You've def heard of "The Hero's Journey", the narrative structure dating back to Homer's Odyssey in 7th ce BC.
A great way to learn the framework is comparing scene-by-scene images from 2 classic films of the story type: Star Wars + The Matrix. #MayThe4th
Here's a breakdown🧵
0/ The "Hero's Journey" was coined by Joseph Campbell, an American literary prof.
He studied ancient myths and found many shared a similar character arc (AKA the "monomyth").
It follows 12 stages, with a hero venturing from an "ordinary world" to a "special world" and back.
1/ Ordinary world
The hero's normal life before the adventure begins:
◻️ Luke Skywalker lives on a farm in Tatooine
◻️ Neo is a corporate slave in The Matrix
2/ Call to adventure
The hero is faced with an event, conflict, problem, or challenge that starts the adventure:
◻️ R2D2 flashes a hologram of Princess Leia asking Obi-Wan for help
◻️ Neo is sent a message to "follow the white rabbit"
3/ Refusal of the call
The hero refuses the adventure because of hesitation, fears, insecurity or other:
◻️ Luke tells Obi-Wan he has to stay on Tatooine farm to help his aunt and uncle
◻️ When agents come to his office, Neo can escape by climbing out a window (but wimps out)
4/ Meeting the mentor
The hero encounters a mentor that can give them advice, wisdom, information, or items that preps them for journey:
◻️ Luke's aunt and uncle murdered by stormtroopers, he agrees to have Obi-wan train him
◻️ Neo meets Morpheus, who soon trains him
5/ Crossing the threshold
The hero leaves the ordinary world for the first time and crosses the threshold into adventure:
◻️ Luke follows Obi-wan to the Mos Eisley spaceport (a "wretched hive of scum and villainy", Luke is no longer safe)
◻️ Neo takes red pill and leaves Matrix
6/ Test, Allies, Enemies
The hero learns the rules of the new world and endures tests, meets friends, and confronts enemies:
◻️ Luke meets Han Solo / Chewy, starts journey
◻️ Neo meets the team on the Nebuchadnezzar Ship, learns about the "real world"
7/ The Approach
The initial plan to take on the central conflict begins, but setbacks occur that cause the hero to try a new approach:
◻️ Luke to meet Rebels on Alderaan, but the planet is destroyed
◻️ Neo meets The Oracle, who says he's *not* The One
8/ The Ordeal
Things go wrong and a new conflict is introduced, incl. a potential life or death situation:
◻️ Luke and Co. save Leia but Obi-Wan sacrifices himself to Vader
◻️ Morpheus is abducted during an ambush. Neo and Trinity return to save him.
9/ Seizing the Sword
After surviving The Ordeal, the hero gains a reward (knowledge, physical item) to take on to the biggest conflict:
◻️ Luke saves Princess Leia and has Death Star plans
◻️ Neo saves Morpheus and has confidence he is The One after fighting Agent Smith
10/ The Road Back
The hero sees the light at the end of the tunnel, but they are about to face even more tests and challenges:
◻️ Luke and Co. bring Death Star plans to rebel base and are chased by the Empire
◻️ Cypher betrays team and Neo is unable to exit The Matrix
11/ The climax.
The hero faces a final test, using everything they have learned to prevail:
◻️ Luke, Co. and rebels take on the Death Star (Luke uses the force to aim the kill shot)
◻️ Neo is killed by agents, resurrected by Trinity..he's The One and stops bullets
12/ Return With Elixir
The hero brings their knowledge or the “elixir” back to the ordinary world.
◻️Luke is a f*cking Jedi and gets a fat medal for it
◻️Neo can f*cking fly, is The One and is gonna cause some havoc in The Matrix
13/ Star Wars' creator George Lucas credits "The Hero's Journey" for improving his original script.
Prior to applying the framework, Star Wars was "a Saturday morning space movie" according to composer John Williams.
Lucas went on his hero's journey, too (naming hero "Luke").
14/ If you enjoyed that, I write interesting threads like this 1-2x a week.
Follow @TrungTPhan to see them in your feed.
Here's another one you may enjoy:
15/ PS. Check out my Saturday newsletter too: trungtphan.com/subscribe/
(And here's a great Star Wars meme)
Share this Scrolly Tale with your friends.
A Scrolly Tale is a new way to read Twitter threads with a more visually immersive experience.
Discover more beautiful Scrolly Tales like this.