What Dreams May Come Hero's Journey

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The following comparative essay will examine and contrast a contemporary text that features a narrative in the form of a heroic journey. The analysis will specifically attempt to contrast a modern day text and how it exhibits elements from classical mythology and model for a heroic quest. The contemporary text chosen is a fantasy drama from 1998, What Dreams May Come, featuring Robin Williams as Chris Nielsen, a pediatrician who undergoes a journey to attempt to save his wife. The plot portrays Chris as a protagonist who is put in extreme situations, and must prove his courage by performing the seemingly impossible as he ventures into the depths of hell. The film portrays and adopts multiple themes from classical mythology, most notably; a heroic quest fulfilled by a katabatic hero, that is accompanied by a companion or helper maiden, who …show more content…
In reference to the classical hero’s journey (Carey, 2016), Chris takes the form of a katabasis hero who starts in a ordinary world, and is called to action when his wife commits suicide. He is met by his helper maiden, Albert, who guides him along his quest across the threshold into the underworld known as katabasis, where he discovers more about himself along the journey. Chris’ sacrifice is his approach or solution to being with his wife forever. It’s his sacrifice which ultimately leads to his Apotheosis or ascendance into Heaven as a reward. Finally, their reincarnation reflects their return to earth or rebirth. The film conclusively follows the model of a heroic quest and shares similarities to classical mythology themes and literature. After a thorough analysis, I believe the heroic quest feature fundamentally serves as a method to expand our consciousness. It reflects a story to be told and a message that must be taken to heart to acknowledge our own

Huck Finn Hero's Journey Analysis

with the goddess, where the hero will learn what they are missing in their life. Campbell states, “The mythological figure of the Universal Mother imputes to the cosmos the feminine attributes of the first, nourishing and protecting presence...there exists a close and obvious correspondence between the attitude of the young child toward its mother” (Hero 103). This shows how the goddess is often a motherly figure who motivates the hero in their journey. For Huck, he is driven to become a better person…

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The Hero With A Thousand Faces Analysis

American scholar Joseph Campbell, a mythologist, lecturer and writer, had introduced the concepts of the Hero’s Journey. Joseph Campbell studied myth and made claims that in nearly all myths, the hero's’ adventures are identical in their format. The different stages of adventure turned out to be called the “Hero’s Journey”. According to Joseph Campbell, the hero’s journey forms the basic template for all great stories. These stories are somehow important to readers since they are always huge inspirations…

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Essay on Joseph Campbell Iron man

written, and passed down since the beginning of time; each unique but following a tight pattern. Joseph Campbell was the first to notice this and wrote a book called The Hero With A Thousand Faces. Campbell wrote about the similarities of every hero’s journey while breaking it down into three steps: Departure, Initiation, and Return. In his book, Campbell compares many old Greek myths and heroic tales from centuries ago, and although he focuses on ancient myths, modern hero stories follow Campbell’s…

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Departure, Initiation, and Return Essay

This is not a perfect parallel, for the battle with the gatekeeper (who in this case is also the hero's main adversary) is only won by the hero's punctuality, not his skill and cunning, and the danger does not fade but is only delayed until the next train. As Yu Tsun gets to his seat, he notices his fellow travelers. They include “a few farmers, a woman dressed in mourning…

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My All American Hero's Journey

about themselves and what they believe”. (Swanson 318) Conventional films are distinguishable from unconventional because there are clearly defined good and bad…

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The Hero's Journey In Jack And The Beanstalk

story of an individual who journey’s to find what is missing in psyche to make them complete. These heroes travel through numerous struggles in order to regain control of their individual consciousness. These struggles that the individuals face is known as the hero’s journey that help hem unlock their missing psyche. The fairy tale “Jack and the Beanstalk “highlights Jack hero’s journey and shown that we need guidance from an archetypal figure to find what is missing in his…

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Essay on Hero and World

beneath the waves, or above the sky, a secret island, lofty mountaintop, or profound dream state; but it is always a place of strangely fluid and polymorphous beings, unimaginable torments, superhuman deeds, and impossible delight. The hero can go forth of his own volition to accomplish the adventure, as did Theseus when he arrived in his father's city, Athens, and heard the horrible history of the Minotaur; or he may be carried or sent abroad by some benign or malignant agent as was Odysseus, driven…

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What Is A Hero's Journey In The Scarlet Letter

As readers venture into any story, they will realize that they will find a journey is being told. The film American Beauty and the novel The Scarlet Letter both use the archetypal hero’s journey and supporting images of power to emphasize that finding individuality can lead to fulfillment and rebirth, desires we all share. In the case of American Beauty and The Scarlet Letter, both narratives share the required journey pattern of departure, fulfillment and return in their quests. The departure…

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Essay about Odyssey: Hero and Odysseus

perfect qualities. The fact that he is imperfect is what makes Odysseus the greatest hero; he portrays the human characteristic of imperfection, but at the same time continues to pursue his goals, gaining identity in the process. Every action has an equal reaction, similarly, the choices a person takes decides their destiny. Some of the choices Odysseus took outraged even the gods, especially Poseidon. Unlike many other heroes, Odysseus’ journey was an experience into which he was thrown; however…

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shakespearean comedy Essay

would be entertaining. A Midsummers Night's Dream and Much Ado About Nothing are just two of the comedies Shakespeare wrote. These two plays have many things in common where as Measure for Measure is a problem play with a totally different tone. Comparing and contrasting these three plays will help us to understand what Shakespeare thought comedy was in the 1600's and to see if our views on comedy are the same today. A Midsummer Night's Dream is a festive comedy. The play takes place in…

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