Arechetypes (con't)

In the remaining sections of Chapter Three, Vogler introduces us to the rest of the archetypes, which as we have learned, are the embodiments of the personality traits which come together to create the Hero's Journey. We left off at the Threshold Guardian, who learned is not a villain, but rather a gatekeeper to the to the entrance of the new world which the hero is about to enter. I felt that the section explaining the Guardian was too short and not that Vogler did not provide enough specific examples to through which the reader could make more sense of this archetype. However, I found the analogy of a bouncer to be most effective in explaining the Guardians purpose. The Herald archetype is meant to symbolize a turning point in the story, usually providing the call to adventure, and, in a nutshell, they "get the story rolling". Heralds can be positive negative or neutral and appear in the form of a dream figure, a real person, or simply a subconscious voice. The Shapeshifter is a very complex archetype as it's name suggests. Traditionally, the shape shifter has been a character literally capable of magic such as a with or wizard. More commonly, though not necessarily, the shape shifter is a love interest of the hero with shady intentions, also known as the femme of hommes fatales.  Not all shape shifters are negative, positive characters such as mentors and tricksters are also known to use shape shifting for good. The Shadow is a dark force during the Hero's journey, but not the main villain. It can be a person or a feeling, representing repressed feelings such as shame or guilt, or other natural feelings that we feel we aren't allowed to acknowledge or show. The ally is the Hero's partner during his quest. The ally humanizes the hero through their intimate knowledge of him as their own ally, not the hero of a story. Psychologically, the ally represents the unused part of out personality. The final archetype in the chapter is the Trickster who represents mischief and the desire for change. This archetype can put events into perspective for both the hero and the audience by cutting big egos down to size. He uses wit over strength to get ahead, provides comic relief like the ally, and has an effect on the lives of those around him, though remains unchanged himself throughout the story.

I found the descriptions of these archetypes to be very comprehensive and was able to make a lot of personal connections to where they fit amongst what I have read and seen, even without Voglers examples from film or mythology. As I mentioned earlier, the threshold guardian seemed most abstract to me from Voglers deconstruction of it, and I was about to write it off as the one archetype which could be eliminated from a given story, without losing any effect. However upon further consideration, I realized that this archetype might actually be one of the most important and prevalent figures in any narrative, even if their appearance is brief and seemingly unacknowledged such as a snobby secretary who won't let the hero see the boss. It also made sense as to how guardians can become allies, as well as the part they play as a catalyst in the hero's journey, adding fuel to their drive for success. In fact, what I came to realize at the end of the chapter, is that just about every archetype has the ability to serve as the predominant catalyst, either for change, motivation or knowledge which sets the hero's journey in motion.

In terms of complexity, I found the shapeshifter to be the most interesting of the archetypes. Their psychological function, as described by Vogler was fascinating and unexpected. They represent the anima-- the male element in the female unconscious, which answered by earlier question of which archetype is the almost ever present love interest found under. Though Volger declared that the shapeshifter is the most difficult of the archetypes to grasp, I would argue that it would actually be the shadow. The shadow, as I understood it, represents thoughts, feelings and energies more so than a tangible character, and can easily be confused with darker shape shifters. I also didn't like the fact that Vogler stated that shadows do not thing of themselves as the villains, yet he illustrated his point with examples of classic villains from Disney movies, which are in fact, the quintessential, one dimensional bad guys, whose ONLY attribute is the fact that they're evil. While I agree with Volger's point, that the shadow can have more dimensions and layers than just "the antagonist", which is key to sophisticated narrative, I felt that he actually used the antithesis of the point he was trying to make while illustrating it. 

The Trickster and the Ally were probably the most straight forward of the archetypes described in the chapter. However, the Ally raised some questions. For instance, how do you determine the hero from the ally in a partnership of heroes such as Mulder and Scully? How much distance must the ally maintain from the Hero's journey so as not to become the hero himself in very close hero-ally bonds? I suppose the answer to this comes from the previous section about heroes which states that the rule of thumb for determining the hero, is assessing which character underwent the greatest change throughout the story. 

Questions for Discussion:

Can an ally cross the line to become the hero? Can a story can multiple heroes?

Can any of these archetypes be eliminated from the Hero's Journey and still allow for an effective story? Which is most likely to go? Which archetypes are least commonly found?

According to Vogler, which of the archetypes represents the most resistance during the hero's journey? Vogler did not pinpoint any particular one as the dominant antagonist.