Archetypes 101

Therese here. Juliet Marillier emailed me some time ago to let me know about today’s guest. I’m pleased to say she’s here with us today–and tomorrow–for a special series. Kim Hudson is the author of The Virgin’s Promise–an alternative story structure to Joseph Campbell’s Jungian-based “The Hero’s Journey,” and one that Kim believes allows for a more authentic female experience. From her bio:

I grew up in the Yukon, as a Hero’s daughter with a Cinderella Complex. I spend the first half of my career exploring my masculine side, first as a field geologist and later as a federal land claims negotiator. Exploring my feminine side became important as I raised my two daughters. This lead me to study Writing for Film and Television at Vancouver Film School, and take courses on mythology, feminism and psychology including a Jungian Odyssey in Switzerland. This theory was developed by closely observing the archetypal expressions that are all around us in movies, music, television, advertisements and stories of personal growth, including my own. The Virgin’s Promise is my first book.

Today, Kim would like to introduce us to archetypes. Enjoy!

Archetypes 101

Have you ever noticed that every culture known on the planet has stories?  The truly amazing thing is the common structures in these stories.  Many believe (Plato, Carl Jung, Robert McKee, Northrop Frye, need I say more?) this is because we are all born with archetypes in our unconscious which we call upon whenever we are creative.  They infuse things with meaning and direction.

The language of archetypes is symbols.  This explains why the mantra “show don’t  tell” is so powerful.  Archetypes are symbols of the type of growth humans are challenged to undertake.  They are symbols with a journey.

Jung suggested archetypes exist in our collective unconscious as our instinct for growth.  Complexes are the mechanism to put on the brakes and keep you from repeating situations that frankly, didn’t go so well for you.  Archetypes are the pull forward towards positive transformations.

Since the time of Joseph Campbell we have had a twelve beat structure for the self-sacrificing journey of the Hero (see Vogler THE WRITER’S JOURNEY).  The theory was that all stories from all time followed this structure.  THE VIRGIN’S PROMISE describes a second structure which is the feminine half of the journey to take up your power as an individual through self-fulfillment.

I’m going to challenge Campbell even further and suggest that there are at least six archetypal journeys.  As a minimum there is a beginning, a middle and an end:  stories of taking up your power, using your power with others, and releasing your power to  the cosmos.  Stated another way, these are stories of forming a relationship with yourself, a relationship with others and seeing your place in the grander scheme of life. Each of these has a masculine and a feminine journey.   And nature hasn’t left us hanging, without a clue as to how to go on these journeys.  We are all born with archetypes that emerge through storytelling and guide the way.

As humans we are drawn to these stories, repeatedly.  We experience a feeling of elation or resonance, some would say an aha moment, when we come into contact with an archetype.  I get chills when I’m in the presence of an archetype.  This is good news for writers.

Here are the beats of The Virgin which you can look for in any movie about following your dream or being true to yourself.  Male or female makes no difference.  I like examples like AVATAR, PRECIOUS, STRICTLY BALLROOM, FIGHT CLUB, ABOUT A BOY, and BEND IT LIKE BECKHAM.

1. Dependent World
2. Price of Conformity
3. Opportunity to Shine
4. Dress the Part
5. Secret World
6. No Longer Fits Her world
7. Caught shining
8. Gives Up What Kept Her Stuck
9. Kingdom in Chaos
10. Wanders in the Wilderness
11. Chooses Her Light
12. The Re-ordering
13. The Kingdom is Brighter

The order can be re-arranged and some beats can be explored more deeply or repeatedly while others are covered in a line of dialogue, or a look.  The range of ways these beats can be represented is infinite.

As writers it is beneficial to beat a pathway to our archetypal resources and evoke them regularly.  The more we bring them from our unconscious to our conscious the more available they are.  Here are a few tips on how to do that:

• Do stream of consciousness writing when you first awaken and you are closest to your unconscious.
• Use your memory – the archetypal elements are naturally attractive and therefore easiest to remember.  If you can’t repeat your storyline clearly to a friend, you may be weak in archetypal elements.
• Practice identifying the archetypal beats of the hero and the Virgin.  The more often you recognize them in stories, the more available they are as a writing tool.

Enjoy the journey!

Readers, please come back tomorrow for Kim’s second post with us: Virgins and Heroes, where you’ll learn more about the steps involved in each approach.

Guest

Many thanks to today’s guest.

You can read more WU guest posts by visiting this link.