Ethos, Pathos, and Logos...

Pathos: Song; A Dios Le Pido by Juanes

Ethos: Song; Know Your Enemy by Rage Against the Machine

Logos: Song; What I'm Fighting For by Matisahu

Week Four Vogler Annotation...

09.30.08

Zoah Alvarado

Vogler Annotation

Vogler, Christopher. " Book Two: Stages of the Journey." Stage One: Ordinary World and Stage Two: Call to Adventure.

Studio City, CA: Michael Wiese Productions, 2007. 83-105

Summary. 

We have now moved on from the themes of archetypes and have entered the world of storytelling stages. Needless to say, The Ordinrary World can be recognized as a place of origin, the foundation of story line, the hero's background; the Beginning. The Ordinary World serves as a contrasting figure by establishing physical or metaphysical differences between itself ans the "Special World" located somewhere beyond its boarders. Vogler writes, " The Special World can only be special if we can it in contrast to a mundane world of everyday affairs from which the hero issues forth" (87).

Joseph Campbell defines the Call to Adventure as "the new energy, symbolized in countless ways in myths and fairy tales..." (99). The Call to Adventure comes in many different forms, a messages or temptation, and may or may not be very obvious to the hero. It can be also seen or known as the call to action in which the hero or herione realizes the need for change and decides to take action in order to aquire this change.

Reaction.

I really can not say much to either reinforce or pull down what Vogler strives to confer in these sections of his book. The terms, in essence, speak for themselves and there seems to be very little need for a large imagination to understand them. Most of it makes perfect sense and can be clearly illustrated in all stories regardless of origin. Even the most bare of stories still follow along the lines Vogler point out in these two chapters.

Questions.

1. Is there anything you find yourself disagreeing with Vogler in the content of these two particular chapters?

2. Has Vogler somehow left out any element(s) in his descriptions of The Ordinary World and the Call to Adventure?

3. Can you think of any story that does not follow the same lines described by Vogler?

Words.

Foreshadowing (87): To serve as the shadow thrown before (an object); hence, to represent imperfectly beforehand, prefigure. Also rarely ( of a person), to have a foreboding of.

Sentence: To have bad credit foreshadowing you is a horrible experience.

Theme(95): the subject of discourse, discussion, conversation, meditation, or composition; a topic.

Sentence: I absolutely love going to theme parks.

Wound(92): a hurt cause by the laceration or separation of the tissue of the body by a hand or sharp instrument, a bullet, etc; and external injury.

Sentence: Many people enjoy sporting their physical wound as battle scars.

Week Three Vogler Annotation...

09.23.08

Zoah Alvarado

Vogler Annotation

Vogler, Christopher. "Book One: Mapping the Journey". Threshold Guardian, Herald, Shapeshifter, Shadow, Ally, and Trickster.

Studio City, CA: Michael Wiese Production, 2007. 49-80.

Summary.

The list of Archetypes lives on, graduating from Hero all the way to Trickster and probably never stopping. Next in line is the Threshold Guardian; the protector of peace, the character standing within neutral ground wielding hi sword against villain and/or hero, possessing a dual identity but whose purpose is clearly for the preservation of a greater good. This character may not play a large  scale role within the story but still will remain distinguished among all other characters because of his or her unique purpose. The Guardian poses a threat, essentially providing a testing grounds for the hero against which he or she must devise a strategy to overcome. " They present a menacing face to the hero's, but if properly understood, they can be overcome, or even turned into allies"(49). Those threat and tests are put in place in order for the hero's character building to keep on progressing.

The Herald is the messenger, relaying valuable information back and forth between enemies or allies. This character basically embodied the circulation, preservation and distribution of information from place to place, giving announcements and rendering documentary services everywhere he goes. Vogler mention, for example, the Greek messenger god, Hermes, who "...appears everywhere as the messenger or Herald of the gods, performing some errand or bearing a message from Zeus" (56).

Shapshifters are put in place to confuse the hero and audience with its instability, inconsistency, and shifting nature. Its archetype is usually encountered as one of the opposite sex and perhaps a particular love interest to the hero. Vogler describes the psychological purpose of the Shapeshifter as expression of animus (male) and anima ( female). The aniums embodied the "positive and negative images of masculinity in a woman's dream and fantasies" , while the anima embodies " the corresponding female element in the male unconscious" (60).

The archetype of the Shadow represents the existence and war against the hero's alter ego, or mirror self. It serves as the determining contrast between the hero's opposite psych, often illustrating the hero's suppressed inner demon or repressed inner feelings. This archetype can sometimes be invoked through some sort of existing and/or festering trauma and/or  guilt.

Next is the Ally whose purpose is primarily to assist the hero. The Ally is the sidekick, the character not quite the same as a Mentor but who nevertheless provides an extra set of helping hands, advice, or insight for the hero.  He or she can be anywhere from the lowly court jester the direct partner in crime. With such an archetype set in place the audience can sense that the hero, however self sufficient and/or powerful, is still in need of some sort of camaraderie and assistance...yet another human trait.  One of the best examples of the Ally archetype is Sancho Panza, Don Quixote's reluctant squire" (72).

Reaction.

I have a particular interest in the Shapeshifter and Shadow archetypes for some reason. I think it is due to their intriguing unpredictability and the fact that they are usually illustrated as inhuman or removed from flesh ( referring to the mind, inner demons, psyche, etc, etc all which take on more metaphysical aspects rather than physical ones). I also believe that because they are widely misunderstood, their qualities demand more attention and deliberation in order to attain some level of understanding.

Questions. 

1. Are the Shapeshifter and Shadow put in place in order to add a deeper sense of mystery for the audience?

2. Do they represent only the darker aspects of the character(s) or also their human side as well?

3. Is it truly bad to have inner demons?

Words.

Protagonist (66): the chief character in dramatic work. Hence, in extended use: the leading character, or one of the main characters, in any narrative work, as a poem, novel, film, etc.

Sentence: Unlike Classic films, Modern, and Post Modern films can sometime host a protagonist that is a bit of an anti-hero.

Symbiotic (49): associated or living in symbiosis; relating to or involving symbiosis.

Sentence: Deep ocean crabs and hydrothermal vents live in a symbiotic relationship due  to chemosynthesis.

Extra Credit...

Two weeks ago and today I played on the FreeRice website where anyone can donate rice, through the UN World Food Program, to help fight hunger. For every word you guess right  20 grains or rice are donated. According to the website 129,230,500 grains of rice have been donated since yesterday and over 44 billions grains donated to todays date. I played the Language Learning subjects, got up to level 34 of 60, with a best level of 37 and donated 4680 grains of rice over the course of an hour...I think I've become addicted.

Week Two Vogler Annotation...

09.16.08

Zoah Alvarado

Vogler Annotation

Vogler, Christopher. "Book One: Mapping the Journey." The Archtype, Hero, and Mentor.

Studio City, CA: Michael Wiese Productions, 2007. 23-47.

Summary.

Vogler continues to argue the existence of what Swiss psychologist, Carl G. Jung, calls the "collective unconscious of the human race". This time he defines the terms Archetypes, Heros and Mentors to further prove his point.

Vogler defines Archetype as described by Joseph Campbell, "...biological: as expressions of the organs of the body, built into the wiring of every human being"(24). The archetype is thus essential to every storyteller and audience since it is what establishes a crucial connection between both entities. Without a fully functioning archetype acting as a translator between the storyteller and the audience there cane be no story.

The term Hero, from the Greek root word meaning "to protect and to serve"(29), is defined as "someone who is willing to sacrifice his own needs on behalf of others..."(29). Vogler states that the archetype of the Hero is represented by what Sigmund Freud called "the ego". The ego at first completely permeated the Hero, giving him or her the idea that they are distinguished from all the rest through some kind of separation, be it physical or mental. The Hero's journey generally addresses all the turn of events in which he or she act out in their separate identities only to discover, in the end, that they are incomplete by themselves. The Hero is the archetype put in place to attract the most attention and illustrate the story. This character is needed to bring the human ( or inhuman) element into the story and translate it to the audience in a way in which they can relate.

The Mentor is typically the "Teacher", be it male, female, genderless, in the flesh or in spirit. This character provides guidance that is crucial to the development of the Hero and usually does not draw very much attention from the audience except for when stepping in to help. The Mentor is usually  depicted as a much older person, one who has gained knowledge and wisdom from years of experience and passes it on to to the young (sometimes scornful) pupil.

Reaction.

I am glad that Vogler uses the term Archetypes when describing the nature of a character instead of the word stereotype. Stereotypes restrict character possibilities and cut short the truth(s) behind them. Using an archetype, however, opens up the field of possibilities, greatly broadening the creative potential because it does not follow a set conformity. Archetypes are so multifaceted they are more ably fitted to the real world. For this reason an audience is more likely to relate , and prefer, a character based on archetype rather than on stereotype.

Questions.

1. Do you think stereotypes are very limiting to the story when applied to a character?

2.  Should the Mentor be an ambiguous figure or should he or she carry some focus besides the Hero?

3. Can a Mentor also be the "Villain" in that the evil person teaches the Hero a moral lesson although attempting to destroy him?

Words.

1. Anti-Hero (34): (Noun); a central character in a story, film, or play who lacks conventional heroic qualities.

Sentence: Humphrey Bogart, who plays Rick Blain in the famous movie Casablanca, is my all time favorite anti-hero.

Week One Volger Annotation...

09.08.08

Zoah Alvarado

Vogler Annotation

Vogler, Christopher. "Book One: Mapping the Journey." A practical Guide.

Studio City, CA: Michael Wiese Productions, 2007. 3-20

Summary.

In this chapter Vogler strives to establish the fact that Joseph Campbell's book, The Hero with a  Thousand Faces, provides the basic structure on which all storytellers/storymaker, modern or otherwise, construct story lines about a given hero and/or heroine. Campbell, following the ideas of Swiss psychologist Carl G. Jung, states how the subconscious human mind, despite cultural difference, follow similar and repeating contours, similar elements, in terms of how stories are played out. Jung dubs this phenomenon "Collective unconscious of the human race" (4), explaining that it is what has caused so many myths, famous or obscure, native or foreign, to have such similarities in content. Campbell believes it is also due to a universal symbology, or ideology, possessing a power to converge even the human mind which created such high level of conformity. The term "mono-mythic" is coined and used when touching the subject of "heroism", suggesting the idea that every human will experience a series of analogous events in the course of their lifetime.

The Hero's life is threaded through twelve themes Campbell calls" The Stages of the Hero's Journey" (8), each serving to pin point and peak a series of important event that help string along the story. Within these series of "stages" is Crisis and Climax, setting in motion a sort of emotional roller coaster for the hero which will be transmitted to the audience. Probably the most noted of "stages" is the part of the climax screenplay in which, before returning to his original place of abode, the hero willingly shares, or is forced to illustrate( to prove his "coming of age"), the existence of his newly acquired knowledge and wisdom to those around him. In general, however, the outcome of a story is still for the hero to come to a form of self realization, a maturation, both physical or mental, towards the end of his journey. (Vogler notes the fact that some modern types [mostly comedy] will produce a hero who does not learn from his or her experience but continues to trip on old mistakes.)

Reaction.

The topic of a converged human nature coming from this book is rather fitting at this point in time since it ( coincidentally?) coincides with the current QFM course examination of a general human consensus of ethics. It further generates thoughts on just how united we as humans really are despite our cultural or circumstantial differences. It illustrated the innate human need for inspiration, something to look up to for hopes and aspirations, the general need for beneficial changes whether in a single persons character (inner or outer), or an entire congregation. It, in a way, gives a small definition of what it means to be human.

Questions. 

1. Is there really any such thing as race except for the human race?

2. Are all myths completely myths or do  few contain some level of veracity?

3. Where could have the "collective unconscious of the human race" come from? And how could it have come to be?

Words.

Archetype(4): the original pattern or model from which copies are made: prototype

Sentence: That book is an excellent archetype of it genre

Monomyth (4): An archetypal myth; a theme that underlies a number of superficially different myths.

Sentence: Pandora's Box is a great example of a monomyth.

Resurrection (17): the action or fact of rising again from sleep, decay, disuse, etc. ; revival, restoration to previous status of vogue.

Sentence: I love the story of Osiris' resurrection.

What Disney Character would I be?

Although I absolutely loved Disney as a child, I now believe that its cartoons ( which are largely altered from the original story line) influence unrealistic and shallow outlooks and expectations on life towards its aimed audience (which are generally children). 

Nevertheless, Disney's Beauty and the Beast is the only exception. This is because I find it tries to teach the search and acceptance of inner beauty rather than just a story about two characters who fall in love over each other's aesthetic inclinations.

The only character I compare myself to would be Belle (removing all aspect of physical beauty of course). This is because she's such a book worm, loving books just as much as I do. She doesn't care that the whole town is watching her, finding her peculiar  in all her geekiness, but goes prancing around the village "with her nose stuck in a book".  She doesn't flirt, doesn't preen, and is comfortable standing out from the crowd. She's completely down to earth and she refuses to associate herself with the shallow, and pretentious crowd.