Annotated Bibliography

Vogler, Christopher. "Approach to the Inmost Cave and The Ordeal " The Writer's  Journey : Mythic Structure for Writers. By Christopher Vogler. Vol. 3. Studio City, CA:  Michael Wiese Productions, 2007. 143-173.

Summary 

Just like everything else, the type of hero you have in a story determines the way they will approach the inmost cave. Some heros approach it willingly, while others do not. If you are unsure about the type of hero in a story, the way they approach the inmost cave can also help you to determine that. For example, a confident committed hero will approach the cave willingly. Other heros are much more timid and they take much more time to prepare and think about what is going on. This approach to the cave is also a good time to regroup and recalibrate the group of character around your hero. No matter how hard a hero tries, eventually he will have to face the ordeal. 

The simple secret of the Ordeal is that heros must die so that they can be reborn. This run in with death serves several functions. It allows for change and character growth within the hero, no one comes back from the brink of death unchanged. The Ordeal is often one of the deepest depressions in a story and so it leads to the highest highs for both the audience and the hero. It involved growth, and emotion. 

Reflection 

Once again, I liked reading this section because I felt like it actually taught us something new instead of constantly reinstating what previous chapters had already said. I particularly enjoyed the section about the Ordeal. I liked how he used Star Wars as an example. It was easy to identify with, and it helped to illustrate the point that Vogler was getting at. I recently watched The Prince of Egypt, and when he talked about a character being reborn to heighten the emotion of the audience, I could immediately pin point that section of The Prince of Egypt. 

When I thought back about it, the simple secret that Vogler explains makes so much sense to me. Any time I see a hero “die” I am so much more elated when I find out he’s alive. Vogler is very good at pointing things out that I never actually realized before. 

3 Questions 

What are some examples of approaches to the inmost cave that you have seen in your own life?

Do you find that many of the movies you watch or stories you read involve the death and rebirth of a hero?

Why do you think this death and rebirth is so important?

Annotated Bibliography

Vogler, Christopher. "Crossing the First Threshold and Tests, Allies and Enemies." The Writer's Journey : Mythic Structure for Writers. By Christopher Vogler. Vol. 3. Studio City, CA: Michael Wiese Productions, 2007. 127-141.

Summary 

Vogler begins this section by telling us that when a Hero crosses the first hreshold, it is an act of will in which the hero commits wholeheartedly to the adventure. In essence there is no turning back now. The approach to the threshold is critical, and there are several ways to actually trigger a threshold crossing. However, heros don’t typically accept the advice from their mentor and blindly rush into an adventure. Often something like internal events or a combination of external events and inner choices are what triggers the actual threshold crossing. At the actual Threshold Crossing, the audience will experience a noticeable shift. This shift may be in the actual world, but other times it is just a noticeable shift in energy. 

Now that the hero has crossed the first threshold and has entered fully into the Special World, they can begin to undergo tests and make allies and enemies. The most important function of this period of adjustment to the special world is testing. Heros may walk into this test stage looking for adventure but often walk out with allies. Close allies of the hero may provide comic relief as well as assistance. The friends a hero makes during this stage, can help him to learn the rules of the special world which are very important. Learning these rules and adjusting is just another test of the hero. This stage is also helpful because it allows the audience to learn more about the hero. 

Reflection 

I liked this section of Vogler, much more then the last section. I feel that it wasn’t as repetitive and that I learned new things. The idea of how through making allies, the audience learns more about a hero was helpful for me. Because often times when I’ve written anything, for school or otherwise I always struggle to inform the audience about my character without making them sound fake. When Vogler used the example of John Dunbar from Dances with Wolves, it really helped me to understand what he meant by walking into the test stage looking for information and walking out with friends. I love that movie, and have seen it a million times to that example helped me to understand it. 

However, I wish that a little more time had been spend talking about the dynamics between the hero and his allies or sidekicks. I felt like though Vogler touched on that, he could have explained it a little better. The dynamics between the hero and his companions is often my favorite part of the story and I wish that it had been explained a little better. Every time I read Vogler though, I relate it back to movies I’ve seen and that makes the text so much easier to understand.  

3 Questions

Do you see more stories with a “team” of allies or just a single ally?

Do you think that sometimes adding a rival is one of the best ways to ensure that the hero experiences some character growth?

How important do you think the “comic relief sidekick” is important to a story?

Question 4 for Project 2

4. Here is where you put down one or two paragraphs' worth of questions about your topic, questions you want badly, even desperately, to have answered. These questions will lead you to those sources that will answer your questions. These questions are the passionate, fiery fuel that guide you through the morass of library work, interviews, etc.

Were Surnames ever used in a derogatory way? When did they start being associated with wealth such as the last names Carnagie, Vanderbilt, etc? Native American surnames and European surnames very simliar in that they were used to describe the person that carried them in some way, were Europeans aware of this? Why are certain surnames much more popular then others? Why are certain surnames distributed across ethnicities and cultures and others are very unique to one particular people? Which culture was the first to use surnames and for what purpose? What is the most common place to derive a surname from, a job, where you're from, family, etc? Did people chose their surnames in the beginning or were they given to them? If so by whom?

Annotated Bibliography

Vogler, Christopher. "Refusal of the Call and Meeting with the Mentor." The Writer's Journey : Mythic Structure for Writers. By Christopher Vogler. Vol. 3. Studio City, CA: Michael Wiese Productions, 2007. 107-125.

Summary 

The Refusal of the Call is often more for the benefit of the audience. The dramatic pause that happens when a hero balks at the start of his journey serves to show the audience that the adventure is a risky one. However, without this dramatic pause the journey is still seen as risky. Most often heroes who refuse the call do so because of past experience and they provide a laundry list of excuses. However, persistent refusal of the call can be dangerous. It can leader to death, or something else horrible. Often the hero doesn’t refuse the call. However, the danger of the mission is still seen through other characters. Refusal of the Call can be an opportunity to redirect the focus of the adventure. 

Meeting with the mentor is a stage in which the hero gains important knowledge, supplies and the confidence to overcome the obstacle he will face during the adventure. Even if there is no specific character playing the role of the Mentor, the hero almost always encounters some source of wisdom before setting out on their journey. A good teacher or mentor is enthused about learning as well as teaching. They are also typically heros who have experience enough to teach it to others. Often time the archetype of mentor is misleading. The mentor can be bad and take advantage of their charges.

Reflection

My favorite part of the whole thing was the story about Athena and who the whole idea of the mentor archetype arose from her. I knew that she was mentor before but i didn’t know that she was the first mentor. I think it’s interesting that the first mentor was a women god. Typically when I think of a mentor I think of a wise older man - like Merlin. It was interesting to get a different perspective on the whole thing. I liked that Volger touched on the idea that mentor’s are not always good. I also liked when he talked about making sure mentor’s are not predticable. I feel like more often then not, a mentor is an old man. 

The call to adventure section was not that interesting to me. I felt like Volger had already gone over that section previously and for the most part I felt like I was just rereading an earlier section. For me the most interesting part was still the conflicting calls. You typically think of the call as clear cut, obviously it isn’t. 

3 Questions

Do you think a mentor who leads the hero in the wrong direction can still be called a mentor? Should he or she be classified under a different archetype such as shadow?

Do you think that more hero’s refuse the call then accept it? Why?

Do all stories need a mentor or are some stories better without the presence of a mentor?

3 Things to Edit & 3 to Revise

Edit

1. Transitions

2. Better sentence structure

3. directing the reader

Revisions

1. Transitions between scenes

2. expanding upon sentences

3. explanations

The Metamorphosis Quiz

1. Connect the Ordinary World and the Call to Adventure to your reading of Book 1 of _The Metamorphosis_ Explain the connection.

For me, I saw the ordinary world as Gregor's room. It's where he is comfortable. The minute he enters the outside world of the rest of his families apartment, he is uncomfortable and put it situations he would rather not be in. The Call to Adventure would be when his family is asking him to open the door. It is also when the manager is threatening him, that it what really goads Gregor into action. 

2. Are there any social issues being critiqued in the story? How does "The Red Scare" relate to Kafka's work?

I'm not really sure if you can say that there are any issues being critiqued at this point in the story. Certainly there are some further down the way. Gregor being singled out, and transformed into a bug obviously puts him under suspicion just as the people who were singled out by Senator McCarthy. Gregor is also an ordinary man, who is now under attack. 

3. What does Gregor turn into in the story? 

He turns into a giant bug.