Week Nine Vogler Annotation...

11.04.08

Zoah Alvarado 

Vogler Annotation

Vogler Christopher. "Book Two: Stages of the Journey." Stage 11:  The Resurrection and Stage 12: Return With the Elixir.

Studio City, CA: Michael Wiese Production, 2007. 196-228.

Summary.

The stage of the Resurrection marks the very last stage in which the hero must once again battle through yet another trial. The battle is similar to the Supreme Ordeal given that the hero must again "die" and be "reborn" in order to be allowed back into the Ordinary World. The return to the Ordinary World would not be possible if the hero does not under go  a secondary transformation/metamorphosis with which only "death" and "Resurrection" (literal or metaphorical) can provide. This last Ordeal is one of greater peril than all others. One may be confused as to whether or not this stage carries a climax or a crisis, however,  Vogler stamps the Resurrection as a climax and not a crisis. He writes,  "This is the climax (not the crisis), the last and most dangerous meeting with death"(197). Vogler goes on to define the many kinds of Resurrection, from Cleansing, and Romantic Choice, down to Sacrifice.  

Reaction.

It was interesting to me how Vogler mentions in his "Sadder but no Wiser" section of the chapter how "the worse kind of fool is the on who doesn't get it" (222). Here he compares the foolish hero who does not learn a thing from his or her ordeals to the hero who learns from his trials. Vogler explains that the foolish hero may have come understand the results of his journey but returns to his former self instead of further continuing his character development. I liked this theme on account that it seems much more truer to reality.

Questions.

1. Which is the best sort, a circular, or an open-ended story?

2. Can it be said that open-ended stories have recently become more appreciated?

Words.

Pitfall (224): unfavorable terrain in which an army may be surrounded and captured; a trap for catching birds, in which a trap door falls over a cavity or hollow; a hidden or unsuspected danger, difficulty, or opportunity for error.

During my time at Eckerd, I tried my best not to succumb to the pitfalls of procrastination.