Spirited Away

Human beings are fascinated by heroes. Joseph Campbell believes that throughout history heroes have followed a hero’s journey model or monomyth. This means that there are common patterns that can be found in many hero stories. Time after time, people have read about heroes leaving the ordinary world to complete the quest that will change mankind and better the hero. While many tasks and challenges may lie in the hero’s way they always return victorious. The Hero serves a dual purpose. Heroes are smart, brave and resilient. They show the world what is possible through hard work and perseverance. Heroes also reflect the fears and limitations that people are faced with. Heros inspires people to be the best versions of themselves. Chihiro the main character in Hayao Miyazaki’s film Spiri

ted Away, is no exception.

The story begins in the ordinary world with Chihiro and her family moving to a new home. Chihiro is intimidated by the prospects of starting her life anew. Resulting in her being a whiny, selfish and fearful little girl. All of this changes when her and her parents visit an abandoned theme park and accidentally cross into the spirit world. This is where she meets Haku, outside of a bath house. The young boy informs her of their entry into the spirit world and tries to get her back to her world. But it is too late, in their gross ignorance her parents have already eaten from a feast intended for the spirits and they are turned into pigs as punishment. 10-year-old Chihiro now finds herself left alone in the spirit world. This is what Joseph Campbell calls “the call to adventure”. She’s been transported out of the ordinary world and is now responsible for saving her parents in this new and strange world. Chihiro is frightene...

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...ent help her to see that her old life is not as frightening as she once thought. Chihiro returns home a changed person who is better equipped to live in the ordinary world.

Chihiro’s character may not be a likely hero, but she is a hero none the less. Spirited Away as a good example of Joseph Campbell’s hero journey model. She is transported to a new world where she is challenged and tested. In her journey she helps heal a river spirit, saves the bathhouse from No Face, and saves Haku’s life. In the end she saves her parents and returns them to their ordinary lives. She learns to be strong and brave. For all of her faults Chihiro grows as a person and finds that she is more capable and more powerful than she ever could have imagined. She mirrors that fear and doubt in all of us and shows us that even the most fearful person can rise to the occasion and be a hero.