Vogler (p 143-173)

The first part of the reading discusses the Approach to the Inmost Cave. This is the point in storytelling where the hero prepares for his most significant challenge during the journey. Vogler uses The Wizard of Oz to illustrate the various aspects of the approach. The central idea in this chapter is on preparation. While previous sections explained how the hero prepares himself (or is educated/coerced by others) to accept the task and enter the new world, the approach to the inmost cave deals with his preparation for the specific task which lies before him. Vogler compares this section of the narrative to base camp before "the final assault on the highest peak". At this point, the hero deducts who his true allies are and the audience recognizes the type of approach (whether a bold, apprehensive, or fool hearty) the hero will be using. During this phase the hero encounters further obstacles; he may enter a series of different worlds within his new environment where the rules change again, encounter new thresholds and complications, face an impossible test, or yet again, have to deal with a thresh hold guardian. At this point in the narrative the stakes might be raised and his objectives reorganized. Vogler also emphasizes the emergence of a "message" with every step of the approach. The approach is complete once the hero has made a "breakthrough"-- a bold step towards completion of the task, which leaves him no exit or escape from the confrontation. 

Though Vogler addresses many different components of "approach" element of a narrative, this chapter was entirely too specific to just one story--The Wizard of Oz. It almost seems as though Vogler extracted his postulates about "The Approach" entirely from The Wizard of Oz, which makes it unfair for him to claim them as rules or standard elements applicable to narratives in general. It becomes very clear that Vogler is under the very strong influence of writing films-- a style which puts the audience first-- and under an even stronger influence of the "Disney" school of story telling.  I am also starting to notice his overuse of the Threshold guardian in almost every chapter, while he neglects to illustrate the presence and significance of other archetypes. 

 Several of Vogler's claims in this chapter do ring true. I agree with his conclusion, in which he states that the approach is complete after a breakthrough of sorts, which leads to the hero having "no exit", and inevitably raises the stakes within the story. This structure is important in order to maintain the elements of suspense and identification throughout a story, and avoiding the loss of pace. However, the most significant point raised in this section is that of a developing message or messages. Each phase of the approach sends a message to the audience about what the hero is learning during the journey. One example, which Vogler uses from The Wizard of Oz is the message of not being tempted by illusions. This message not only reveals what Dorothy has come to realize about her new world, but also serves as an underlying moral in the narrative to be extracted by the audience. This technique of embedding messages gives a story a greater sense of purpose on top of just presenting the hero's journey. 

The second section of this weeks reading was the chapter describing Stage Eight: The Ordeal. Here, Vogler writes about the hero's need to die in order to be reborn. The "death" of the hero may be literal or symbolic. This section of a narrative is the result of a central crisis and results in a prominent change in the hero. Vogler uses two diagrams of an uphill journey to illustrate a crisis or a delayed crisis as they may appear in a story. He also explains many ways in which a crisis may manifest-- creating tension and evoking emotion. According to Vogler, death is a prevalent factor in the order. Death may be caused and or witnessed by the hero, while the hero's seeming death may be witnessed by someone else in the form of self sacrifice.  During the ordeal the hero is also likely to confront the "shadow"or villain. Their encounter results in either the death of one of the two, or the narrow escape of death by either party. Vogler claims that during The Ordeal, the hero faces his greatest fear, and gives examples of traditional confrontations between lovers, parents or the eternal conflict of youth versus age. 

This was an interesting section to read, as it dealt with a great amount of narrative theory. I also found this to be Vogler's strongest analysis of a portion of the hero's journey thus far. He returns to using classic examples of story telling and providing a psychological orientation of each element. What particularly caught my attention was Vogler's reminder that "villains are heroes of their own stories", and suggests the exercise of walking through the story in the Shadow's skin at least once. I appreciated his inclusion of this concept, because the idea has definitely crossed my mind. In modern story telling, especially in film, this is often a given-- even if the hero is clearly defined, the entire cast of characters is usually morally ambiguous to begin with, making it easier to understand the position of the alleged "villain". However, even during Disney movies, for instance, where the bad guy is made blatantly obvious, I wonder if they see themselves or their agenda as "evil". As Vogler recommends doing, I have often desired to view a story through the villains point of view.

Questions:

1) If a story was to be told with the shadow as the hero, would the audience still pick up on his immoral nature, or identify with him as we are conditioned to do with protagonists?

2) Not all narratives deal with a literal demise of the hero or shadow. What are some examples of death in the symbolic sense? 

3) The conflict of youth versus age: Is there an unfair tendency to stigmatize age and glorify youth in storytelling?

Vogler (p 127-141)

This section of the reading begins with Vogler describing the "Crossing of the first threshold", a narrative component which appears at the end of Act Two. The first threshold is the first challenge the hero is met with in the new world. The first threshold is important because if fully commits the hero to continuing his journey, because often it leaves him with no other options. Threshold guardians remain prevalent in this section, and manifest themselves in various ways. Some guardians must simply be acknowledged as having authority, while others take more effort on the hero's part to bypass. Vogler also describes two elements pertaining to the crossing of the first threshold--the leap of faith and the rough landing. The leap of faith is taken by the hero once he sees no other options, and is too committed to turn back. The leap of faith is often an irrational act, and may result in a "rough landing", as the hero is still not entirely comfortable with his mission and surroundings.

In the next section of the reading, Vogler describes the tests, allies and enemies the hero encounters in Stage Six, and how they help to mold the story. Vogler states that by this point, the hero is fully immersed in the "new world". Here the contrast between the old and new worlds becomes most evident, either literally (geographically), or through a set of drastically different conditions. The hero begins undergoing a series of tests in preparation for the more dire challenges to come later. These tests are often passed with the aid of allies that the hero meets in the new world. Of these allies, one or two may stick with the hero for the duration of his journey, becoming his sidekicks, or a group of allies with different strengths may become a team assembled by the hero. During "Act Two" the hero will also encounter various types of enemies in the shadow, trickster, threshold guardian and sometimes the herald. The hero also begins to familiarize himself with a new set of rules pertaining to the new world, and finds "watering holes", which according to Vogler typically take the form of bars, where both violence and romance can breed. 

I found Vogler's interpretations of the end of Act One, and beginning of Act Two to be rather helpful. I was impressed with his ability to create a formulaic description of fantasy driven narrative elements, which can and do manifest themselves in drastically different ways from story to story. The example from Thelma and Louise was great at illustrating a classic "no way out" scenerio, which forces the heroes to cross the first threshold that sets their story in motion. As a theatre scholar, I also liked his comparison of the first threshold, as it appears at the end of Act Two to be followed by a "fade out" or closing of the curtain, before reopening to show the hero fully committed to the journey and navigating the new world. Even more formulaic was the corporate analogy used at Disney, which compares the first threshold to a plane as it is just taking off from the runway-- gaining speed and eventually becoming airborne. 

I also appreciated Vogler's mentioning of the contrast between worlds, as portrayed after the first threshold. He says that the differences between the two are highlighted in this section, but adds that they don't neccessarily have to be physical changes in location; instead an emphasis can be placed on a new set of conditions and challenges. I think this is important to keep in mind, since many modern narratives or films don't change location, yet still fulfill the narrative component of creating contrast. I was surprised however, by how little time Vogler devoted to the "enemies" section of the reading. While he determined the archetypes through which they can appear, he never mentioned the possibility and frequently used narrative strategy, of characters shapeshifting from seeming allies to enemies. I liked the mentioning of the "rival" enemy, but thought Volger used poor examples to illustrate it. The Rival is a very common type of enemy it seems, especially in romance driven stories, and many comedic films. Lastly, I was unsure of the significance of the watering hole, and if it really is a key element to the new world, especially since Vogler only have the example of a bar setting, which seemed a bit two specific. However, after giving it some thought, I realized that the "watering hole" is in fact, frequently found in storytelling, and the most common, if not obvious example is indeed a bar/saloon type establishment.

Questions for discussion:

1) Other than bars, what are other ways in which the watering hole appears in stories?

What is the main function of including a watering hole in a narrative?

2)Can a hero jump directly into his/her mission without undergoing the "pop quizzes" as they present themselves in section 6? Would they be less prepared?

3) What is the most common form that the "enemy" takes (archetypes)? What do you make of the Rival enemy?

3)

Volger 107-125

In the first section of this weeks reading, Vogler wraps up the chapter on the "Refusal of the Call" during the hero's journey. The refusal usually comes after the hero has been summoned to action by a herald. By initially hesitating to accept the challenge, the hero heightens the drama of the narrative. Meanwhile, the audience is presented with a more detailed description of what is at stake, what obstacles the hero will be faced with, and a further exploration of the hero's fears, weaknesses, and wounds from the past, as they follow his rational for why he doesn't wish to embark on the quest before him. According to Vogler, some hero's firmly refuse, and a significant portion of the narrative is dedicated to their process of deliberation, while others acknowledge the potential danger, but accept their duty right away, creating the sub-categories of "reluctant" and "willing" heroes. Vogler reminds us that the Threshold Guardian archetype typically appears during the refusal stage, to heighten the suspense surrounding the hero's entry into the new world. Also, the "Law of the Secret Door" is introduced. This is a fairly common element used by story tellers to introduce a forbidden temptation that the hero is warned against, but inevitably falls into later in the narrative, causing great peril. 

In the second part of the reading, Vogler details the "Meeting with the Mentor". The meeting occurs after the hero has accepted the call to action, during his preparation for the journey. Mentors are usually wise, experienced, and genuinely want to help the hero. They prepare him for his journey through advice or gifting him with tools that will help along the way. Gift giving is typical to mythology and folklore, while stories (also including mythology) depict the mentor as an individual deeply in touch with spiritual wisdom, in one form or another, which he shares with the hero.  Volger stresses the importance of the mentor-hero relationship within a narrative, and describes the different forms in which it can appear in, and guide a story. Traditionally, mentor reflects the reality that we all must learn life lessons from somebody, not on our own.  However, in some stories, the mentor can shape shift, becoming an antagonist of sorts by intentionally gaining the hero's trust, then leading him astray. Or, great deal of drama can be drawn from a mentor-hero conflict, which can lead to betrayal or creation of a stronger bond between the two archetypes. Some stories feature one character as the hero, but are actually mentor driven. 

I thought the first part, about refusal of the call was a little scattered in its organization of ideas. The description of reluctant and willing heroes, as well as the role of threshold guardians as a repetition of previous chapters, and there wasn't as much thought provoking analysis of the  psychological significance of the refusal to the narrative, as I have come to expect from Vogler, aside from the pretty epic reference to . The various ways through which the refusal manifests itself are well organized, however I didn't understand the "positive refusal", and if it actually pertains to "the refusal of the call" as a literary device. Also, Voglers choice of film and literature to call upon in order to illustrate the various elements he describes, has been very hit or miss, throughout the entire book so far.  In this chapter his illustrations were, in my opinion, obscure and dated, with the exception of the epic reference to Jesus' initial refusal of the call, brought at the beginning of the chapter.

I found the next section, about meeting the mentor, to be more practical. In it, Vogler wisely defined the origin of the word "mentor", as it stems from Greek mythology, when the goddess, Athena, used it as the name of her alias when helping Odysseus. For me, this created a significant connection with the purpose of the mentor archetype. I also appreciated the fact that Vogler advises you, as a writer, to avoid mentor cliches, such as the wise, old man or woman, who may or may not possess supernatural abilities. Vogler suggests how the mentor can be used in less conventional ways, such as shape shifting, or conflict with the hero. The mentor driven story is also an interesting twist on the archetype. Though I wasn't familiar with Vogler's references of such narratives, the book "Tuesdays with Morrie" came to mind, and to a lesser extent the relationship between Antonio Banderas and Anthony Hopkins in "The Mask of Zorro". 

Questions for Discussion:

1)If the refusal of the call manifests itself as the "positive refusal" described by Vogler, is it really then a catalyst for the rest of the journey, or does it bring the narrative to a halt, thereby not fulfilling the function of "the refusal" as a storytelling element?

2) What was the point of including "The Artist as the Hero"? Is this really a commonality in storytelling or a tangent Vogler goes off on?

3) What are some of the most prominent mentor's in film or literature? What qualities make them so memorable?