• Separation: Hero dragged from the comforts of home to experience growth and change.

• The Call: realization of imbalance or injustice in the hero’s life that invites him into the adventure, the unknown. The Call – reject or go ---struggle ---see Moses or Odysseys

• Threshold crossing – odd, dangerous place- the adventure begins stepping into the unknown.

• Tasks to undertake to enter adulthood or larger view –proves self through struggles

• Struggle between father and son

• Mentors and Wizards – Philosophical guidance and magical

powers / can appear in unusual shape or size

• Lessons to learn: morality, religious, physical

• Losses – the “help” leaves or dies – mentor etc.

• Strong Women – In mythology

• Nurturing Earth Mother - - compassion and love

• Done in Groups – work with flaws (odd team)

• Han Solo – self reliance depends on himself; Wild West in the

future

• Warrior and the lover (bad boy) - - learns to be more

whole (friendship)

• Side Kicks – comic relief –CP30 / R2D2 (slap stick) --comment

on the action / scène

• obstacles/difficult experiences that test the hero. The

hero emerges stronger from each challenge.

• Jaba = Dragon (hold princess hostage)

• Hero must be tested by various monsters –Greek myth

• Hero must have villain (good vs. evil)

• Talisman: Just when things are at their worst, help in the

form of a supernatural gift (the force)

• Darth Vader – there is an excitement to join the dark side/ Falls

fear leads to anger leads to suffering (Tragedy) -- impatient

for Power

• Fall – Garden of Eden --- temptation

• Faust –sell soul to devil for power

• Lucifer – great angel who falls - -burns

• Becomes mechanical monster – loses humanity (Frankenstein)

• Fall of Republic and rise of Dictator

• (Hitler etc. - - emergency power during crisis)

• Storm Trooper = Hitler’s troops. Masks – lost humanity.

• Empire sterile and lifeless (no women – life giving)

• Will we live for the machines or for humanity?

• The abyss: journey to the underworld to slay the “dragon”

• Transformation: death and rebirth (literal or symbolic)

• Reconciliation with the father

• Redemption – offers himself to bring salvation to his father

• Return / sharing the gifts: offers wisdom gained to community.

• Power to the people to bring balance to the universe

• The seven classic plots• 1. man vs. nature

• 2. man vs. man

• 3. man vs. the environment

• 4. man vs. machine/technology

• 5. man vs. the supernatural

• 6. man vs. self

• 7. man vs. God/religion

The classic story (conflict)

• overcoming the monster -literal or figurative- (which basically can be any and/or every story...), rags to riches, the quest, voyage and return, comedy, tragedy, rebirth.

•

• Three types of endings

• Happy ending

• Unhappy ending

• Ambiguous: this "literary plot" is one that does not hinge upon

decision, but fate;

• the critical event takes place at the beginning of the story

rather than the end.

• What follows from that event is inevitable, often tragedy. (the

classical Greek notion of tragedy, which is that such events are

fated and inexorable.)

• Ronald B. Tobias

• Quest

• Adventure

• Pursuit

• Rescue

• Escape

• Revenge

• The Riddle

• Rivalry

• Underdog

• Temptation

• Metamorphosis

• Transformation

• Maturation

• Love

• Forbidden Love

• Sacrifice

• Discovery

• Wretched Excess

• Ascension

• Descension.

• Quest

• The hero searches for something, someone, or somewhere.

• 2. Adventure

• The protagonist goes on an adventure / action for action's sake.

• 3. Pursuit

• In this plot, the focus is on chase / The pursued person may be caught or may escape.

• 4. Rescue

• In the rescue, somebody is captured, who must be released by the hero or heroic party.

• 5. Escape

• In a kind of reversal of the rescue, a person must escape, perhaps with little help from others.

• 6. Revenge

• In the revenge plot, a wronged person seeks retribution

against the person or organization which has betrayed or

otherwise harmed them or loved ones, physically or

emotionally. This plot depends on moral outrage for

gaining sympathy from the audience.

• 7. The Riddle

• The riddle plot entertains the audience and challenges

them to find the solution before the hero, who steadily

and carefully uncovers clues and hence the final solution.

• 8. Rivalry

• In rivalry, two people or groups are set as competitors

that may be good hearted or as bitter enemies.

• 9. Underdog

• The underdog plot is similar to rivalry, but where one

person (usually the hero) has less advantage and might

normally be expected to lose.

• 10. Temptation

• In the temptation plot, a person is tempted by something

that, if taken, would somehow diminish them, often

morally. Their battle is thus internal, fighting against their

inner voices which tell them to succumb.

• Metamorphosis

• the protagonist is physically transformed, perhaps into beast or

perhaps into some spiritual or alien form.

• 12. Transformation

• The transformation plot leads to change of a person in some

way/the person learns and usually becomes something better.

• 13. Maturation

• The maturation plot is a special form of transformation, in which

a person grows up / steps into adulthood

• 14. Love

• The love story is a perennial tale of lovers finding one another/ Along the way, they become separated in some way, but eventually come together in a final joyous reunion.

• 15. Forbidden Love

• The story of forbidden love happens when lovers are breaking some social rules/different social classes, adultery, etc.

• 16. Sacrifice

• someone gives much more than most people would give. The person may not start with the intent of personal sacrifice and may thus be an unintentional hero, thus emphasizing the heroic nature of the choice and act.

• 17. Discovery

• The discovery plot is strongly focused on the character of the hero who

discovers something great or terrible and hence must make a difficult choice.

• 18. Wretched Excess

• In stories of wretched excess, the protagonist goes beyond normally

accepted behavior as the world looks on, horrified (i.e., alcoholism)

• 19. Ascension

• In the ascension plot, the protagonist starts in the virtual gutter, as a sinner of

some kind. The plot then shows their ascension to becoming a better person;

thus, they achieve deserved heroic status.

• 20.” Descension”

• In the opposite to ascension, a person of initially high standing descends to

the gutter