Conquering the Hero's Journey - Part I
The Myth of the Heroic Ego
Welcome to the Conquering the Hero’s Journey, a three part series discussing Joseph Campbell’s well-loved theory on global mythological traditions, which he called the “monomyth,” otherwise known as “The Hero’s Journey.”
This mythological framework has been pillaged, dissected, and fracked for decades now. From self-help gurus to men’s coaches to psychedelic guides to struggling screenwriters, it seems like the Hero’s Journey is one thing we can all agree on. And in an increasingly fractured world, maybe that’s a good thing.
The hero must venture out into the world, face the outer and inner demons, find the “boon” buried in the dragon’s lair, return home a transformed being, and spread the gifts all around.
What’s not to like?
Honestly, quite a lot, if you ask me.
You might be thinking, who the hell am I to critique the monumental framework of the hero’s journey? Is this just some arrogant attempt to “cancel” Campbell and refute this well-established theory? Not in the slightest.
Let me say this first:
I adore Joseph Campbell. I wouldn’t be who or where I am today without his work. Campbell revitalized the field of mythology for generations to come. He offered a complete revisioning of world mythology that integrated the work of Jung and so many others, and created a deeply valuable psycho-spiritual lens on ancient stories, that were previously only seen as artifacts of so-called “primitive” cultures.
Campbell helped bridge psychology and mythology in a way that inspired millions of people, rippling out into the currents of popular culture in unfathomable ways. Star Wars wouldn’t exist without it, along with so many other beloved stories of our modern era.
We are all profoundly indebted to Uncle Joe.
And…
Our world has changed profoundly since he penned The Hero with a Thousand Faces, his 1949 opus that established his “monomyth” theory. Today, we are grappling with tectonic shifts in our collective values and perspectives that ask us to try and reframe our understanding of history and culture, examine our biases, and calls into question the very way we see the world as modern Western people.
I’ve critiqued Campbell before in some of my workshops, and have had people reach out and schedule calls with me just to tell me that I was wrong. While I don’t care to repeat that experience, I wouldn’t be surprised if this article ruffled some more feathers. Maybe that’s a good thing too.
Today, we need wilder, stranger, and more ambiguous stories than what the hero’s journey can provide. We need stories that flow from the bottom of the acidifying ocean like Sedna’s weeping fingers. In this time of planetary crossroads, we need tales that help us live more comfortably in the liminal cracks of our collective uncertainty, stories of fracture and breakdown and new life emerging from the ashes. When truth and lies converge into some rough beast that slouches ever towards us, we need ambiguous myths punctuated with Coyote’s endangered paw prints to show us a third way out of our predicament.
The world has changed. The time has long since passed. The hero must die.