The Heroine and the Hero
Victoria Lynn Schmidt’s heroine’s journey diagram follows a similar trajectory to Joseph Campbell’s 17 Step Hero’s Journey Template, which is fascinating considering that there was a found need to create a female specific path. Both the Hero’s and Heroine’s Journeys contain 3 stages, categorized by Campbell as the Separation, Initiation, and Return. Schmidt’s model does in fact seem to follow the three stage layout. In the Separation phase she has the Illusion of the Perfect World, the Betrayal or Realization, and the Awakening and Preparing for the Journey. In the Initiation phase the steps of Descent/Passing the Gates of Judgement, the Eye of the Storm, and Death/All is Lost are featured. Wrapping up the diagram by Return are the steps of Support, Rebirth/Moment of Truth, and Return to the Perfect World. Though Schmidt’s model of the Heroine’s Journey can fit into the same the phases with evidently less steps, the model is not a simplified version of Campbell’s Monomyth.
The Heroine’s Journey, in my opinion, is more self reflective and motivated for the main character compared to the Hero’s Journey. In the first phase of initiation, the main character in the Heroine’s Journey feels right at home, finding a fit in her current lifestyle. It isn’t until she realizes that something in her life isn’t how she wants it to be that she feels the urge to go out into the world to find herself. In the Hero’s Journey there is an outward call to adventure, having someone or something around him influence his choice to leave. There is less self consideration. He needs a supernatural aid to bring him out of his home, with less intrinsic motivation being exhibited. While the heroine chose to take on her journey by her own will, she faces less physical challenges and more typically “female” mental challenges during the Descent. Schmidt describes these challenges as guilt about sexuality, shame of identity, fear of self expression, and more non-tangible aspects of her life. For the hero, he must overcome tasks through the Road of Trials which are more physical. This is supported by the typically physical rooted standards throughout gender norms, backing an almost natural feeling that the woman would have more emotional and less physical barriers to overcome.
In the middle stages of the Hero’s Journey, the hero encounters traditionally women figures: a goddess and temptress; the heroine finds herself trudging through the rougher times of her journey alone. The stage of Death/All is Lost is among the heroine, she spirals through the contemplation of giving up on her journey. While she is facing the point of death, either in herself or in her journey, the hero finds himself, or another major character in his story line, facing an apotheosis experience. His character falls out of the known realm and goes forth as a character in a “new life”, experiencing a feeling of renewal and a spurt of energy to complete his journey. While a male character typically finds support and community within other characters that he meets along his journey, those that the heroine meets do not tend to stick around. As a woman, she is told to go forth alone while other men are gifted with support systems. Their systems take up further steps of their journey, without them he could reach a more streamlined diagram making it more similarly match up to the Heroine’s Journey.
Both the hero and the heroine have a figure of rescue towards the end of their journey: Rescue from Without and Support. For the heroine, the assistance is marketed as a helping hand, but for the hero the assistance is more of a saving grace pulling him back to the normal world. Many of the steps in the Hero’s Journey feature women who often are labeled as a distraction or reward for the hero. For the heroine there is less male interference; she is on her own independent journey to accomplish her own personal goals and overcome her personal insecurities. Victoria Schmidt’s Heroine’s Journey is compact into a mere 9 steps which is significantly fewer than Campbell’s 17 Step Monomyth. Though having fewer steps may signify a simpler, less complex journey for the heroine, the steps are simply more broad, allowing for a more varying journey. For the hero, his journey is more restrictive, which leads to many stories that follow the same path showcasing heavy repetition. The Heroine’s Journey is her own, not to be compared to the Hero’s Journey. Regardless of the heroine’s fewer steps, her journey carries its own significance and is not to be minimized by the Hero’s Journey.
Campbell's Model: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1kA6a3pxTGdMTtMFH2whcQgPaB9gJHnVC/view
Schmidt's Model: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1dMAWJ074h2KgAv_HxqjIUCik8dPIVrbs/view
Like you mentioned, the Schmidt's model feels more independent. The heroine relies much less on other people as she discovers herself. In Campbell's model, the hero has a lot more aid and distraction from other people. This says a lot about how the hero is portrayed versus the heroine. Great job Annika!
ReplyDeleteHey Annika,
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed this in-depth analysis of Victoria Lyn Schmidt’s heroine’s journey as opposed to the Hero’s Journey. After learning about both in class, I thought this blog was a nice way to tie up their similarities and differences together into a comprehensive response. I particularly like your perspective on the final stages of both the hero and heroine’s journey - it’s interesting that you stated that the heroine’s journey has less male influence and is mainly focused on the independent self, rather than achieving an external reward.
Hey Annika, your breakdown of Victoria Lynn's Schmidt's heroine's journey and Joseph Campbell's hero's journey is precise. You did a good job highlighting the similarities and the key differences between the two templates, rather than focusing solely on gender. I agree with the points you made and your conclusion was particularly strong. Good job.
ReplyDeleteYour commentary on the differences between the two forms of the journey highlighted some key differences. One of the differences that stuck with me was the centrality of introspection to the heroines journey. In the heroes journey, as you said, the hero is often guided by external forces. However, in the heroines journey, there is a greater sense of internal guidance and self-propulsion.
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