The Self As Hero Joseph Campbell Analysis

Do we control our own destiny, or are we subject to fate? This philosophical question has plagued mankind since the dawn of time, however Joseph Campbell offers a possible explanation. In “The Self as Hero”, an excerpt from his work Pathways to Bliss, Campbell compares accounts from various individuals on their struggles to characters in myths and fairy tales whom embark daunting journeys, finding how both groups overcome incredible struggles to achieve greatness and further their destiny. Throughout the chapter, Campbell subtly conveys his belief that hard work is what creates success. His main claim is that each person has the opportunity to seize their destiny if they have the drive and courage to do so, which is therefore attained through

This is resonated through many gangster or crime films, often following a “rags to riches” plotline. A prime example would be “The Goodfellas” by Martin Scorsese, where a group of small-time mobsters work to grow their influence and reach the top of their gangster society. Despite the antagonistic nature of the characters, they still go through crisis to reach their objective, thus fitting the definition of “a hero journey.” Of course, we have to explore what is a “hero journey” as there are many myths with varying plot lines. There are three primary hero journey types that Campbell establishes, primarily through the use of distribution. The first involves the protagonist leaving home to pursue adventure, going through unfamiliar territory and encountering an overwhelming obstacle or opponent, and is thus transformed by that encounter (113). Arguably, this is the most common myth, both in modern culture and in ancient texts. The majority of fairy tales and basic action movies are formed off this basis, take Belle’s romance with the beast in Disney’s “Beauty and the Beast”, or Kevin

Campbell recounts his own struggle during the Great Depression, enduring the economic catastrophe and drastic job drought through reading in solitude. Following the depression’s end, Campbell developed into a literary icon, largely due to his own struggles (122). Through the span of three pages, Campbell provides explicit details of how he overcame immense obstacles to achieve greatness, effectively fulfilling his own title “The Self as Hero.” Even though these events did not immediately take place, they accumulated to form Campbell’s own “hero's journey.” Campbell recalls that his fervent reading without a job fell under the “counter-culture” category, which made him an outsider to society (121). In retrospect, this exclusion from social norms fulfilled the hero’s struggle part of his journey, which caused him to grow stronger. Eventually, Campbell acquired a job as a literature teacher, which kick-started his career as an author with his first book “The Skeleton Key to Finnegans Wake”, an analysis an explanation of “Finnegans wake.” This event represents Campbell’s hero’s transformation, where he evolved into a writing sensation through hard work and determination. While Campbell’s experiences are admirable, its status as a personal anecdote raises a question of whether or not it applies to others. Granted, many face