1. Joseph Campbell and the Hero’s Journey Introduction to Fantasy

2. The Hero’s Journey Like myth, fantasy usually exhibits a common structure when it presents its “big ideas” about love, gods, and heroism Joseph Campbell identified a pattern common to virtually all mythology in the world (not to mention folktales, fairy tales, and a good bit of TV as well) He called his pattern the “monomyth,” though other critics prefer the term “the hero’s journey”

3. The Pattern Campbell listed 17 stages in his hero’s journey, but really there are three key parts: 1.The Departure 2.The Initiation 3.The Return

4. The Departure (Home) Hero starts off at home He (or she) gets called to an adventure, which he initially refuses Generally something supernatural jumpstarts the hero’s quest, and the hero departs on the journey Alan Lee, 1993

5. The Initiation (Away) Cut off from his home, the hero undergoes a number of trials and temptations Often the hero dies (at least metaphorically, sometimes physically) However, the hero returns to life, is victorious, and wins some sort of prize Alan Lee

6. The Return (Home) The hero returns home, usually armed with new powers or knowledge about the world (and very often a sizeable treasure) However, the return home is generally bittersweet: while “home” remains the same, the hero has typically been changed in ways that prevent him or her from returning to his or her former life Note how the pattern of home, away, home is tied to setting John Howe, 1995

7. Some of our important historical myths and how they fit the pattern... Inanna (Ishtar), Sumerian, 4000 BCOsiris, Egypt, c. 2500 BC

8. Some of our important historical myths and how they fit the pattern... Odysseus (Ulysses), Greece, c. 700 BC

9. These versions might be more familiar The Matrix, 1999Finding Nemo, 2003Harry Potter, 1997-2011

10. And these… The Wheel of Time seriesThe Black CauldronThe Dragon Lance Series

11. And who could forget... George Lucas directly cited Joseph Campbell in relation to the making of Star Wars: “It was very eerie because in reading [Campbell], I began to realize that my first draft of Star Wars was following classical motifs”

12. Why Campbell? We discuss Campbell so much because his description of the pattern of myths (both ancient and contemporary) shows us how much mythos has permeated our culture. We use and reuse the same stories (written in the same structure) to aid in our cultural self- determination. Think about how myth has permeated your own experience with story-telling. For starters, think of the plot of your favourite film, and note how it confirms or alters the “monomyth” (home-away- home pattern).

13. Images: Slide 3 http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1b/Heroesjourney.svg/220px-Heroesjourney.svg.pnghttp://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1b/Heroesjourney.svg/220px-Heroesjourney.svg.png Slide 4 http://www.filmlervekitaplar.com/wp-content/gallery/hobbit-alan-lee/alan-lee-the-hobbit-7.jpghttp://www.filmlervekitaplar.com/wp-content/gallery/hobbit-alan-lee/alan-lee-the-hobbit-7.jpg Slide 5 http://alan-lee.narod.ru/Images/lee-hobbit_12.jpghttp://alan-lee.narod.ru/Images/lee-hobbit_12.jpg Slide 6 http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51NYRNAPETL._SY344_BO1,204,203,200_.jpghttp://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51NYRNAPETL._SY344_BO1,204,203,200_.jpg Slide 7 https://goddessinspired.files.wordpress.com/2012/06/inanna-descent.jpg;https://goddessinspired.files.wordpress.com/2012/06/inanna-descent.jpg http://lpsmythologywiki.wikispaces.com/file/view/isis-osiris2-small.jpg/271074244/isis-osiris2-small.jpg Slide 8 http://myhero.com/images/guest/g233154/hero69233/g233154_u82827_odysseus.jpg;http://myhero.com/images/guest/g233154/hero69233/g233154_u82827_odysseus.jpg Slide 9 http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/zh/c/c1/The_Matrix_Poster.jpg; http://assets.fontsinuse.com/static/use-media- items/17/16315/full-1028x1500/52b02a86/Finding%20Nemo%20(2003)%202.jpeg?resolution=0; http://images2.fanpop.com/images/photos/7300000/Haarry-Potter-SouthPark-harry-potter-7334960-385-386.jpghttp://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/zh/c/c1/The_Matrix_Poster.jpghttp://assets.fontsinuse.com/static/use-media- items/17/16315/full-1028x1500/52b02a86/Finding%20Nemo%20(2003)%202.jpeg?resolution=0 http://images2.fanpop.com/images/photos/7300000/Haarry-Potter-SouthPark-harry-potter-7334960-385-386.jpg Slide 10 https://thewornbookmark.files.wordpress.com/2015/02/228665.jpg; http://www.isfdb.org/wiki/images/5/52/The_Black_Cauldron-Dell-198109.jpg; http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/5/58/DragonsofAutumnTwilight_1984original.jpghttps://thewornbookmark.files.wordpress.com/2015/02/228665.jpg http://www.isfdb.org/wiki/images/5/52/The_Black_Cauldron-Dell-198109.jpg http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/5/58/DragonsofAutumnTwilight_1984original.jpg Slide 11 http://7-themes.com/6810783-star-wars-logo.htmlhttp://7-themes.com/6810783-star-wars-logo.html