“The man in black fled across the desert, and the gunslinger followed…”
Those words begin a classic tale of heroism that takes the reader into the eyes of the champion, the protagonist, who will undergo a series of trial and tribulations and, with the help of fellow characters, succeed and return to normal society. In other words, the protagonist undergoes the monomyth cycle. Author Stephen King’s magnum opus (masterpiece saga), The Gunslinger: The Dark Tower I, tells of a lone gunslinger, Roland Deschain of Gilead, who ventures out in chase of the man in black. Roland, assisted by helpers, journeys across the desert, into the mountains, and at the same time tackles many challenges. The Gunslinger embarks on a journey where good is in confrontation with evil undertaking the monomyth cycle, which requires him to experience various tests, including starvation and treacherous terrain, haphazardly obtaining a helper, all of which leads him into the final confrontation forcing him to choose between what he “cares for” and what he “most desires”.
As the Gunslinger travels he stumbles upon Tull, a village, but in order to continue past, he is faced with daunting challenges. Although the gunslinger is greeted in peace, he soon learns that the man in black has passed by and is eager to acquire more information. Roland takes a trip to the nearby church where Sylvia Pittston is preaching. Roland forcefully enters her home, and threatens information from her about what lies beyond the desert. Soon after, the residents of Tull become aware of his actions and label him as the “Interloper” and seek to kill him. After the long combat, the gunslinger assesses the damage realizing he killed everyone in Tull, but not without injury. “The guns...
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...ersal part of the human condition.
Good vs. evil can be seen universally in all societies and in significance with Roland Deschain during his journey, in relation to the monomyth cycle, across various tests and tribulations, with the aid of a helper, and in the final confrontation between protagonist and antagonist. Stephen King’s The Gunslinger: The Dark Tower I is a classic tale of heroic fantasy, strewn across mysterious, captivating worlds that resemble those of current day. In King’s storytelling mastery, he mesmerizes readers with his creation, the gunslinger, in his tale of good vs. evil and his ultimate quest to the pinnacle of mystery, the Dark Tower. Roland Deschain of Gilead, an emotionally reticent man, rediscovers his ability to trust and love, simultaneously clashing with evil, in a spellbinding tale both grippingly realistic and eerily dreamlike.
The plot of this movie is about the struggle between the farmers and the cowboys. The farmers all want to start up crops, but the cowboys want to run their cattle through the open space so they can feed. Obviously, the two sides don’t agree. The cowboys end up attempting to use strong-arm tactics to get their way. They even try to scare the farmers off the land by burning down one of the homes of the farmers. Eventually, Shane, a former gunfight, realizes what he must do. He rides into town and kills all of the cowboys, including Wilson, the hired gun.
... not a hero journey, lacking of foes and partners is an incomplete adventure. They provide the obstacles and support for the protagonist to complete the journey they are on. By having the hero journey cycle composed by Joseph Campbell, it demonstrates the complexity of how a hero's defined. It's about the growth of the character by separation from his comfort zone and venturing into the unknown. By successfully passing the stages, then one is called a hero.
Somewhere out in the Old West wind kicks up dust off a lone road through a lawless town, a road once dominated by men with gun belts attached at the hip, boots upon their feet and spurs that clanged as they traversed the dusty road. The gunslinger hero, a man with a violent past and present, a man who eventually would succumb to the progress of the frontier, he is the embodiment of the values of freedom and the land the he defends with his gun. Inseparable is the iconography of the West in the imagination of Americans, the figure of the gunslinger is part of this iconography, his law was through the gun and his boots with spurs signaled his arrival, commanding order by way of violent intentions. The Western also had other iconic figures that populated the Old West, the lawman, in contrast to the gunslinger, had a different weapon to yield, the law. In the frontier, his belief in law and order as well as knowledge and education, brought civility to the untamed frontier. The Western was and still is the “essential American film genre, the cornerstone of American identity.” (Holtz p. 111) There is a strong link between America’s past and the Western film genre, documenting and reflecting the nations changes through conflict in the construction of an expanding nation. Taking the genres classical conventions, such as the gunslinger, and interpret them into the ideology of America. Thus The Western’s classical gunslinger, the personification of America’s violent past to protect the freedoms of a nation, the Modernist takes the familiar convention and buries him to signify that societies attitude has change towards the use of diplomacy, by way of outmoding the gunslinger in favor of the lawman, taming the frontier with civility.
Bram Stoker’s novel, Dracula, as well as, Hayao Miyazaki’s animated feature, Princess Mononoke, deal with the prevalent theme of good verses evil. On the surface, both stories seem like typical hero verses villain tales, but once their plots are more closely analyzed it is evident that there is not a bold line between the two extremes. Both pieces explore the idea of evil being in the eye of the beholder and being interpreted completely differently from contrasting perspectives.
In the novel, A Hero’s Journey, Joseph Campbell, an American mythologist, writer, and lecturer, states that “every decision made by a young person is life decisive. What seems to be a small problem is really a large one. So everything that is done early in life is functionally related to a life trajectory” (Campbell). In mythic criticism, the critic sees mythic archetypes and imagery connecting and contrasting it with other similar works. Certain patterns emerge, such as a traditional hero on a journey towards self actualization. Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer portrays this hero’s journey. The protagonist of the novel, Chris McCandless, hitchhikes to Alaska and walks alone into the wilderness, north of Mt. McKinley. He had given $25,000 in savings to charity, abandoned his car and most of his possessions, burned all the cash in his wallet, and invented a new life for himself. He thought that the reality of the modern world was corrupt and uncompassionate, so he went on this journey in order to find a life of solitude and innocence that could only be expressed through his encounters with the wild. During this ambitious journey to find the true meaning of life, Chris McCandless exhibits a pattern like the type explained above. In Jon Krakauer’s Into the Wild, Chris McCandless follows this mythic pattern, seeking to be the traditional hero who spurns civilization, yet he discovers that modern heroes cannot escape their reality.
In Joseph Campbell’s book, The Hero With A Thousand Faces, he talks about the “Monomyth,” otherwise better known as, the “Hero’s Journey”. This is the major theme throughout this book as well as the majority of Joseph Campbell’s studies. Campbell’s idea of the hero’s journey can be seen in many books, movies, television series, etc. That is an idea I will discuss at a later date. For this paper I would like to discuss and explain the hero’s journey, as well as give my opinions on the idea. This is a very interesting and eye opening idea that Campbell has presented us with and has made The Hero With A Thousand Faces one of the most important books of the past one hundred years.
After years of being told various stories in your lifetime you’ll start to see a pattern. Stories will repeat or be similar to others, known as archetypes. Joseph Campbell is the creator of monomyth also known for his work in comparative mythology and comparative religion. The Hero’s Adventures by Campbell focuses on the monomyth or hero’s journey. In the hero’s journey, the hero needs to be an antagonistic to its ego then reconcile the problems through the psychological transformation. Campbell describes the monomyth as an idea of a cycle that consists of departure, initiation, and return. The cycle will lead to the death of one’s old self because one will go through the psychological transformation and leave their old life to become a “richer
The problem of evil and horrible things happening to good people will be present as long as humans inhabit the earth. How society and cultural leaders respond to this dilemma will change with generations, but these two views from these literary legends will be present in one way or the other. The choice to ignore problems and escape into fantasy will always be available with open arms, and the counter ideology to face your problems with contentment and resilience will be present as well with a full spirit.
I believe fear, superstition, and greed fuel many evil things today whether big or small. Power hungry humans fight all throughout history and is usually for these reasons. Personally, the book taught me about how people deal with situations when they are under pressure, one’s need...
Joseph Campbell defines a hero as “someone who has given his or her life to something bigger than oneself ” (Moyers 1). The Hero’s Journey consists of three major parts: the separation, the initiation and the return. Throughout a character’s journey, they must complete a physical or spiritual deed. A physical deed involves performing a daunting and courageous act that preserves the well-being of another person. A spiritual deed calls for action that improves another individual’s state of mind. While fulfilling their journey, a hero must undergo a psychological change that involves experiencing a transformation from immaturity into independence and sophistication.Campbell states that these events are what ultimately guides a hero into completing
When things are at their best prepare for the worst. That’s something I always told myself since I was young boy. Joseph Campbell was no stranger to this concept which he described as the hero’s journey. This journey had three stages: leaving the everyday world, overcoming trials and tribulations, and finally going back to the everyday world with newfound knowledge that you can share with people. I traveled through all three of these stages myself. This is my hero’s journey.
During the course of this World Literature class, several stories have been covered that accurately describe Joseph Campbell's mono-myth, or basic pattern found in narratives from every corner of the world. The Hero's Journey in it's entirety has seventeen stages or steps, but if boiled down can be described in three; the departure, the initiation, and the return (Monomyth Cycle). Each stage has several steps, but the cycle describes the hero starting in his initial state, encountering something to change him, and this his return as a changed person. To further explain this concept, there are a few stories covered in this class that can be used.
Every human being is born into a race and a culture. These are what separate one person from another. Is it possible to fit into a place where you don't belong? Your culture and race does not make you who you are, but they do play an important role in molding you. They can limit our beliefs in ourselves and which tasks we find important to learn how to do. With all of these afflictions, we do seam to be on a train with a one way track. Our lives appear as if they are set before us, just waiting for our shoes to fit the roles described therein. Natives have there roles which are separate and different from the foreigners, but how far do they differ?
Joseph Conrad’s novella, Heart of Darkness, was written in the year 1902, a time of modernist literature. Heart of Darkness talks about the problems with alienation and confusion as much as it does about imperialism. In the early 1900’s, the lifestyle in England veered towards the Victorian values. Conrad’s novella makes a bridge to connect the Victorian values with the ideas of modernism. Thus “it belongs to a period of change.”(Sardar) For example, the natives are following in the footsteps of their predecessors, following a life of tradition, and their ideas of life are constantly being attacked by people like Mr. Kurtz who think they are doing what is best, when in reality they are creating more confusion