I am happy to post my favorite movie of all time and share my take on Joseph Campbell's hero has a thousand faces.
Below is the link "Hero has a thousand faces on Lord of the Rings"
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The Hero has a Thousand Faces
"LORD OF THE RINGS"
Hero: Frodo Baggins
Synopsis: Set in the fictional world of Middle-earth, the films follow the hobbit as he and a Fellowship embark on a quest to destroy the One Ring, and thus ensure the destruction of its maker, the Dark Lord Sauron. An ancient Ring thought lost for centuries has been found, and through a strange twist in fate has been given to a small Hobbit named Frodo. When Gandalf discovers the Ring is in fact the One Ring of the Dark Lord Sauron, Frodo must make an epic quest to the Cracks of Doom in order to destroy it! However he does not go alone. He is joined by Gandalf, Legolas the elf, Gimli the Dwarf, Aragorn, Boromir and his three Hobbit friends Merry, Pippin and Samwise. Through mountains, snow, darkness, forests, rivers and plains, facing evil and danger at every corner the Fellowship of the Ring must go. Their quest to destroy the One Ring is the only hope for the end of the Dark Lords reign!
Moral of the Movie: The ring symbolizes power; there were few people in the story that can withstand the call of the ring. Majority of the characters were having a hard time fighting the call of the ring or power. The ring consumes their mind to be evil. Only Frodo was strong enough to control the ring. Just like in real life, weak men get easily corrupted with temptation and power. A pure heart and mind can endure the call of evil.
1) THE HERO IS INTRODUCED IN HIS ORDINARY WORLD.
Hero: Frodo Baggins (Movie), the ring bearer
The story begins in the Shire, where our hero, the Hobbit Frodo Baggins lives. Shire is settled exclusively by hobbits. In his writings, Tolkien depicted Frodo and the hobbits as fond of an unadventurous, bucolic and simple life of farming, eating, and socializing, although capable of defending their homes courageously if the need arises. They would enjoy six meals a day, if they could get them. They were often described as enjoying simple food, though this seems to be of an Oxfordshire style, such as cake, bread, meat, potatoes, ale and tea. They claim to have invented the art of smoking pipe-weed, and according to The Hobbit and The Return of The King it can be found all over Middle-earth. Frodo lived a very happy and simple life. Frodo has a pure heart.
2) THE CALL TO ADVENTURE.
Frodo inherits the Ring from Bilbo Baggins, his cousin] and guardian. Neither is aware of its origin and nature, but Gandalf the Grey, a wizard and old friend of Bilbo, suspects the Ring's identity. When he becomes certain, he strongly advises Frodo to take it away from the Shire. Sauron must not have the ring.
Archetype HERALD: Gandalf
Archetype Shadows: Sauron
3) THE HERO IS RELUCTANT AT FIRST.
Frodo has never been away from Shire so he was reluctant at first to take the responsibility of the ring bearer. There was fear of the unknown. Should he venture into the unknown? When Gandalf explain the danger of the ring Frodo refused to take the ring.
4) THE HERO IS ENCOURAGED BY THE WISE OLD MAN OR WOMAN.
Throughout the trilogy Frodo continues to gather his guides until they are all gathered together in the Fellowship.
Gandalf was the wise old man who guided and encourages Frodo to take on the dangerous but important task of destroying the Ring of Sauron. Gandalf believe that this particular task came to Frodo for a reason. Although Frodo is small, Gandalf knew that the purity of Frodo's heart can withstand the power of the ring.
Archetype Mentors: Gandalf, Galadriel
5) THE HERO PASSES THE FIRST THRESHOLD.
Frodo and his friends run from the Nazgûls and arrive in Bree, where they meet a mysterious character at the Prancing Pony. Frodo gets stabbed with a Morgul-blade and starts turning into a Nazgûl. He succumbs to the transformation, but the Elves save him in time
Archetype THRESHOLD GUARDIANS: Nazgûls
6) THE HERO ENCOUNTERS TESTS AND HELPERS.
Frodo meets the Fellowship of the Ring namely Gandalf, Aragorn, Legolas, Gimli, Boromir and his 3 hobbits friends Sam, Merry and Pippin. The fellowship will help Frodo with his mission. The main trials are every time Frodo struggles to not put on The Ring. There are also tests of trust throughout the movies. Frodo was assisted by Sam and Gollum on the final journey to Mordor. Frodo did not expect to like Gollum and pitied him for what has happen to him. His best friend Sam refused to leave him to take the journey.
Archetype TRICKSTERS: Sam, Merry, Pippin, Aragorn, Legolas, Gimli, Boromir
7) THE HERO REACHES THE INNERMOST CAVE/ BELLY OF THE WHALE
Frodo was fooled by Gollum no to trust Sam. Gollum took Frodo in a very dangerous path. Frodo, not knowing that the cave is a trap, courageously battled Shellob (Giant Spider).
8.) ATONEMENT WITH THE FATHER
Frodo almost gave up because of the long, dangerous and tiring journey to destroy the ring but he gets a sudden boost of courage and hope from Galadriel. Her powerful lines where " [he remembers her words to him] And for you, Frodo Baggins, I give you the light of Earendil our most beloved star. May it be a light to you in dark places when all other lights go out? This task was appointed to you, Frodo of the Shire. If you do not find a way, no one will.
9. APOTHEOSIS
Although Frodo never throws the ring into the mountain, the ring falls along with Gollum.
10. ULTIMATE BOON
Both the Eye of Sauron and the Ring are destroyed.
11. RETURN THRESHOLD
Frodo returns to The Shire and felt a completely different. For the first time he understood that he no longer wants to live in shire. He is now more curious and change. The adventure changes him.
12. MASTER OF TWO WORLDS
Frodo gets on a boat with Bilbo and Gandalf to go to The Undying Lands. He sails for a new adventure.
I. Significance of the movie Lord of the Ring to my life
I was raised by a father who loved movies and stories. My dad was a movie writer and he usually watched interesting movies for inspiration on his writings. I was his movie sidekick. After every movie, he would give his critique and ask me what lessons I learned from the story. This is one of the major reasons I am fond of movies and stories. Like my dad, it was not only about entertainment, but every story can teach you a new perspective. He loved the JFK movie for its content. Ironically the last movie we watched was about hi-powered guns that are being developed by terrorists. He even said, "Imagine how painful it must be to be hit by those kinds of guns." A week later, he was killed by a gun. Movies will always be a part of me.
If my dad was alive, he would probably ask me, "What is the moral of the story or what valuable lessons did you learn from LOTR?"
The story of Frodo began with a lesson in independence. When Bilbo decided to leave Frodo, Frodo was reluctant at first. This was the beginning of Frodo's call to adventure. In LOTR, Frodo had a long journey before finally destroying the ring of power. Frodo's journey had ups and downs. Frodo is a Leader in his own way, but he may not be the traditional kind of leader that we expect from a hero. Frodo may not have the same strength of Aragorn, or the same magical power as Gandalf, but Frodo persevered to destroy the ring. Frodo was the first to say that he would take the ring of power when everyone was arguing about the difficult task. It was that moment when a small creature in the form of Frodo stepped up to do the difficult task.
1) The HERO is introduced in his ordinary World - I was dependent on my Dad for a lot of things and when I lost him I was scared. I started to lose confidence and I was making a lot of stupid decisions. I was going nowhere. I was not even praying that much anymore. Then I ended up in an abusive relationship. I made several excuses. My 1st boyfriend of 5 years became my only outlet of happiness. I neglected my family. He became my world. But it happened, on our 2nd year I caught him cheating on me and I never did anything to fight that. He betrayed me again and again. This created a monster inside me. I just allowed him to continuously hurt me. We were engaged already when I found out that he got his girlfriend pregnant. I could not decide to leave him. I could not tell anyone including my family and friends. I did not want to ruin his name and his relationships with others. But this decision was slowly destroying my self-confidence. I felt that when I lost my dad and I lost myself. I was beginning to think that my life is going down the drain. I was no longer that feisty USC Chairman fighting for others as I could not even fight for myself.
I asked myself, what am I doing with my life?
2) THE CALL TO ADVENTURE - But I didn't want to give up. I knew that all those sleepless crying nights could not help me. There must be something I could do to change my life. Lord God was just waiting for me, and I was stupid not to find him easily. I was just helpless and then I turned to God. I first asked for forgiveness. This time my crying was no longer for the failed relationship but for failing to acknowledge God several times. God was witness during those dark times. I prayed that I could finally be released from the suffering. After that sincere conversation with God, I felt a sigh of relief. After a few days, I was informed by my Father's friend that there was an opportunity to work for Marriott International and they were screening applicants. I said to myself, "Is this the one I asked for God? Should I go?" Just like Frodo I was hesitant at first. I just found myself at Century Hotel lining up with the rest of the 500 applicants - mostly Hotel Managers, while I was just a simple office assistant. I thought to myself I have some tough competition here. I started to think about what my dad used to say, "WOW the world with kindness and compassion." I was not the smartest applicant but the panel said they were impressed with my warm personality and simple straightforward answers. And after 3 days of rigorous interviews they announce the lucky 15 for a lifetime adventure to St. Kitts Caribbean.
3) THE HERO IS RELUCTANT AT FIRST – My BF that time was convincing me not to leave and he wanted us to get married immediately. I admit that I had 2nd thoughts leaving the country. But I knew I had to trust God because this is what I prayed for.
4) THE HERO IS ENCOURAGED BY THE WISE OLD MAN OR WOMAN - I came back to the Philippines and then got a job in Kuwait. In my 30's, I still did not have direction on what I wanted. I lost my job twice in Kuwait. I did not have a love life. I was distant with my family. While working at the airport I bonded with the most difficult and critical co-worker. I was warned by others not to get close to her. I felt she was just misunderstood because of her outspoken personality. There was something good about her that other people did not see. I found her to be actually generous and real. She had no pretentions and she will tell you what she doesn't like. We became close and she was honest enough to tell me what I needed to change about myself. She told me if I want to make my life better, I have to change the way I think and feel. We had our very own book club. I was never a book person but she taught me to have fondness for reading. I wanted to change my way of thinking. She spoke about the importance of balancing all aspects in life. We cannot just concentrate our life in one aspect. There has to be a right balance on Family, Love, Career, Money and reaching for others. Slowly I started to think about what she said to me. Most importantly she said you need to have self-awareness. You need to understand yourself and believe in what you can do. You need to have faith up there and let him guide you completely.
5) THE HERO PASSES THE FIRST THRESHOLD. I changed the way I prayed because now I start and end my day with a prayer of Gratitude. I thank the Lord for my life and all the things I'm thankful for. It is not easy to change the way we think. I started to look in the mirror every day and convince myself that there is good in everything. I wrote on several index cards my good traits. I put the index cards in my purse, in my pockets, on my pillow and anywhere I can easily see it. For every 1 negative thought, I used my index card to think of 10 beautiful thoughts. Gratitude played a big role in changing the way I feel and think. I just found myself automatically thinking positive thoughts. I continuously train myself to feel great. Slowly my life was changing. I was awarded employee of the month, I was blessed with good job offers, my family and I are more connected, I have time for my friends and the love of my life came. I put balance in my life. My conversation with God became regular, for every action, for every word I think about how I can be a good follower.
6) THE HERO ENCOUNTERS TESTS AND HELPERS – I admit that I am still in a constant battle to improve myself and become better. But, I am thankful that for all the challenges. I have Lord God, myself, my family, my friends to help and guide me in this long journey ahead.
7) THE HERO REACHES THE INNERMOST CAVE/ BELLY OF THE WHALE – My darkest days were when I got bullied, lost my father, and lost my job twice. But these dark days have taught me valuable lessons. It helped me understand myself and my weaknesses.
8) ATONEMENT WITH THE FATHER – Now, more than ever, I only turn to Father God for guidance and love. We have our daily conversation and I constantly heed his wisdom.
9) RETURN TO THRESHOLD/MASTER OF TWO WORLDS – Returning to Philippines after 10years of being away, I am a different person. My adventure may not be as magical as that of Frodo but I have learned a lot about myself. If I did not embark on the new adventure, I would not have learned to be independent. My experience humbled me and strengthen my relationship with God. I would have not met my husband who is also my best friend. The reason that I failed in the beginning because I did not believe and I did not have enough faith. Now I want more people to to think and feel good about themselves. You would often find me encouraging my friends, my coworkers and even strangers. Even sometimes I look weird talking to people about my transformation I persevere. This is not the end of my journey but rather the beginning towards more realization. I hope that my story will be able to inspire you guys.
Thank you sir for this assignment
Leader Anne Boese 4
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