The Hero's Journey is basically a quest for identity: finding out who you are and what you're capable of. The irony, Campbell observes in The Hero with a Thousand Faces (like the philosophical little leprechaun that he is), is that identity keeps changing and growing and evolving.
The heroes go out trying to figure out who they are and end up realizing that we're all connected, and identity is just another mask we wear when it suits us. The heroes succeed not because of who they are, but because they see the truth that everyone and everything is part of the same great big cosmic system.
Whoa, man; that's deep.
Questions About Identity
- How does the hero's identity change to match specific cultures? Is it just the surface details that change?
- What happens when the hero's identity becomes cemented and no longer changes?
- Do the hero's companions or opponents ever change their identities? How and why?
Chew on This
The hero's identity drives him forward, even though it's always changing.
The hero's identity is largely determined by the stages he is at on his journey, not from anything internal.