Character Analysis: The Hero's Journey

Sacrifice

The Hero’s Journey is a path of transformation, growth, and sacrifice, as defined by Joseph Campbell, in the article The Power of Myth, by Bill Moyers. Heroes, as defined by Campbell, must sacrifice something to save someone, or support something. “The hero sacrifices himself for something - that’s the reality of it...” (Moyers 2). Two protagonists of Amy Tan’s The Joy Luck Club, Lindo and Waverly Jong live the lives of a usual Chinese mother, and American daughter. They live through struggles, and although both go through journeys, there are key distinctions in which the Jong family does not complete the Hero’s Journey. The Jong family does not complete the Hero’s Journey, primarily due to their lack of sacrifice for the purpose

From trading pieces of candy for chess pieces, to playing in local tournaments, she transforms into a proficient chess player. Her skills were unmatched in her early years, and she was quickly seen as the first female Grandmaster at the age of twelve. This is her departure from what would appear to be a “normal” life. Furthermore, she meets a mentor, Lau Po, and improves at playing chess. This mirrors the Hero’s Journey, in how both a Hero, and Waverly, must traverse through calls of action, meet a mentor, and transform. According to the article by Moyers, Campbell states that a hero must transcend a usual man’s, or woman’s, demeanor, must have “found or done something beyond the normal range of achievement and experience”(Moyers 1). Waverly has transcended the generic view of her as a Chinese girl, becoming a local symbol of hope. However, this is also her turning point. As her

Having such a background, she travels through a parallel, but different path from Waverly’s. As she suffered from an arranged marriage, she began to learn about the true difficulties of life, and began to grow from a naive young girl to one who is very aware of her capabilities, in her “invisible strength.” When Lindo is ripped from her old habitat, and as she is forced into the marriage, she experiences her call to action, her literal departure. In a recollection about a candle that signified her marrying of Tyan Yu, she realized that “that candle was a marriage bond that was worth more than a Catholic promise not to divorce”(Tan 59). She develops as she faces the harsh reality of having to live an unsatisfying, brutal life in the Huang household. As she is forced to prepare food for Huang Taitai, another wife in the family that was senior to Lindo, she feels their traditions bleed into her mind. “The Huangs almost washed their thinking into my skin”(Tan 56). This transformation is a harsh one, and Lindo begins to learn how to adapt to her surroundings. She had no mentor, and yet her deeds thus far parallels that of a Hero’s Journey. However, here is where her journey ends. Similarly to Waverly, Lindo does not sacrifice for a moral value or deed. Instead, she uses a story about ancestry to escape from the marriage. She stymies her transformation, and travels to America in hope of a better life. If she were to