The Archetypal Hero

! Sometimes called “Classic Hero” – there are 3 types " Tragic Hero " Romantic Hero " Epic Hero*

Today we are going to focus on the Epic Hero.

Epic Hero

#  Their Story Sometimes Begins in medias res $  “in the middle of things”

#  Unusual Circumstances of Birth $  often born into danger or into royalty

#  Leaves Family and Lives with Others $  raised away from his true family or people

#  Traumatic Event Leads to Quest $  this one event changes the hero’s life forever $  causes him to embark on an epic journey where he must

fight an evil of some kind

There are many characteristics to an Epic Hero; they may not have all, but they will have most.

Epic Hero, continued…

#  Special Weapon $  only the hero can wield this weapon – can be a weapon or

a characteristic (strength, judgment, intellect, etc.)

#  Supernatural Help $  often has spiritual or otherworldly guidance

#  Feminine Intervention $  encounters women as “temptresses” who threaten the

completion of his Quest, but he does fall in love

#  Proves Himself on Quest $  performs feats while on the quest, but must often perform

one final task alone; once he returns “home,” he is a leader among his people

Epic Hero, the last slide

#  Journey and Unhealable Wound $  enters a hell-like area and suffers wounding from his

encounter with evil – goes where normal humans can’t and finds out some truth about himself

#  Atonement With Father $  redeems father’s evil deeds or reconciles with father

(over previous bad deeds done by hero)

#  Spiritual Apotheosis $  fancy term that means the hero is spiritually rewarded at

the end of his life

Informa(onthatdidnotcomefrommyownknowledgeandexperience–ortheknowledgeandexperienceofmyeager-

to-sharecolleagues–camefromthiswebsite:

Davis, Bryan M. "The Archetypal Hero in Literature, Religion, Movies, and Popular Culture." 11 Oct 1997: 12 pp. Stephen F. Austin University. 3 Dec 2005. <http://titan.sfasu.edu/~beenet/resources/heromain.html>.