PART ONE: The Adventure of the Hero

Chapter I: Departure

* 1. The Call to Adventure

The adventure begins with the hero receiving a call to action, such as a threat to the peace of the community, or the hero simply falls into or blunders into it. The call is often announced to the hero by another character who acts as a “herald”. The herald, often represented as dark or terrifying and judged evil by the world, may call the character to adventure simply by the crisis of his appearance.

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Chapter III: Return

* 1. Refusal of the Return

Having found bliss and enlightenment in the other world, the hero may not want to return to the ordinary world to bestow the boon onto his fellow man.

* 2. The Magic Flight

When the boon’s acquisition (or the hero’s return to the world) comes against opposition, a chase or pursuit may ensue before the hero returns.

* 3. Rescue from Without

The hero may need to be rescued by forces from the ordinary world. This may be because the hero has refused to return or because he is successfully blocked from returning with the boon. The hero loses his ego.

* 4. The Crossing of the Return Threshold

The hero returns to the world of common day and must accept it as real.

* 5. Master of the Two Worlds

Because of the boon or due to his experience, the hero may now perceive both the divine and human worlds.

* 6. Freedom to Live

The hero bestows the boon to his fellow man.

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— Wikipedia, on The Hero with a Thousand Faces

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2009.04.08 Wednesday