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.
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