Protagonist

Character Role Analysis

The Hero

Campbell makes this one super-easy—you're not going to slap the "Antagonist" sticker on someone known as simply "The Hero."

The hero is the center of the story, the one called upon to act and gain the secrets of the universe as a result. We usually see things from his or her point of view and follow his or her adventures from the beginning (which may literally be the beginning of the universe) to the end (which, again, can be full-on Armageddon).

Mileage may vary depending on the specific story, but every story has a hero…and as the book subtly makes clear, we're all the heroes of our own story. Aww. Thanks, Campbell.