The “Hero’s Journey” is a pattern in storytelling that has been used for a long time. You will learn about what that pattern is and see examples of its use in several films and then follow the discussion instructions at the bottom. As the course continues, we will look for subtle tweaks and changes that storytellers and filmmakers use in the Hero’s Journey, allowing us to make abductive arguments about what those changes reflect in cultural beliefs.

Discuss a movie, describing how it follows at least six of the stages of the Hero’s Journey. Remember, this doesn’t just apply to stereotypical hero movies. They could be romantic comedies, Disney films, Dramas, etc.

Format like this:

Moana

1. Ordinary World: While Moana is being prepped to be the next leader of the island, she and the rest of her village is still confined to the island, within the bounds of the barrier reef.

2. Call to Adventure: She is called by the sea to return the stone of Te Fiti (she doesn’t know this until it is explained by her “mentor” of course). The process of the “call” is explained through the iconic song she sings, “How Far I’ll Go,” in which she says “[She’s] been staring at the edge of the water for as long as [she] can remember, never really knowing why.” The song also makes clear her internal conflict of wanting to be “the perfect daughter” and being called by a deep desire: “It calls me. And no one knows, how far it goes.”

3. Etc.