It has been argued that, despite the enormous amount of stories told throughout the world and media, there are only a limited amount of “frameworks that are recycled again and again in fiction“. Easily one of the most popular would be the template of the “Hero’s Journey”, also referred to as the monomyth.
The secondary name for the hero’s journey, “Monomyth” comes from James Joyce’s “Finnegans Wake” and refers to the fact that numerous myths and stories from cultures all around the world use this structure for their storytelling with classic examples such as King Arthur, The Epic of Gilgamesh, Yamato, Beowulf and many others falling into this category.
As illustrated by the diagram above, the basic structure of the hero’s journey revolves around the departure of the hero from the world that they’re familiar with, the initiation of the hero as they face the trials and tribulations of the unknown and their return from their adventure more experienced and confident, sometimes with a treasure that will benefit them or their people in everyday life. Of course, this is a simplification and there are literally hundreds of ways that a story may use this formula with many different stages and story orders.
For those who may be wondering “Why should we care about the story structure of ancient myths?”, it’s important to note that the hero’s journey remains a crucial template for much of the media we enjoy. In fact, Sara McGuire displays, in an infographic, the hero’s journey structure within Harry Potter, Star Wars, The Matrix, Spider-Man, The Lion King and The Lord of the Rings, breaking down the different stages that the protagonists go through. Beyond that, many other examples exist such as Avatar (2009), The Hunger Games, The Wizard of Oz etc. Truly, it’s stunning how much the hero’s journey template permeates throughout the films we enjoy.
While film contains many of the most famous examples of this structure, it is by no means restricted to it. Within the world of anime, there are plenty of series that follow the hero’s journey template. It’s very easy to point to the myriad of shonen adventure series of which many follow the hero’s journey. However, it should be remembered that many other series such as Psycho-Pass, Yuri on Ice!!!, Gundam and more follow this structure of departure, initiation and return. My favourite anime of all time, Puella Magi Madoka Magica, also follows this structure although it takes a while before you realise which character the hero’s journey applies to.
It’s also fascinating to examine the hero’s journey through the lens of video games. I’m a massive fan of JRPGs and it’s amazing to look back at so many of the games that I love to realise how many of them follow this template whether it be many of the games of the Final Fantasy series, Dragon Quest, the Tales Of games, Grandia and more. Other famous examples include The Legend of Zelda games, Fallout, BioShock and examining my favourite story moments in each franchise tend to line up with a stage within the hero’s journey!
The hero’s journey template is truly remarkable and I believe examining its structure can add a greater level of appreciation to the media we consume. Let me know your thoughts on the hero’s journey, what media you’ve noticed follows this template, what some of your favourite hero’s journey media have been and any additional information you might have on the topic.
Hopefully you have found this article interesting and informative and, if you wish to seek any of the works I mentioned, don’t hesitate to use amazon.co.uk or amazon.com for all of your needs!