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THE WRITER'S JOURNEY - THE 12 STEPS OF THE HERO'S JOURNEY
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The morphology of stories has long been analyzed and everyone has come up with a different answer!  For examples see Aristotle's Poetics, or Ronald B Tobias's '20 Master Plots and how to build them', or Rudyard Kipling's 69 basic stories OR Northrop Frye's just 4 basic story plots!  (See the end for some examples)

In 1985 Christopher Vogler however realized that there is only ONE way - he developed his shortcut to Screenplay success when he realized that ANY good story for a film can be broken down into 12 steps...  Rather than concentrate on plots he sets out the key archetypal elements that every good screenplay MUST contain.  He set this out in a memo and to this day it is still the basis of all script appraisal at Disney and several other Studios (there is now a book by the title 'The Writer's Journey').

If you analyze ANY 'good' and successful screenplay you will find that it follows the steps that Volger has discovered.  It is based on our storytelling heritage, mainly from the west - the Norse and Celtic myths, the Classic myths, the Fairy Tales and so on.  All these stories can be shown to contain the same 'mono-myth' - The Hero's Journey...  What follows below is the outline of this concept, for fuller details get the book...


[The examples given in [] are from 'Star Wars'...]

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THE 12 STEPS OF THE HERO'S JOURNEY
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1   THE ORDINARY WORLD
    The Hero is in some way incomplete or unsatisfied
    
        [Restless teenager Luke Skywalker is bored with life on the remote farm
        with his uncle and aunt.  His parents are presumed dead and he feels 
        incomplete...]

2   THE CALL TO ADVENTURE
    The Hero gets the call to do something (adventure/quest/etc)
    
        [Luke stumbles upon Princess Leia's plea for help in droid R2D2, 
        it is addressed to Obi-Wan Kenobi...]

3   THE REFUSAL OF THE CALL
    The Hero initially refuses the call
    
        [Luke finds Obi-Wan but refuses the challenge, saying his uncle and 
        aunt need him...]

4   THE MEETING OF THE MENTOR
    The Hero meets the Mentor who encourages him to accept the call, 
    and helps him prepare for the journey/trials ahead
    
        [Luke puts himself in Obi-Wan's hands and learns of the Force...]

5   THE CROSSING OF THE FIRST THRESHOLD
    The Hero commits to going into a world where other rules apply
    
        [Luke's uncle and aunt are killed by Imperial Troops and he commits to 
        take up the challenge...]

6   THE TESTS, ALLIES & ENEMIES
    The Hero has to pass Tests of skill and endurance, meets new Allies and 
    battles with Enemies - in short he has 'adventures'
    
        [Luke and Obi-Wan in the 'alien' spaceport bar meet Han Solo and the 
        Wookie, and make an enemy of Jabba the Hut, adventures come thick and 
        fast...]

7   THE APPROACH TO THE INMOST CAVE
    At last the Hero approaches the place of greatest danger, where what he 
    seeks is to be found
    
        [Luke & Co's adventures culminate in the attempt to free Leia from the 
        Deathstar...]

8   THE SUPREME ORDEAL
    The Hero must undergo his greatest test(s) if he is to get what he seeks
    
        [Luke & Co's adventures end with near death in the garbage...]

9   THE REWARD (SEIZING THE SWORD)
    The Hero gets what he seeks, but...
    
        [Luke & Co save Leia & escape with the vital information for the 
        rebels, BUT Obi-Wan is sacrificed...]

10  THE ROAD BACK
    The Enemies regroup and threaten the safe return of the Hero
    
        [Just as it seems to be getting better it gets worse - the Deathstar 
        is moving into range and will destroy the rebels, unless...]

11  THE RESURRECTION
    The Hero must face an ordeal of death and rebirth
    
        [Luke finally trusts the Force and destroys the Deathstar, but he 
        looses a part of his old self in doing this...]

12  THE RETURN WITH THE ELIXIR
    The transformed Hero returns to the 'ordinary' world with the 'treasure' 
    (lesson learned/the girl/real treasure/etc)
    
        [Luke & Co are decorated as heroes - Luke has the reward of the Force 
        and his new self-knowledge...]


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These archetypes need not be the usual clichˇs (which are often best avoided) - YOU decide - for example the 'Mentor' need not be the classic wise old man (like Obi-Wan), but it could be several people or even an object or perhaps a piece of good advice.  The 'Call to Adventure' can also be one of many things - e.g. that accidental meeting as in 'Strangers on a Train', that moment of teenage passion as in 'Romeo & Juliet', or that dire warning as in 'Julius Caesar'...  Similarly the 'Supreme Ordeal' can be set anywhere - e.g. from that drill square in 'An Officer and a Gentleman', to that garbage hold of 'Star Wars'. 

The Hero MUST 'die' and be 'reborn' - this is the basis of the very earliest myths and even shows up in religion...  In Star Wars Luke is caught by 'it' in the garbage and is dragged under into the sewage - we think he's dead ... then ... he reappears as if reborn...


REMEMBER this is NOT a Cook Book, it's best thought of as a hidden Route Map ... YOU still need to come up with the good storyline that is the basis ...  Add in the 3 Act structure, Turning Points, et al AND use the ideas to avoid the clichˇs and make your story more powerful.


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EXAMPLES OF SOME OTHER STORY TYPE ANALYSES ...
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R A Blum after Lewis Herman)

'The "Nine" Plots' (actually there's ten!)
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1   LOVE
    Boys meets Girl, Boy looses Girl, Boy gets Girl back...
    
2   SUCCESS
    Character wants to succeed at all costs...
    
3   CINDERELLA
    Ugly duckling becomes perfect...
    
4   TRIANGLE
    Three characters in a romantic tangle...

5   RETURN
    Long lost lover/father/husband/etc. returns...

6   VENGEANCE
    Character seeks revenge for a wrong doing...

7   CONVERSION
    Bad guy turns good (or vice versa)...
    
8   SACRIFICE
    Main Character sacrifices their own good to help others...
    
9   FAMILY
    The inter-relationship of a group of characters (need not be 'related') 
    in a single place or situation - e.g. Plane, Prison, Farm, Ship...
    
9A  JEOPARDY
    Life and Death situation - survival and prowess...

These are NOT mutually exclusive and can be mixed and matched in the same story, BUT one MUST be the dominant plot...
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The Functions of Vladimir Propp
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(a sort of expanded version of the 12 steps of 'The Writer's Journey'...)

1   INITIAL SITUATION
    The 'Hero' and his 'Family' are introduced

2   ABSENTATION
    A 'Family' member has to leave 'Home'

3   INTERDICTION
    The 'Hero' is given a warning, or is told not to do something

4   VIOLATION
    The 'Hero' ignores this 'Interdiction'

5   RECONNAISSANCE
    The 'Villain' attempts to gain information/advantage

6   DELIVERY
    The 'Villain' receives information on his intended 'Victim'

7   TRICKERY
    The 'Villain' attempts to deceive the 'Victim'

8   COMPLICITY
    The 'Victim' fails to see the deception and so helps the 'Villain'

9   VILLAINY
    The 'Villain' hurts a member of the 'Family'

10  LACK
    One 'Family' member lacks, or needs something

11  MEDIATION
    The 'Misfortune' is now known and the 'Hero' is 'dispatched'

12  COUNTERACTION
    The 'Seekers' agree to decide their 'Counteraction' to this 'Misfortune'

13  DEPARTURE
    The 'Hero' leaves 'Home'

14  THE FIRST FUNCTION OF DONOR
    The 'Hero' is 'Tested', he receives 'Helper' OR 'Magic Agent' from
    the 'Donor'

15  HERO'S REACTION
    The 'Hero' reacts to the actions of the 'Donor'

16  RECEIPT OF MAGIC AGENT
    The 'Hero' acquires the use of a 'Magic Agent'

17  SPATIAL TRANSFERENCE
    The 'Hero' is led to the object of his search

18  STRUGGLE
    The 'Hero' and the 'Villain' are in direct combat 

19  BRANDING
    The 'Hero' is 'branded' (changed in some noticeable way)

20  VICTORY
    The 'Villain' is defeated in the struggle

21  LIQUIDATION
    The initial 'Misfortune' or 'Lack' is liquidated/resolved

22  RETURN
    The 'hero' returns 'Home', BUT before he can arrive...

23  PURSUIT
    There is a chase - the 'Hero' is pursued

24  RESCUE
    The 'Hero' is somehow 'rescued' from the 'Pursuit'

25  UNRECOGNIZED ARRIVAL
    The 'Hero' arrives 'Home' (or elsewhere) but is not recognized

26  UNFOUNDED CLAIM
    A 'False Hero' presents an unfounded claim

27  DIFFICULT TASK
    The 'Hero' is set a 'difficult task'

28  SOLUTION
    The 'difficult task' is resolved

29  RECOGNITION
    The 'Hero' is finally recognized

30  EXPOSURE
    The 'False Hero' is exposed

31  TRANSFIGURATION
    The 'Hero' is given a 'new look'

32  PUNISHMENT
    The 'Wicked' are punished


Note the following ...

THE CHARACTERS          THEIR ACTIONS

HERO                    Fights the Villain AND/OR seeks for something
VILLAIN                 Fights the Hero
DONOR                   Gives a Magical Agent to the Hero
HELPER                  Helps the Hero in quest, or to solve a difficult task
PRINCESS                The sought after person (can be any gender)
FATHER OF PRINCESS      Assigns a difficult task for the Hero
DISPATCHER              Sends the Hero on a mission/quest
FALSE HERO              Falsely claims to be the Hero but is unmasked

A Character can be just One of these, OR they can be a combination of several of these characters/traits/roles.

Some of the stages in the 32 'functions' might be merely cursory incidents, but they will ALL occur in traditional Fairy Tales, and will also be found in most dramatic storytelling in some form or another...


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TIG Spring 1998
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