1. The monomyth
Lecture 2/2

3. The Belly of the whale The separation of the hero’s world and the ego
Represents an acceptance of letting go of the world he/she knows to undergo the journey
Often represented through a dark, womb-like place
A place of rebirth
“That is why the approaches and entrances…are flanked and defended by colossal gargoyles…the devotee…undergoes a metamorphosis”(Campbell 111).

4. Part Two: Initiation

5. The Road of trials A series of tests, ordeals, etc;
Often there is failure on the hero’s part to conquer all

6. The meeting with the Goddess
The hero experiences a love that parallels that which the infant’s mother hopefully gave the infant
Often is the hero falling into true love
Associated with times of sleep and/or sex

7. Woman as the Temptress
The woman is really a metaphor for temptation in general
The hero is lured away from his quest
“The seeker of life beyond life must press beyond, surpass the temptations of her call, and soar to the immaculate ether beyond”(Campbell 132).

8. Atonement with the father
The hero must confront by whatever holds ultimate power in his or her life
Often symbolized with a male figure, but not necessary
“Atonement consists in no more than the abandonment of that self-generated double monster- the dragon thought to be God (superego) and the dragon thought to be Sin (repressed id). But this requires an abandonment of the attachment to ego itself”(Campbell 143).

9. apotheosis The hero has confronted the worst and may now rest
Often has a smoke break
The hero is no longer subservient- becomes godlike
symbolic killing of the self- time to share

10. The ultimate Boon
This is the achievement of the quest- what the journey was all about
Often symbolized with a plant

11. Return

12. Refusal of the REturn
Having found enlightenment, the hero may not want to return to the ordinary world to share his wisdom
“the boon may redound to the community, the nation…Even Gautama Buddha, after his triumph, doubted whether the message of realization could be communicated”(Campbell 156).

13. The Magic flight
The hero must escape with the boon, as the gods guard it
Often represented by riding in or on some conveyance
If the gods want the hero to return with the boon, the return journey is easy. If the gods wish the opposite, the opposite is true.

14. Rescue from without
Just like the hero needed friends and guides as he set out, so, too, does he need them upon return, especially if the hero is weakened by the experience
“The world may have to come and get him”(Campbell 159).

15. Crossing the return threshold
The hero returns from his quest
Going from the subconscious back to the conscious
“The returning hero, to complete his adventure, must survive the impact of the world…the passing joys and sorrows, banalities and noisy obscenities of life. Why re-enter such a world?”(Campbell 167).

16. Master of two worlds
Often a transcendental hero like Jesus or the Buddha
For the normal human, it is the balance between the material and the spiritual

17. Freedom to live
The hero is freed from the fear of death and may now live
Living in the moment