Campbells The Hero with a Thousand Faces on Strayeds Wild - Book Report/Review Example

Campbell’s “The Hero with a Thousand Faces” on Strayed’s “Wild” Introduction John Campbell’s “The Hero with a Thousand Faces” reveals a stunning observation on the way the journey of the archetypal heroes in most mythological texts are structured. Campbell presents a clear-cut explanation on the singularity of the structure through which the plots of mythological stories are created. In the book, the author observes that majority of the most important and popular myths from around the world which still continue to exist all share one elemental structure, which he termed “monomyth” (Campbell 30). In the opening passages of “The Hero with a Thousand Faces”, Campbell lays out his summary of his description of a monomyth: “A hero ventures forth from the world of common day into a region of supernatural wonder: fabulous forces are there encountered and a decisive victory is won: the hero comes back from this mysterious adventure with the power to bestow boons on his fellow man” (30; 23). Looking at Campbell’s definition for monomyth, it could be inferred that there is a certain degree of accuracy in the way he observes the structure of majority of important myths from around the world: (1) departure (2) initiation (3) return. This is the most common structure that can be observed in most mythological texts including the Odyssey and George Lucas’s Star Wars (Campbell 145). Also, many stories in the Bible use monomyth such as those of Jesus, Moses, Buddha, Prometheus, and Osiris. In fact, this linkage has led to the development of the Christ myth theory, which proposes that Jesus did not really exist considering the fact that the way his story is structured is similar to the way famous myths are structured – ultimately structured as a monomyth. Departure, Initiation, and Return As aforementioned, Campbell observes that most myths all share the same fundamental structure, which he calls “monomyth” (30; 23). Campbell summarizes this structure into three phases: (1) departure (2) Initiation (3) Return. First, Campbell explains that most mythological stories begin with a hero or a “potential hero” leaving his home to venture for a quest. Sometimes, this phase is called “separation” because the main character has to live a kind of life that is away from his home and is significantly different from his usual habitat. Campbell writes that myths start with a hero venturing forth “from the world of ‘common day’ into a region of supernatural wonder” (30). Take note that Campbell’s mention of “common day” refers to ordinary living thereby inferring that heroes are normal people before they entered into the so-called “call of adventure”. The “supernatural wonder” that Campbell is talking about refers to the domain of strange powers and events that awaits him after he receives the call. The author describes it as having “fabulous forces” (23). As the hero accepts the challenge, he goes through the second phase, which is the initiation stage. At this point, Campbell notes, the hero or potential hero has to face tasks and many challenges that would test his determination and will to win (23). The decisive victory that Campbell mentions, and which has to be won, determines the level of heroism of the main character. This point normally becomes a focal point towards the formation of the monomyth structure: as the main protagonist survives the initiation, he would then receive a gift or reward, which he could share to his fellows. This is crucial stage in that if the main character fails to conquer the challenge, Campbell’s description of the third phases becomes incomplete much less inaccurate as he is expected to “bestow boons on his fellow man” (30; 23). The third phase of the monomyth, according to John Campbell, is the return, wherein the hero, after completing the task, returns to his home from the strange adventure, bring the boon or the gift that he would distribute to his fellow man. Thus, the hero returns to his ordinary world and there is a restoration of former things: old ways of living, people, environment, etc. John Campbell’s idea of monomyth encompasses the features of popular mythologies by expressing the plot as a three-way process of events. Cheryl Strayed’s “Wild”: A Hero Myth? In 2012, Cheryl Strayed released a 336-page memoir that describes her over a thousand mile hike on the Pacific Crest Trail. The memoir’s voice is personal. The journey from one place to another is clearly set out. This memoir is entitled “Wild”, which accounts recollections of her personal life that forced her to initiate a mountain-climbing journey (Shapiro n.p.). Basically, “Wild” chronicles Strayed’s painful experiences: her mother’s death when she was only 22; his father’s separation from Cheryl’s family; her siblings remained distant; involvement in heroine use and divorce with her husband. In the book, Cheryl Strayed expresses her desire for self-discovery resolve over his persistent grief and problems (Shapiro n.p.). The author clearly describes her before and after journey: an arrangement that can be related to Campbell’s monomyth structure. Is Cheryl Strayed’s “Wild” a hero myth? Myths share the same fundamental structure which Campbell calls “monomyth”. This structure can be described as a three-phase process: separation; initiation; return (Campbell 23). Does “Wild” have all these three so that it can be considered a myth? Basically, it is rather difficult and quite subtle to cite any call for adventure from the memoir. There is no element of strangeness of adventure but is only a declaration of personal suffering and anguish, which is quite normal for most people. Nevertheless, it can be that Strayed’s separation stage is worked by his difficulties in life such as the death of her mother and when she and her husband divorced: clearly, these are experiences that would really encourage or motivate someone to venture into something unusual. In the book, Cheryl writes “the universe, I’d learned, was never, ever kidding. It would take whatever it wanted and it would never give it back” (Strayed 209). This statement contains a certain degree of sadness and lamentation over her personal situation. In other words, reminiscing from her previous life, Cheryl obtained a valuable lesson that she could share with everyone else (return). Furthermore, she states “It had to do with how it felt to be in the wild. With what it was like to walk for miles with no reason other than to witness the accumulation of trees and meadows, mountains and deserts, streams and rocks, rivers and grasses, sunrises and sunsets. The experience was powerful and fundamental. It seemed to me that it had always felt like this to be a human in the wild, and as long as the wild existed it would always feel this way.” In the preceding passage, Cheryl recalls her encounters in the wild: how is it like living in the wild; the things that you could experience living in the wild; the emotional and mental trauma that you have to overcome in order to survive and many others (initiation). The way she puts the words together defines how she went through the challenges of living in the wild and how she gradually learned from every encounters she had in the wilderness. In addition, in her return, as she recalls, she adds “I knew that if I had allowed fear to overtake me, my journey was doomed” (return). While the initiation and return phases are quite clearly laid out, the separation stage is quite the opposite. The separation stage is embedded within how she tells about her family. The call for adventure, I think, relies on her need for self-actualization and contemplation about herself and her dealings with things. Works Cited Campbell, Joseph. The Hero with a Thousand Faces. Princeton: Princeton University, 1968. Print. Campbell, Joseph. The Hero with a Thousand Faces. 3rd Ed. Novato: New World Publications, 2008. Print. Shapiro, Dani (2012, March 30). “The High Road/ Wild, a Hiking Memoir of Cheryl Strayed”. New York Times. Web. 27 March 2014. Strayed, Cheryl. Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail. New York: Random House, 2012. Print. Read More