The Journey of Heroes

Paper Summary:

This paper examines the conception of heros, or heroism as detailed in Joseph Campbell's essay,"The Hero's Adventure." The author discusses that each person defines a hero differently, and that it can be someone who has made a difference in our own personal lives, a famous person from history that has influenced many people, or the individual, themself. The author feels that many heroes are people who have come from humble beginnings and overcome many obstacles to succeed in their lives. The examples given in the paper are Ghandi, Jesus and the leaders of Ancient Greece. The paper also discusses the role of movies and television in promoting the role and definition of the 'hero' as the good guy who has triumphed over evil and adversity to save the day. Also discussed in the paper is how we are all heroes, as we all have overcome challenges and difficulties such as illness, death and trauma in our own lives.

From the Paper:

"The hero's journey is essentially a cycle of going and returning, and for most people this involves a journey within our self, in order to conquer our personal faults and self-doubts. Just as with the heroes of history and fiction, everyone faces trials and challenges throughout their lives. These challenges are often difficult, such as the illness or death of a loved one, the trauma of being the victim of an accident or of crime, or the loss of a job. Others, such as moving home, starting school, or changing jobs, are situations that can be stressful and require us to adapt and reevaluate our priorities. These events and situations require the individual to show the same "heroic" qualities of courage, bravery, persistence, and self-discipline, that fictional and historical heroes exhibit in their mythical, hero's adventures."

More papers on The Journey of Heroes:

• Book Review # 105738 : "Journey of Crazy Horse"
• Comparison Essay # 22522 : "Journeys of War"
• Film Review # 119181 : "Seven": Morality and the Descent of the Hero"

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