Character Analysis
I Need a Hero
Campbell doesn't mess around with specific characters. Why should he, when he's dealing with basically all of 'em?
By talking about the Hero (or Heroine), Campbell's talking about Ulysses. Scout Finch. Huck Finn. Holden Caulfield. King Arthur. Anne (of Green Gables fame).
Yeah, chances are good that if you're reading a book or watching a movie, the main character is going to fit into Campbell's hero template like Cinderella's little tootsie sliding into that glass slipper. Campbell's done his research and he's here to tell us what makes somebody a hero. (Hint: you don't have to actually slay a dragon/deliver the One Ring/save earth from an asteroid to be heroic.)
He has the figure wrapped up in a neat little bundle for us:
A hero ventures forth from the world of common day into a region of supernatural wonder: fabulous forces are there encountered and a decisive victory is won: the hero comes back from this mysterious adventure with the power to bestow boons on his fellow man. (28.2)
In other words, it's the person we're following most closely: the one whose story this is. There can be multiple heroes in the same story sometimes (think Han and Luke) but they're all following the same basic path.
And that path is pretty clearly mapped out.
The hero starts out in a normal world that may feel a little too small for him or her. A call will go out—something big and scary that needs doing—and one way or another, the hero's gonna be the one to step up.
He or she may not feel up to it sometimes, but there's power inside, and through a series of trials, that power is going to come right out (like it does with this woman, who we're pretty fond of).
I'm Holding Out for a Hero 'Til the End of the Night
Things get more interesting when the hero finally gains that power. Does he or she just hang out and remain in whatever paradise the quest has led him or her to? Sometimes they don't actually come back—the Buddha didn't, after all—but if they do, they take with them all of that knowledge and good vibes to cure whatever's ailing their old hometown.
Of course, sometimes the lessons don't take—we humans can be pretty thick when it comes to listening to wise people—and the hero needs to fall back a bit. But either way, he or she can move between both worlds freely. Not a bad perk for all that toil and challenge.
Those are the basics, and with some variation, you can use it as a basic blueprint for every story ever written.
The hero is the straw that stirs the drink: the guy (or gal) to kick the party off right and make sure they're sitting next to us every step of the way.
Everything else is details.