ENG3U1
Ms. Prince
Archetypes
Patterns and Storytelling
Think about the number of stories you
encounter daily either reading, viewing, or
listening. This would include all of the following
categories:
– books, short stories, newspaper stories, movies,
sitcoms, tv shows, video games, news reports,
magazine stories, etc.
Q. How many apply to you? In which categories?
Q. What percentage of the stories you encounter are
fictional?
Q. Agree or Disagree?
• Storytelling is essential for the survival of
humanity and provides hope for humanity.
• Without stories, mankind would slowly go
mad and become suicidal.
Q. Why do we need stories?
Some possible reasons include:
• To explain natural phenomenon such as great
floods and the creation of the world
• To answer such questions such as why we are
born and why we die
• To help us escape reality by entering a world
where the good guy wins, the forces of evil are
defeated, and love conquers all
• To help define the roles of good and evil such as
the hero and the villain so that we might
recognize them in reality
What are archetypes?
• Term first applied to literature by Carl Jung
– Universal patterns in stories and mythologies,
regardless of culture/history
• Basic building blocks of stories that all writers
use to create a world
– Archetypal patterns
• Term can be applied to:
*An image
*A theme
*A symbol
*An idea
*A character type *A plot pattern
Heroic Archetypes
1. Hero as warrior: near god-like hero, faces
physical challenges and external enemies
2. Hero as lover: a pure love motivates hero to
complete his quest (Prince Charming)
3. Hero as scapegoat: suffers for the sake of others
4. Transcendent hero: hero of tragedy, fatal flaw
brings about his downfall but not before
achieving some kind of transforming wisdom or
realization (Greek & Shakespearean tragedies)
5. Romantic/Gothic: hero/lover with a dark side
6. Proto-Feminist hero: female heroes
7. Apocalyptic hero: faces the possible
destruction of society
8. Anti-hero: non-hero, given the vocation of
failure, frequently humorous (Homer Simpson)
9. Defiant Anti-hero: opposer of society’s
definition of heroism/goodness (Heart of Darkness)
10.Unbalanced hero: has (or pretends to have)
mental or emotional deficiencies (Hamlet, One
Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest)
11.The Other – The Denied Hero: status or
essential otherness makes heroism possible
(Invisible Man, The Joy Luck Club)
12.The Super-heroic: exaggerates the normal
proportions of humanity; frequently
divine/supernatural origins. One apart, does
not belong, but is needed by society.
(Superman)
Situational Archetypes
• The Quest –search for someone or some object, which when it is
found and brought back will restore peace, order and normalcy to a
troubled land
• The Task – the nearly superhuman feat(s) the Hero must perform in
order to accomplish his quest
• The Journey – sends the Hero in search of some truth that will help
save his kingdom
• The Initiation – comes into his maturity with new awareness and
problems
• The Fall—describes a descent from a higher to a lower state of
being. The experience usually involves a loss of innocence and is
accompanied by expulsion from a kind of paradise as a penalty for
disobedience and moral transgression.
• Death and Rebirth—grows out of a parallel between the cycle
of nature and the cycle of life. Thus, morning and springtime
represent birth, youth, or rebirth; evening and winter suggest
old age or death.
• Nature vs Mechanistic World —Nature is good while
technology and society are often evil.
• Battle between Good and Evil —Obviously the battle
between two primal forces. Mankind shows eternal optimism
in the continual portrayal of good triumphing over evil despite
great odds.
• The Unhealable Wound—The wound is either physical or
psychological and cannot be healed fully. This wound
indicates a loss of innocence.
• The Ritual—The actual ceremonies the initiate experiences
that will mark his rite of passage into another state (weddings,
funerals)
Types of Archetypal Journeys
1. The quest for identity
2. The epic journey to find the promised land/to found the
good city
3. The quest for vengeance
4. The warrior’s journey to save his people
5. The search for love (rescue the princess/damsel in distress)
6. The journey in search of knowledge
7. The tragic quest: penance or self-denial
8. The fool’s errand
9. The quest to rid the land of danger
10. The grail quest (quest for human perfection)
The Hero’s Journey
1.
THE ORDINARY WORLD. The hero, uneasy, uncomfortable or
unaware, is introduced sympathetically so the audience can identify
with the situation or dilemma. The hero is shown against a
background of environment, heredity, and personal history. Some
kind of polarity in the hero’s life is pulling in different directions and
causing stress.
2.
THE CALL TO ADVENTURE. Something shakes up the situation,
either from external pressures or from something rising up from
deep within, so the hero must face the beginnings of change.
3.
REFUSAL OF THE CALL. The hero feels the fear of the unknown and
tries to turn away from the adventure, however briefly. Alternately,
another character may express the uncertainty and danger ahead.
4.
MEETING WITH THE MENTOR. The hero comes across a seasoned
traveler of the worlds who gives him or her training, equipment, or
advice that will help on the journey. Or the hero reaches within to a
source of courage and wisdom.
5. CROSSING THE THRESHOLD. At the end of Act One, the
hero commits to leaving the Ordinary World and entering a
new region or condition with unfamiliar rules and values.
6. TESTS, ALLIES AND ENEMIES. The hero is tested and
sorts out allegiances in the Special World.
7. APPROACH. The hero and newfound allies prepare for the
major challenge in the Special world.
8. THE ORDEAL. Near the middle of the story, the hero
enters a central space in the Special World and confronts
death or faces his or her greatest fear. Out of the moment of
death comes a new life.
9. THE REWARD. The hero takes possession of the treasure
won by facing death. There may be celebration, but there is
also danger of losing the treasure again.
10. THE ROAD BACK. About three-fourths of the way
through the story, the hero is driven to complete the
adventure, leaving the Special World to be sure the
treasure is brought home. Often a chase scene signals the
urgency and danger of the mission.
11. THE RESURRECTION. At the climax, the hero is severely
tested once more on the threshold of home. He or she is
purified by a last sacrifice, another moment of death and
rebirth, but on a higher and more complete level. By the
hero’s action, the polarities that were in conflict at the
beginning are finally resolved.
12. RETURN WITH THE ELIXIR. The hero returns home or
continues the journey, bearing some element of the
treasure that has the power to transform the world as the
hero has been transformed
Characteristics of the Hero’s Journey
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The hero is naïve and inexperienced
The hero meets monsters/monstrous men
The hero has a strange, wise being as mentor
The hero yearns for the beautiful lady who is sometimes his guide
or inspiration
The hero must go on a journey, learn a lesson, change in some way,
and return home
The hero often crosses a body of water or travels on a bridge
The hero is born and raised in a rural setting away from cities
The origin of the hero is mysterious or loses his/her parents at a
young age, being raised by animals or a wise guardian
The hero returns to the land of his/her birth in disguise or as an
unknown
The hero is special, one of a kind. He/she might represent a whole
nation or culture
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The hero struggles for something valuable and important
The hero has help from the divine/supernatural forces
The hero has a guide or guides
The hero goes through a rite of passage or initiation, an
event that marks a change from an immature to a more
mature understanding of the world
The hero undergoes some type of ritual or ceremony after
his/her initiation
The hero has a loyal band of companions
The hero makes a stirring speech to his/her companions
The hero engages in tests or contests of strength (physical
and/or mental) and shows pride in his/her excellence
The hero suffers an unhealable wound, sometimes an
emotional or spiritual wound from which the hero never
completely recovers
Symbolic Archetypes
• Light vs. Darkness
• Innate Wisdom vs.
Educated Stupidity
• Supernatural
Intervention
• Fire and Ice
• The Threshold
• The Underworld
• Haven vs. Wilderness
• Water vs. Desert
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Heaven vs. Hell
The Crossroads
The Maze
The Castle
The Tower
The Magic Weapon
The Whirlpool
Fog
Colours
Numbers
Character Archetypes
• The Hero
• The Young Man from the
Provinces
• The Evil Figure with Ultimately
Good Heart
• The Creature of Nightmare
• The Initiates
• The Scapegoat
• Mentor
• The Outcast
• Mentor-Pupil Relationship
• The Platonic Ideal
• The Threshold Guardian
• Damsel in Distress
• Father-Son Conflict
• The Earth Mother
• Hunting Group of Companions
• The Temptress or Black Goddess
• Loyal Retainers
• White Goddess
• Friendly Beast
• The Unfaithful Wife
• The Shadow
• Star-Crossed Lovers
• The Devil Figure
Shrek Archetypes
• HERO—Shrek…literally doing superhuman deeds ( fighting fire
breathing dragon)
• QUEST—to find and rescue Princess Fiona
• TASK—to get his swamp back from the fairy creatures
• HUNTING GROUP OF COMPANIONS—Donkey is there to make
Shrek’s humanity come out and show that he is not just an ogre at
heart
• FRIENDLY BEAST—Donkey
• DAMSEL IN DISTRESS—Princess Fiona in the highest tower
• HEAVEN VS. HELL—glowing embers and fire are shown to be the
habitat of the dragon.
• LIGHT VS. DARKNESS—the castle is dark to represent evil; Fiona is
first seen in a ray of light; as soon as they escape, they emerge into
daytime since they have escaped evil
• DEATH AND REBIRTH—when they escape the dragon,
morning is dawning suggesting hope and rebirth
• BATTLE BETWEEN GOOD AND EVIL—Shrek and Donkey vs
the Dragon
• STAR-CROSSED LOVERS—Dragons and Donkeys aren’t
supposed to be together
• EVIL FIGURE WITH A GOOD HEART—Dragon appears at first
as an Evil Figure, especially with the remains of the knights,
but Donkey saves her and converts her to good
• CREATURE OF NIGHTMARE—Dragon before she falls in love
with Donkey
• THE JOURNEY—Shrek and Donkey face their fears and
conquer the dragon, finding Fiona to accomplish their task