How to Analyze the Hero's Journey

Laying the Groundwork for Analysis

Identify archetypes. The Hero’s Journey is populated with distinct, mythic, universal characters. These are usually based on classical mythology or epic poetry. Being able to recognize these characters can make analyzing the Hero’s Journey an easier task, since you’ll know who the players in the game are, so to speak, and how they interact with each other. Archetypes include: The hero. This is the central figure in the story. The villain. The hero may come across multiple villains or enemies along his journey, and each helps prepare him for future challenges. The ally. Much like villains, allies populate the hero’s journey, complementing the hero’s quest and helping the hero meet his goals. The mentor. This is the hero’s guide who usually appears near the beginning of a journey and guides the hero through obstacles.

Study the outline of a hero's journey. The hero's journey typically follows a similar pattern each time. Understanding these stages can help you track the form of the hero's journey. While these can vary between works, in general, the stages are: The hero starts in their ordinary world. The hero receives a call to adventure. The hero refuses the call. The hero meets the mentor. The hero accepts the call and encounters tests, allies, and enemies. The hero undergoes an ordeal. The hero receives a great reward. The hero faces a near-death situation which they conquer. The hero returns to the ordinary world.

Look for heroic qualities. These are the virtues of the hero and can range from perseverance to resourcefulness to integrity. Being able to recognize heroic qualities will ultimately allow you to analyze the inner journey of the hero. Heroic qualities can be powers, like super strength or magic, or virtues, like courage and honor.

Distinguish between the two main worlds in the Hero’s Journey. These are the Ordinary and the Special Worlds. The former refers to the hero’s home, where he begins and ends his journey. The Ordinary World is disrupted by a problem which the hero must solve by going to the Special World. The Special World differs significantly from the Ordinary World both physically and in terms of the emotional development that it prompts in the hero. Recognizing the differences between these two worlds will help you contextualize the hero’s growth and development by placing the hero against different backdrops, each of which prompts him to act a specific way. For example, in Star Wars, Luke Skywalker's ordinary world is his aunt and uncle's farm. When his aunt and uncle are killed, he is called to action and must journey out to his Special World to fight the Empire.

Identifying the Stages of the Hero’s Journey

Evaluate the conditions for departure. The hero lives a normal life until he feels the Call to Adventure. This is a call to action which prompts the hero to realize that he must embark on a journey to meet a specific challenge. Initially, the hero will refuse this call, content in the safe haven that is the Ordinary World, until he meets his mentor. The mentor instills confidence in the hero and advises or trains him to face his fears. The hero then decides to cross the threshold into the Special World. The hero is often introduced sympathetically so that readers or viewers can relate to him and identify his needs, problems, and motivations as well as the flaws or characteristics which make him unique. The Call to Adventure can take multiple forms, ranging from a sudden storm to a death to the arrival of a villain. The mentor is typically a person but can also be a map, hieroglyphics, or a log book. The hero is prompted to cross the threshold when he has to confront an event that raises the stakes. This event could be anything from an abduction, as in the film The Searchers, to agreeing to go on a first date, as in Annie Hall.

Determine when the journey begins. Once the hero has crossed the threshold into the Special World, he will encounter trials, allies, and villains. These will all shape the hero in preparation for future challenges and will set the grounds for what to expect in the Special World. Ask yourself how the hero you are analyzing is being shaped by the characters he encounters. Do they make him act a different way than he would have back in the Ordinary World? Is he more or less confident in his actions? Asking yourself such questions along the way can help you notice nuanced character development.

Realize when the hero is in grave danger. The hero will overcome initial obstacles easily and in time approach the Inmost Cave. This could be an actual location or an inner conflict, both of which present significant danger to the hero. The hero will then face an ordeal, an ultimate life-or-death challenge. The hero may come close to death or may witness the death of an ally or a mentor. However, the hero will ultimately win and be rewarded for his brave actions. The reward for overcoming the ordeal could range from an elixir to reconciliation with a loved one.

Identify the hero’s return. The hero must return to the Ordinary World promptly because of a potentially dangerous event. This could be anything from a situation threatening the destruction of the Ordinary World to the brief reappearance of a villain. The hero then faces his most dangerous feat, his final test. By applying all the wisdom and experience he has gathered up to this point, he is able to destroy his enemy. The hero then returns home, transformed.

Break down the hero’s inner journey. In his journey, the hero goes through a variety of emotions. He begins by being unaware of a problem, content in the Ordinary World. He is resistant to change until a mentor helps him overcome his fear. He commits to and prepares for change and gains mastery over the situation as he faces the ordeal and the final challenge. The inner journey can be described as a need. Instead of thinking about what the hero will gain from the journey, consider the hero's inner motivation. Why is the hero on this journey? Take note of any moments that strike you as the hero experiencing some kind of emotional shift. It could be that where the hero would typically shy away from a challenge, he now embraces it. These are signs which can help you pinpoint where your hero lies along the narrative arc that is the Hero’s Journey.

Taking Notes Strategically

Take note of pivotal moments. Whether you are analyzing the Hero’s Journey in a film, in a work of literature, or in another format, write down the moments along the way that you think represent a change in the character’s demeanor. The list will help you delineate the story as you go along. Return to this list once you have finished the work, then reassess whether these really were the major moments of change. For example, the Trojan War in The Odyssey may be the crossing of the first threshold in the Hero’s Journey. In that case, Odysseus is being introduced to a world unlike his own, though he has not begun to change just yet.

Create an outline. Each myth or contemporary work that follows the monomyth structure will represent the stages of the Hero’s Journey differently. Make an outline that shows the various parts of the monomyth format as they pertain to the specific work you’re analyzing. Create and refer to this outline throughout your reading of the literature or viewing of the film. You can also create an outline after you are done reading or watching a particular work.

Annotate as you read, if applicable. Annotating can help you get a deeper understanding of the text. Your notes will also help jog your memory if you stop reading and return to the text after some time. Ways to annotate a text include: Highlight passages and words that you think are significant. Write key words and questions in the margins. Underline any words you don’t know and circle definitions.

Write down questions. Do this as you read the book or watch the film so that you can then clarify all the points you missed. Writing down any questions that you have and referring to these when you have completed the work can help you notice and fill in gaps in your understanding.

Writing About the Hero’s Journey

Write an arguable thesis statement. A strong thesis or claim will be debatable and will not reiterate something that is already generally agreed upon. It is your task, through your analysis, to persuade the reader about a specific, narrow enough aspect of the Hero’s Journey in your given text(s) or film(s). For example, you could argue that in The Matrix, Neo enters the Special World when he chooses between the red pill and the blue pill. Make sure that you can back up this claim with evidence.

Support your claims with textual evidence. Every claim you make will need to be backed up by evidence from the text so that readers can follow your thought pattern. If you claim that the Call to Adventure in The Hobbit occurs when Gandalf arrives, you should provide evidence that speaks to the larger framework of the novel to explain why this is a turning point.

Identify where the story deviates from the typical arc. Not all works will interpret the Hero’s Journey in the same way. It may be of interest to analyze where the specific story you’re studying deviates from the original, aforementioned structure of the Hero’s Journey and to consider why that is significant. For example, The Lion King is arguably an example of the Hero’s Journey, but the stages of the journey are not in the typical order. Analyzing this break from the norm might yield important, innovative results.

Connect your writing to broader themes. A successful analysis may go over specific examples each of which represent a given stage of the Hero’s Journey. It will analyze each example in depth. At the same time, it will also relate these smaller examples to a broader theme or element of the Hero’s Journey, such as the growth of the hero. For example, a successful analysis might consider how blowing up the Death Star, arguably the supreme ordeal in Star Wars, affects the development of the hero in the story. What does he learn from this final challenge, and how does it relate to his growth throughout the earlier part of the story?