1. Question: why is Star Wars so awesome and loved by so many people?

2. BW
Define mythology.

3. Essential Elements of Mythology
Theme
Must always read for meaning
Not literal! Intended for deeper meaning
The difficulty… what did it mean way back then, and what does it mean for us now?

4. Essential Elements of Mythology
Mythic Archetypes
Plot Archetypes
The Hero’s Journey

5. TED Talk—The Hero’s Journey

6. Activity—Plot Archetypes
Think about a movie, book, or story that you know well that you think employs the hero’s journey archetype. In what ways does your text fit with the plot archetype? In what ways does it not?

8. Archetypal Characters
The Hero
The Mentor
Monster: often who the hero faces on the hero’s journey and represents evil.
Tempter/Temptress: a character who tries to prevent the hero from completing the journey by tempting him or her with money, fame, sex, or other appeals.

9. Archetypal Characters
The Shadow: often the chief antagonist that the hero must defeat or tame in the end before the hero can complete the journey. He or she is referred to as “the Shadow” because this character is a darker reflection of the hero. They tend to share many of the same traits and characteristics as the hero, but darker somehow.

10. Archetypal Characters
Damsel in Distress
Trickster: intentionally breaks the rules of the gods, society, and nature. Very clever. Sometimes a thief. Always looking for easier and new ways to do things. Boundary breaker.
Absent Parent: an archetypal character found in mythology and other stories. Many heroes are orphans—Cinderella, Harry Potter—and sometimes the hero is reunited with a parent at some point in the story.

11. Activity—Character Archetypes
Think about the story, film, or book that you wrote about earlier—or a new one—and identify as many of the archetypal characters as you can. Explain how they fit the archetype.

12. Setting Archetypes
The threshold: the break between known and unknown world
Wilderness or forest
The Garden: a place where man lives in harmony with nature, symbolizing innocence and security
The wasteland: opposite of the garden, symbolizing loneliness and despair
The Maze of Labyrinth: a setting that represents a puzzling dilemma or great uncertainty
The Cave: underworld, dark setting
The Castle” place of safety that represent the treasure the hero seeks, or the damsel that needs rescuing.

13. Activity—Setting Archetypes
Return to the story, film, or book that you wrote about—or think of a new one—and identify as many of the archetypal settings as you can. What do the settings represent in the story? How do they reflect different aspects of the main character’s journey?

14. Objective & Purpose
Read the contemporary short story, “The Little Green Monster” by Haruki Murakami. Identify as many archetypes as you can from the story, and explain what these archetypes represent or how Murakami is playing on these archetypes.
Work on recognizing archetypes and universals in literature in order to understand meaning.

15. Closure
Explain how the little green monster fits into the definition of the monster archetype (and how he doesn’t) and what point we as contemporary readers might be able to draw from his actions in the story.
We know what “The Little Green Monster” is about, but what is it really about? Explain.

16. Argument #3
Does the media represent you fairly and accurately? What impact does this representation have on you?
Should the media be required by the government to present fair and accurate representation of race and gender according to a set of legal guidelines? Why or why not?
To what extent do media representations significantly influence a person’s sense of self, the choices they make, and the opportunities they have? That is, do media images mirror or mold social norms and values of our society?

17. Objective & Purpose Read Book One and Book Nine of The Odyssey.
Quote one example of an epic simile or metaphor, and state the purpose of it. Explain this purpose for 2-3 sentences.
Quote 2 examples of an epithet.
Does Odysseus seem heroic? Is he a hero? Why or why not? Defend your assertion by referring to specific evidence from Book One/Book 9, by referring to evidence from the article, “What makes a hero?”, and by referring to your own knowledge of what makes a hero (KWL chart).

18. Closure
Does Odysseus seem heroic? Is he a hero? Why or why not? Defend your assertion by referring to specific evidence from Book One/Book 9, by referring to evidence from the article, “What makes a hero?”, and by referring to your own knowledge of what makes a hero (KWL chart).