud dha thought of oth ers. In the midst of his pain he re al ized that Cunda might feel re spon si ble for his death. Tell Cunda, he di rected his com pan ions, that of all the meals I have eaten dur ing my life only two stand out as ex cep tional bless ings. One was the meal which en abled me to re gain my strength so that I could at tain en light en ment. The other was Cunda's meal, which is now open ing for me the gates to nir vana. As their mas ter suf fered his last ag ony, many of the dis ci ples wept, but Bud dha com forted them. Do not say you have lost your mas ter, he said. The doc trine that I have preached will guide you when I have dis ap peared. Re mem ber, all cre ated things are im per ma nent. Work dil i gently for lib er a tion. With these words, the Bud dha's jour ney ended, and he passed into eter nal bliss. Interpreting the Buddha legend 1. Why do you sup pose Prince Siddhartha was un - happy, even though he had ev ery thing a per son could want? 2. What was the goal of Siddhartha's quest? 3. Af ter Siddhartha achieved en light en ment, Mara ap - pealed to him one last time. What was Mara's ar gu - ment? Why did the Bud dha al most agree with him? 4. What was Bud dha's gift to his peo ple? The Buddha s Jour ney The Leg end of the Bud dha is one of the great quest sto - ries in all his tory. Log the stages of his jour ney. Siddhartha s life before the Call His Call to Adventure (disharmony/imbalance) Threshold of Adventure and guardians Challenges and temptations Helpers, disciples and mentor His Abyss A Revelation Transformation Atonement He returns with a gift The Hero's Journey: A Guide to Literature and Life 27

28 Hero s Jour ney Group Pro ject Field of Dreams Group assignments To day we will be gin watch ing Field of Dreams, the story of Ray Kinsella and his quest for atone ment. You will be tak ing notes on the film as we watch it. The na ture of your notes will de pend upon the char ac ter your group is as signed to dis cuss and what role you are as signed within your group. Key Scenes group One group will take notes of what they con sider key scenes in the film. Of course, these key scenes are im por - tant when dis cuss ing the jour neys of the char ac ters in volved in the film. This group must do the fol low ing: 1) De scribe the scene in as much de tail as pos si ble. 2) Take note of the char ac ters in volved in the scene and spec u late on where these char ac ters are in the Hero s Journey cycle. 3) Take note of each char ac ter s ac tions and re ac tions (to other char ac ters and to what is tak ing place in the scene), and then spec u late on what is mo ti vat ing each char ac ter to do the things he or she does. 4) Para phrase (write in your own words) or, better yet, quote im por tant things that char ac ters say in these key scenes. Other groups Other groups will take notes on spe cific char ac ters. (I will as sign your group a char ac ter.) These groups will dis cuss their char ac ter s he roic de vel op ment by tak ing note of the fol low ing: 1) De scribe in as much de tail as pos si ble key scenes in which your char ac ter ap pears. 2) Write down im por tant things that your char ac ter says. (These im por tant pieces of di a logue will show that the char ac ter is chang ing, grow ing, de vel op ing, and be com ing more he roic.) 3) Take note of what you be lieve is mo ti vat ing your char ac ter through out the key scenes in which he or she appears. 4) Take note of any sym bolic mo ments or ob jects that can be as so ci ated with your character. Group spokesperson Af ter your group gets its as sign ment, ap point a group spokes per son. This spokes per son will as sume the re spon si bil ity of ask ing me to pause the film when your group wishes to have more time to take notes. The spokes per son will also bring to my at ten tion any prob lems that your group may be hav ing with the as sign ment. Note tak ing du ties Next, as sign note tak ing du ties. One per son can be re spon si ble for writ ing down quo ta tions, an other for de scrib ing key scenes, and so on. One per son can not do all parts of the note tak ing, so split up the work. This as sign ment is dif fi cult, yes, but you can do it. Be com ing a good note taker will help you be suc cess ful in school. Also, this ac tiv ity will help you better un der stand the Hero s Jour ney ar che type. 28 The Hero s Journey: A Guide to Literature and Life