Fiction/Heroic Journey

Ordinary World – Limited Awareness

• Prologue: Disorientation leads to suggestibility
• Should contrast sharply with, yet foreshadow, the special world
• Set an inner and outer problem for the character
• The hero enters, is introduced, audience identifies with them
• The hero lacks something, has a tragic flaw, or a deep wound
• Illustrate this with inability to perform a simple function
• Establish what’s at stake
• Exposition reveals backstory
• The theme is set

Call to Adventure – Increased Awareness

• An inciting incident occurs to get the story rolling
• It may be synchronicity, temptation etc
• A HERALD often makes the call
• The call often produces disorientation and discomfort for the hero
• The call is often a loss in the character’s life
• It may be simply the lack of any other options
• In tragedy, the call is often in the form of a dire warning

Refusal of the Call – Reluctance to Change

• Excuses are used to avoid the call
• Hesitation illustrates the formidability of the challenge ahead
• Persistent refusal leads to tragedy
• Willing vs reluctant heroes
• A THRESHOLD GUARDIAN may test the hero’s resolve
• Conflicting calls may be given, leading to difficult choices

Meeting the Mentor – Overcoming Reluctance

• A MENTOR is in the widest sense simply a “source of wisdom”
• They may not be personified, or may be incongruously so
• The mentor is often an evolved hero
• The mentor archetype assists the hero in overcoming their fear

Crossing the First Threshold – Committing to Change

• The first turning point
• A THRESHOLD GUARDIAN tests the hero's resolve
• An external event forces the hero to make a decision
• The decision leads to an internal commitment to the journey
• Their threat may be illusionary, the solution simply to push through
• Resistance creates change and strength, hence the guardian allows the hero to grow
• The guardian may be turned into an ally
• A physical or metaphorical crossing is made into the Special World of Act II
• The crossing is an irrevocable leap of faith, from which there’s no turning back
• The passage to the Special World may be exhausting, frustrating, disorientating

Tests, Allies, Enemies – Experimenting with First Change

• The first impression of the Special World should be in stark contrast to the Ordinary World
• The hero is tested with a series of obstacles, although not life-death as later
• A quest for information may lead to new friends or allies, a team may be forged
• Enemies may be made through encounters with SHADOWS or their servants
• A rival of the hero may emerge
• New Rules of the Special World must be learnt by hero and audience
• A ‘watering hole’ - bar - is a commonplace setting for these relationships to emerge
• A bar can involve music, danger, flirting, gambling

Approach the Inmost Cave – Preparing for Big Change

• Final preparations are made for the central ordeal of the adventure
• A series of dramatic complications further test the spirit
• In romance, approach involves courtship
• Obstacles and messages: beware illusions
• A THRESHOLD GUARDIAN may be passed by earning respect
• The challenges of the past inform the journey
• A second special world is entered
• Preparations are made
• Another threshold is crossed, possibly by emotional appeal to the guardian
• A figure representing the status quo presents a seemingly impossible test
• A shamanic territory is entered, on the border of life and death
• The stakes are upped, the audience is reminded the “clock is ticking”
• Archetypes in a group might be changed as reorganization occurs
• The hero or group “gets into the opponent’s mind”
• Breakthrough occurs into the inner cave, from which there is no exit

Ordeal – Attempting Big Change

• The central crisis, the hero “dies” so they can be reborn
• A witness to the hero's “death” can be effective
• Relief from the ordeal leads to the greatest elation on the other side
• The hero may not die, but rather cause or witness death
• The hero faces a demonised shadow, a reflection of their own darker side
• The villain/shadow may die, which should be extremely difficult
• Death of villain should switch Act III focus to moral/spiritual issues
• Villain may escape, to be encountered again at the Climax
• In romance, the death may be of the relationship, betrayal etc
• Or, the crisis may involve a sacred marriage – opposing energies are reconciled
• If the hero actually dies at this point (Pycho) – who is the next hero?
• The hero faces their greatest fear – an authority or family figure often
• This battle of youth vs age – possibility of atonement
• The ordeal signifies death of the ego, an apotheosis

Reward – Consequence of the Attempt

• A time of celebration, nostalgia, love scenes…beware the cliché!
• The hero takes possession of the treasure – perhaps becoming a TRICKSTER briefly
• The treasure may be the gift of new perception gained surviving the ordeal
• This new perception may create a moment of clarity, even clairvoyance
• The moment may be of great self-realization for the hero
• It may also be an epiphany for the hero’s companions

Road Back – Rededication to Change

• New doubts and fears are overcome, and the hero rededicates to the adventure
• Motivation may come from fear of retaliation
• Expendable minor characters may be killed
• The hero may run for their life – a chase – back to the ordinary world
• A sacrifice may be made in the chase, in order to stall the pursuer
• Variously, the hero may be pursued by admirers, or the villain may escape
• A setback, reversal of the hero's good fortune, tests the hero's resolve to finish

Resurrection – Final Attempt at Big Change

• The climax, where death is faced finally
• A new personality is needed for the hero to return to the Ordinary World
• It should reflect the best part of the old self and the lessons along the way
• One function of the resurrection is cleansing
• There is a decisive confrontation with the shadow – a ‘showdown’
• The stakes are at their highest – it’s not just the hero, it’s the ‘world’ at stake
• The climax should involve a choice that illustrates if the hero has really grown
• It may be a quiet climax, a gentle cresting of the wave of emotion
• Rolling climaxes may occur as plot and subplots climax
• An emotion climax may lead to a physical one, followed by catharsis
• Ideally, the story brings all levels to climax at the same moment
• Catharsis, purging, is the relief following the climax
• Catharsis is the logical climax of the character arc, the slow growth through the story
• Catharsis works best through the physical emotions of laughter and crying
• The hero may misstep at the last moment, before succeeding
• A false claimant may emerge, creating the need for the hero to provide proof
• Resurrection often calls for sacrifice, something given up for the greater good
• The hero should have incorporated elements of the archetypes they met on the way
• The change in the hero is outwardly manifested in their behaviour, attitude, actions

Return with the Elixir – Final Mastery of the Problem

• The denouement
• Completion of the circle
• Repetition of an image/phrase/metaphor from Act I, but with new meaning
• Completion of a task that was impossible at the beginning of the film
• Achievement of Perfection – weddings/new beginnings
• Open-ended form – new questions are posed, resonating after the film ends
• A return should unravel in a surprising manner
• Punishment should come in the form of poetic justice to the villain
• Likewise, the hero should be rewarded in proportion to their ordeal/sacrifice
• A cynical world view would inform the nature of rewards/punishment
• The hero must return with the elixir – a literal or metaphorical item of healing
• Love, change, responsibility, tragedy, sadder but wiser
• If the hero doesn’t return with the elixir, they are doomed to repeat the ordeal
• All subplots should be resolved
• Avoid both overly protracted and abrupt endings
• Focus on the central theme should remain to the last moment
• What is the ‘punctuation’ of the ending? Closed (.) or (!), or Open (…) or (?)
• One way or another, the ending must signal a sense of completion