Work in Progress: A Hero's 10 Step Journey

 - Reflection written by Princess Jane A. Segovia

What does it take to be a hero? Can an individual be born for heroic deeds or is it a decision anyone can make? Who will decide if one is fit to be a hero; the gods or themselves?

According to the American Professor John Campbell, there is such a thing referred to as monomyth or a universal structure of myths and stories all over the world. This structure follows a certain flow of the story where the hero undergoes different trial and meets various individuals that would contribute to his transformation in becoming a praise-worthy hero.

What does it take to be a hero? 

The steps are as follows:

   1. The Ordinary World - this is where the world the hero has been living in is introduced and established for the readers / viewers. This includes his normal day-to-day routine.

2. The Call to Adventure - this refers to the transition of the hero from the ordinary world he is used to towards the new, special world he will be exploring. 

3. Cross the First Threshold - this is often the point of no return in stories where the hero can no longer back out of the adventure he has begun

4. Trials, Friends, and Foes - this refers to all of the challenges the hero will conquer as well as all of the individuals he will meet regardless if they are friends or foes

5. Magical Mentor - this is a vital character in the hero's journey as the mentor holds the responsibility to train and mold the hero to a version ready to face his adversaries

6. Dragon's lair - although not necessarily a lair belonging to a dragon, this refers to a significant location in the story which is the territory of the villain 

7. Moment of Despair - this is the climax of the story where the hero is almost defeated but through a glimmer of hope, he is able to power through and come out victorious

8. Ultimate Treasure - upon receiving what he set out to obtain in the first place, the hero recognizes that the ultimate treasure was not the prize but his own transformation

9. Homeward Bound - this includes the hero's travels toward the ordinary world. Most of the myths include challenges and roadblocks the hero will encounter along the way; finally,

10. Rebirth & The Champion's Return - there will be one final unsuspected ordeal that the hero must accomplish that is much more difficult but will ultimately lead to his rebirth. This is also where he returns to the ordinary world with more wisdom, strength, and knowledge he had obtain in his journey.

 Can an individual be born for heroic deeds or is it a decision anyone can make?

    In my opinion, it can be both. Choosing one of the options does not invalidate the other. Let's take the story of Hercules for example - the Disney version and not the original Greek mythology. 

Hercules was the son of Zeus and Hera who, due to the schemes of Hades, grew up in the world of the mortals. He went through his own journey towards heroism starting from the first step of the monomyth mentioned above. Hercules grew up in the ordinary world (step 1) and was called to adventure when he was informed that he was an orphan who was found wearing the medal from the gods around his neck (step 2). He set out to the temple of Zeus to seek for answers (step 3) and actually had the chance to talk to him through his statue. He underwent a lot of trials in his journey and met a lot of people - some who supported him and some who despised him but his very first companion was his trusty pet Pegasus (step 4). Together, Hercules and Pegasus went out to seek for Phil, a centaur who was known to mentor heroes. All throughout the movie, Phil was the teacher who help Hercules get the strength he needed to be an actual hero (step 5). And then comes the metaphorical dragon's lair when Hercules agreed to meet up with Meg but actually entered Hades' trap (step 6). The battle raged on as the Gods fought with the Titans Hades released which led to a hopeless predicament where Hercules was getting beaten up to death not until she saw Meg die and he regained strength (step 7 + the power of love in Disney films). Now since this is an hour-long film for kids, steps 8-10 were not in their original order. Steps 9 and 10 were mostly conducted when Hercules tried to save Meg's soul while Step 8 happened after they had defeated the Titans when Hercules realized what was truly important to him. Finally, the latter part of step 10 happened when he went back home to the mortal realm. 

In this summary, one can see that Hercules was in fact born to become a hero considering he actually is immortal. But this does not invalidate anyone because mortal or non mortal, all have the potential to be a hero in their own way. We all have the ability to go on our own journey towards our rebirth. We only have to take the first step whether that is towards a dream job or just a healthier and happier self --- regardless of the journey's goal, we can still consider it as an adventure as long as we dare to answer the call to adventure. Which then leads me to the final unanswered question mentioned above:

Who will decide if one is fit to be a hero; the gods or themselves?

I am a strong believer that we hold our fates and it is our decision what we make of it. So although gods or other supernatural beings have the power to influence us, at the of the day especially in out current times, we will be the ones to decide whether we are fit to be heroes or not. We will personally have the final say of when we will begin the journey towards self-improvement. 

Remember, similar to Hercules, we are all works in progress