mythology Flashcards
1
Q
the hero’s journey
A
- The Hero’s Journey is a concept developed by a scholar by the name of Joseph Campbell
- The Hero’s Journey may also be known as the Monomythic Cycle
- Joseph Campbell used this same cycle to show that most myths and stories of heroes follow the same format
- Think in terms of a clock
2
Q
what is the cycle (8)
A
12 - unusual birth 1 - youthful acts of heroism 3 - call to adventure 5 - supernatural aide 6 - road of trials and tribulations + nadir 7 - boon (prize) 9 - magic flight home 11 - triumphant return
3
Q
unusual birth
A
- We meet the protagonist (hero) of the story
- The hero experiences an odd birth (maybe they were both with superpowers, maybe they had a terrifying event happen to them, etc.)
4
Q
youthful acts of heroism
A
- The hero, as a young child or teenager, engages in different acts that show how brave and hero-y they are
5
Q
call to adventure
A
- The hero receives information/ a message/ a summons to go on an adventure!
- Sometimes this is a task/quest given to them by another person
6
Q
supernatural aide
A
- The hero receives help!
- Usually (but not always) this comes in the form of magic (magic wand, helpful fairy, special talking unicorn, etc.)
7
Q
road of trials & tribulations + nadir
A
- Half-way through his journey, the hero must battle monsters, beasts, impossible tasks and other things threatening to keep him from achieving his goal!
- Nadir: the hero’s darkest moment (think when Harry pretended to die in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows)
8
Q
boon (prize)
A
- The hero conquered their darkest moment and as a result, wins a prize!
- Sometimes this is treasure and sometimes this is winning the love of his/her life
9
Q
magical flight home
A
- The hero finally begins their journey home, usually by magical animal, spells or other forms of magic
- The hero will sometimes face a mini “road of tribulations” as they attempt to make it home safely
10
Q
triumphant return home
A
- The hero has succeeded in their quest! They return home to receive a special prize (a promotion, the hand of a princess, etc.)
- The hero begins his/her life in an elevated status to their life before their adventure
11
Q
examples of archetypes
A
- Ordinary Man: Your average Joe, just like you or me or the guy across the street
- Poet: Life is art, be that through story or song or art or sculpture
- Rebel/Revolutionary: Stands opposed to the status quo and fights for his cause
12
Q
greek creation story
A
- was dark and empty
- 2 children were born
- love was born and created light and day
- first creatures were mother earth and father heaven
- world was filled with monsters and titans
- cronus wounded his father and the furies and giants were born from his blood
- cronus ruled the universe with his sister rhea
- cronus learned one of his children would dethrone him
- decided to imprison his children in his stomach
- rhea saved zeus by giving him to an eagle and taken to an island far from where cronus was
- eagle kept zeus safe and care for him
- nutured desire to free bros and sis’
- betrayed all titans
- it was a war between the gods and the titans
- zeus won with help from prometheus (a titan)
- sent enemies to tartarus and cleared world of monsters for the age of Man
13
Q
theseus and minotaur
A
- Theseus is enjoying his place as hero, prince, and heir to the throne of Athens.
- finds out every few years, young Athenians must be sent off to the island of Crete to be sacrificed to the man-eating Minotaur, who lives in an inescapable Labyrinth
- Theseus jumps at the chance for adventure.
- convinces his father, King Aegeus, to let him go
- Theseus hops on the boat to Crete determined to slay the Minotaur and save the young people marked for human sacrifice. He promises Aegeus that he’ll change the black sail of the ship to white on his return to Athens to show his father that he made it back alive.
- Theseus makes a great ally in the Cretan Princess Ariadne. The beautiful maiden falls in love with him and tells him how to escape the Labyrinth by trailing string behind him.
- Theseus prepares to enter the Labyrinth and battle the Minotaur.
- Theseus fights the ferocious Minotaur and defeats him.
- The young hero takes the Princess Ariadne with him as he sails back to Greece with the young Athenians.
- Theseus decides to abandon the Princess Ariadne on an island on the way back to Greece because Theseus becomes more of a jerk
- Theseus is so busy thinking about how awesome he is that he forgets to change the sail to white. When Aegeus sees the black-sailed ship approaching Athens, he thinks Theseus is dead and kills himself.
- Theseus is now a totally famous hero, because of his defeat of the Minotaur. Because of his father’s death, he’s also the King of Athens.
