Archetypes

• Are constantly repeating characters or energies which occur in the dreams of all people and the myths of cultures

• Reflect aspects of the human mind

• Our personalities divide themselves into these characters to play out the drama of our lives

Archetypal Characters

• Hero• Mentor• Threshold Guardian• Herald• Shapeshifter• Shadow• Trickster

The Purpose of the Hero

• Gives the audience a window into the story• Has qualities that we all can recognize in

ourselves. We all desire…To be loved and understoodTo succeedTo surviveTo be freeTo get revengeTo fight wrongsTo seek self-expression

Functions of the Hero

• Growth-overcome obstacles and achieve goals (usually dynamic)

• Action-in control of his or her own fate

• Sacrifice-the true mark of the hero

• Death-at least a threat of death

• Flaws-weakness, imperfections, quirks, and vices (humanize the character)

Other characters can act as heroes at times.

Hero: Universal Motivations

• Revenge• Anger• Lust• Competition• Territoriality• Patriotism• Idealism• Cynicism• Despair

Varieties of the Hero

• Willing-active, gung-ho, committed, brave, self-motivated• Unwilling-full of doubts or hesitations, passive, needs to

be motivated by outside forces.• Anti-Heroes-may be an outlaw or a villian from the point

of view of society• Group-Oriented-face a choice about whether or not to

return to their ordinary world• Loners-estranged from society• Tragic-dies as a result of his or her flaw• Catalyst-not dynamic (bring transformation to others

instead)• Hybrid-become a shapeshifter, mentor, or even a

shadow

Mentor

• Usually a positive figure who aids or trains the hero

• Wise Old Man or Wise Old Woman

• Expressed all characters who teach and protect heroes and give them gifts

• Comes from Homer’s The Odyssey

• Often speak in the voice of a god or are inspired by divine wisdom

Mentor: Psychological Function

• Represent the Self-the god within us• Higher-Self-the wiser, nobler, more godlike part

of us• A Conscience to guide us on the road of life• Closely related to the image of the parent

Many heroes seek out mentors because their own parents are inadequate role models

Mentor: Dramatic Functions

• Teaching• Gift-Giving• Inventors• The Hero’s

Conscience• Motivation• Planting• Dark Mentors

• Fallen Mentors• Continuing Mentors• Multiple Mentors• Comic Mentors• Flexibility• Inner Mentors• Placement

Threshold Guardians

• Obstacles on the road to adventure• Powerful guardians at the threshold placed

to keep the unworthy from entering• Present a menacing face to the hero, but if

properly understood, they can be overcome, bypassed, or even turned into allies

• Block the hero before the adventure even gets going

Threshold Guardians

• Not the main villain or antagonist

• Lieutenants of the villain

• Lesser thugs or mercenaries hired to guard access to the chief’s headquarters

• May be placed there to test the hero’s willingness and skill

• Mentors

• The Secret Door

Threshold Guardians

• May represent the ordinary obstacles we face every day in life– Bad weather– Bad luck– Prejudice– Oppression– Hostile people

• Stand for our internal demons

-The neurosis

-Emotional Scars

-Vices

-Dependencies

-Self-Limitations

Threshold Guardians

Dramatic Functions: Testing• Must solve a puzzle or pass a test• Learn how to deal with obstacles

-Turn around and run-Attack the opponent head-on-Use craft or deceit to get by-Bribe or appease the guard-Make an Ally out of a presumed Enemy

The energy of the Threshold Guardian may not be embodied as a character but may be found as a prop, architectural feature, animal, or force of nature that blocks and test the hero.

Learning how to deal with Threshold Guardians is one of the major tests of the Hero’s Journey.

Christopher Vogler

Herald

• Usually issues challenges and announces the coming of significant change

• Delivers the Call to Adventure (usually)• Positive, negative, or neutral figures• Psychological Function: Call for Change

– Dream– Figure– Real Person– New Idea– Encounter

Whether it is an inner call, an external development, or a character bringing news of change, the energy of the Herald is needed in almost every story.

Christopher Vogler

Shapeshifter

• Primary characteristic is that they change from the hero’s point of view

• Dazzle and confuse the hero rather than try to kill him or her

• Psychological Function: To express two different energies:– Animus-name for the male element in the female

unconscious– Anima-name for the female element in the male

unconscious

Shapeshifter

• Dramatic Function: Bringing doubt and suspense into a story– Femme Fatale-woman as temptress or

destroyer– Homme Fatale-man as a tempter or a

destroyer

Mask of the Shapeshifter-may be another character

Shadow

• Represents the energy of the dark side, the unexpressed, unrealized, or reject aspects of something– Suppressed monsters of the inner world– Things we don’t like about ourselves

Shelters positive qualities that are in hiding or that we have rejected for some reason.

Shadow: Psychological Function

Represents the power of repressed feelings• Stands for Psychosis that not only hampers us

but threatens to destroy us• May be a shady part of ourselves• In Dreams

– Monsters– Demons– Devils– Evil Aliens– Vampires– Other Fearsome Enemies

Shadow: Dramatic Function

• To challenge the hero and give her a worthy opponent

• Create conflict and bring out the best in a hero

• Typically one character, but may be a mask worn by many other characters-even the hero

Trickster

• Embodies the energies of mischief and desire for change

• Natural Enemies of the status quo• Psychological Function

– Cut big egos– Point out folly and hypocrisy– Bring about healthy change and

transformationDramatic Function: Comic Relief

Trickster Heroes

• Catalyst characters who affect the lives of others but are unchanged themselves– Charlie Chaplin– Marx Brothers– Daffy Duck

-Tweety Bird

-Daffy Duck

-Woody Woodpecker

-Bugs Bunny

Minor Archetypes

• The wolf• The hunter• The good mother• The wicked

Stepmother• The fairy godmother• The witch• The prince or

princess

• The greedy innkeeper• The eternal boy• Good Cop/Bad Cop• Tough but Fair

Sergeant