Campbell's "Hero's Journey"
How relevant do you think traditional storytelling techniques are to business?
I was reading an article about the movie "Aliens" and it was talking about James Cameron's use of the 'hero's journey'.
The Hero's Journey is a story arc described by Joseph Campbell that shows us how the transformation happens.
(Side note: 'story arc' might be an oversimplification... he delves into how this represents a deep archetype of the human spirit)
Here's a rough summary of the journey:
— It starts with the departure from the hero's normal life when a major change happens.
— The initiation is where they encounter lots of difficulties, struggle with the challenge, and go through a transformation that leads to them becoming who they were always meant to be.
— The end is where, having conquered the demons (inner and outer), they return to their "normal" life a changed person.
Campbell breaks it down into about 17 different stages (depends which analysis you read).
They include things like "Road of Trials," "Atonement of the Father" and "Master of Two Worlds."
I feel like these might be a bit grandiose for the kind of stories that we are encouraged to share online by authors and speakers worldwide.
Most stories follow this framework roughly... you're probably familiar with them:
1) Things were shit
2) Then I worked really hard
3) And now things are great
#buymystuff
People resonate with these stories because they follow the arc we have learned since we were little.
There's nothing wrong with them at all.
I'm simply wondering whether it would be worth putting in a little extra effort and turning them into a Hero's Journey... full-on Campbell style.
I am overthinking it?
Is it too much?
Or would it add a deeper layer to marketing?
-
p.s. If you want a deeper exploration of the 17 stages of the journey... I recommend you google it and read a few different interpretations.
p.p.s. If you're a fan of "Aliens" like me... you can find the article on Medium where they discuss why Ripley's daughter had to die.