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Kaleb Morris Ms. Corey Haynes Honors English 9 26 March 2014 The Heros Quest: How The Heros Quest Can Be Found in Our Lives

The Heros Quest is often seen as something out of a fantasy, but the truth is, its not. The Heros Quest is a journey that can be directly related to our lives, although that may not mean we slay dragons, or battle monsters, its still the same. A hero doesnt have to be some super-human with amazing superpowers, as a matter of fact, therere regular people that do heroic things every day! The Heros Quest doesnt have to be all about killing a bunch of monsters, and saving the world, its about overcoming the obstacles along the way. It all starts with status quo, this is where our hero begins, and eventually end (Baldwin). Our hero is usually nothing but an average person in the beginning, but they are soon to become something greater. So, if our hero starts out as nothing more than an average human being, whats to say there isnt a hero in all of us? The Heros Quest has seventeen stages in total (Wikipedia). Only eleven of these stages are often used in many books, and movies you may love. These eleven stages are: call to adventure, assistance, departure, trials, approach, crisis, treasure, result, return, new life, and resolution (Winkler). If you look at these stages closely, you can see them in many books, movies, and most importantly your own life. If you still dont believe that The Heros Quest is a journey that we depart on every day, then you should take a closer look at your life. If youve ever had that feeling of connection when reading a book or watching a movie, then its most likely that youre making a connection between your life, and the heros. Most people have at

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least one story that they can make a connection to, and in a way, overcome their obstacles along with the hero. The first stage of The Heros Quest is the call to adventure. Our hero receives a message that kick starts the story, this can be in the form of a person, an event, or an item, and is sent out on their journey. Therere are time when the hero may refuse to go, due to some duty or obligation, but they often accept this call to adventure. We receive these messages every day; to go out, and try something new. An example of this could be a friend inviting you to a bonfire, or a teacher recommending you for a new class. In the end, the call to adventure is just the invitation, the real journey has yet to come (Boots). The second stage is assistance. This is the point in our story when the hero needs a little help, and guidance. This assistance is often found in the form of someone older, and wiser than the hero. We receive guidance from family, friends, peers, and even our teachers or co-workers. When we set out to do something new, and dont know what to do, theres most likely someone there to guide you. So, yeah we dont get help from some old, wise person, but were provided with guidance throughout our entire lives. Next comes the third stage, departure. This is when the actual journey begins, and our hero leaves the comfort of their ordinary world, and cross over to a special world. This can happen in a number of ways, maybe our hero enters a dark chasm, or cave, or perhaps they cross over into some sort of spiritual world. Now ask yourself, Do I leave my comfort zone, and cross over into special world? and I know what youre thinking, but just hear me out. We leave our comfort zones each day in order to try something new, Joseph Campbell once said, In the

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cave you fear to enter holds the treasure you see this quote states that whatever it is that you fear to do, is where youll find your greatest desires (J. Campbell). Then theres the fourth stage, trials. This is where our hero will have to overcome an obstacle, this could be in the form of some monster, a riddle, or even a trap. If he cant overcome these obstacles, then he wont be able to continue on his journey, and most likely dies as a result. Im sure we can all relate to this stage in The Heros Quest; we may not have to solve a riddle, destroy a monster, or even escape a trap, but we all encounter obstacles that we must overcome in order to continue on in our lives. This is often the point in our lives where we experience some sort of delay, or setback. Now we have the fifth stage, which is usually the Big Bang of the story, approach. This is the stage where our hero faces their biggest challenge, and his worst fear, everything our hero has done up until now was in preparation for this moment. This is usually the reason we were afraid to set out on our journey in the first place, it is often the biggest challenge that we must overcome. Now this doesnt mean we have to defeat some creature that can only be found in fantasies. Although the good-guy is always supposed to win, it doesnt just happen at the snap of a finger. Here we have the sixth, and possibly the most tragic stage in The Heros Quest, crisis. In this stage our hero enters their darkest hour, and is usually nearly defeated or even dies. As a result, they may gain some newfound power or is even reborn, and defeats their foe. I know that you may be thinking that there is no connection between you, and our hero, but there is. Were not perfect, and sometimes we fail, but the important thing is that we dont give up, just like our hero.

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Now we enter the seventh stage, treasure. This is where our hero receives their prize, the whole reason for embarking on this journey, and gains something more. Now this treasure may not be some greater power for us, but it could be many things like love, new skills, new friends, and new experiences. This treasure could even be the satisfaction of overcoming our fear. The lesson for you to learn, is that hard work pays off. Next comes the eighth stage, result. This part of the journey can occur in many different ways depending on the story, an example could be that all the creatures, and monsters bow down to the hero or might even try to kill them. This is a bit harder to relate to our everyday lives, but you could use the example of the recognition among your peers for overcoming all the obstacles along your journey. Its usually the side effect of obtaining your treasure that will dictate the result. But no matter what the result, as long as youve obtained the treasure that youve sought, your journey is most likely a success. The ninth stage is the return. Our hero as obtained their prize, and their journey is coming to a close. So at this point it is time to return to their world. For us ordinary people, this means that its time for us to return to our comfort zone, and enjoy our prize. This is usually the point in which the journey ends, and the reflection begins. So, both we, and our hero re-enter our ordinary world. Now that our hero has returned, it is time for the tenth stage, new life. This is a point where our hero reflects on their journey, and all their experiences. It is the point of realization for our hero, it is where our hero gains a new perspective of life, and begin their new life. We can relate to this easily, think of it like youve just had the party of your life, now that its over

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you have the time to reflect on the experience. It may change your whole entire life, and give you a new perspective as to how you view the world. This is the eleventh as well as the last stage in our journey, resolution. Now this is the part where everything comes together, and our story starts to reach its climax. For us, it is the part where we rest, and regain our strength. It is the point where we wait for the ending of our little journey, and enjoy the experiences weve had. Most importantly this is where we finish off our story. Our journey is over, but that doesnt mean the whole story is finished. The Heros Quest is a never-ending cycle in which we embark on new adventures every day. So that means were back at square one, status quo, where it all began. Only this time, its on an all new level, because once youre a hero, nothings the same. So now do you finally realize how theres a hero inside each, and every single one of us? We set out on a new adventure every day, and start the cycle all over again. We face our biggest fears, and overcome our greatest challenges. All the while gaining new experiences, and obtaining new skills that help to improve our lives. Then we return to our comfort zone to rest, and reflect. And then we do it all over again; The Heros Quest is the journey of a hero, a journey for the hero inside us all.

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Works Cited
Baldwin, Ted. FrankandStacy. 19 March 2014. http://www.frankandstacy.net/englishahs/assets/images/heromythcycle.gif. 19 March 2014. Boots, Glove and. YouTube. 18 June 2013. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yZxs_jGN7Pg#t=166. 19 March 2014. Campbell, Joseph. AUBREY.EICHER. 11 February 2014. http://aubreyeicher.wordpress.com/2014/02/11/mental-toughness/. 19 March 2014. Campbell, Noah. Prezi. 17 December 2013. http://prezi.com/gp3c2f2b0jl5/the-monomyth-cycle/. 20 March 2014. Milum, Lynne. MythicHero. 1 February 2003. http://mythichero.com/what_is_mythology.html. 20 March 2014. tvtropes. tvtropes. 20 March 2014. http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/TheHerosJourney. 20 March 2014. Vogler, Christopher. calvarydevoted. 1 June 2003. http://calvarydevoted.org/Public/studies/film/stagesof-the-hero.pdf. 20 March 2014. Wikipedia. WIKIPEDIA. 18 March 2014. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monomyth. 19 March 2014. Winkler, Mathew. YouTube. 12 December 2012. http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=Hhk4N9A0oCA. 20 March 2014. YourDictionary. YourDictionary. 21 March 2014. http://examples.yourdictionary.com/examples/examples-of-each-stage-of-a-hero-sjourney.html. 20 March 2014.