Emily Wiemken
Analytical and Persuasive Writing
Prof. Robinson
Annotation

Annotation for Vogler’s, “Reward/The Road Back”

With the Ordeal dealt with, heroes are now able to experience the reward, the fruit of their labors. The Reward could take form in many different ways. It could be a love scene from the romantic connection in the story. It could be some little tidbit of knowledge that the hero comes across that helps them throughout the rest of their journey. Either way, post ordeal can be seen as the end of their initiation into the new world. They have emerged and are seen as special and different. Their reward can also come as a distortion instead of an epiphany or self discovery. They could get a swelled head, or all the evil they had encountered can push them off the edge and they become as bad as the criminal themselves. After having fully enjoyed the reward, Heroes now have to continue on their journey experiencing, The Road Back. Motivation can come from their inner resolve to return home to impart their wisdom, or an external force, prying the hero off of the plateau of comfort they have come to enjoy after the ordeal. On the road back there can be many different experiences. The hero can be chased, which authors or producers often use as a way to reengage the audience, or the villain can escape making off with a loved one or some sort of treasure.

I didn’t really care for this section of Vogler very much. There were several parts that I didn’t really see applied to whatever section he was talking about. For example, how he talks about campfire scenes during the reward stage. I tend to find those more in the tests and allies stage, where the hero is still trying to find his way in the new world. I did like once again, how Vogler applied psychology to the section of the Road Back. How he talked about neuroses and addictions, and how they can rise up one last time as a final effort to reemerge.

1 What are some examples of heroes that have become as bad as the villain?
2 Do you find yourself reengaged after a chase scene? Is this something you would put into your own story?
3 Are there any advantages or disadvantages for a hero who decides to leave the special world voluntarily to those that are chased out?

Refusal of the Call/Meeting with the Mentor

Emily Wiemken
Analytical and Persuasive Writing
Prof. Robinson
Annotation

Annotation for Vogler’s. “Refusal of the Call/Meeting with the Mentor”

After the hero is met with the call to adventure, it’s human nature for any believable character to go through some hesitation before embarking on their adventure. This stage in a hero’s journey is called the Refusal of the Call. Storytellers also use this stage as a way to show the audience that the adventure the hero is about to go on, isn’t just a frivolous thing and in fact is going to be very dangerous, threatening their heart, a large fortune, or their life. This protest can be made in several different ways, and usually lasts until an even bigger motivation comes along that overrides the hero’s fear, such as the kidnapping of a loved one. Some hero’s don’t refuse the call at all, and they’re called Willing Heroes. In this case, other characters will take over the role and try to hold the hero back and show how dangerous the adventure will be. This leads to the character type of the Threshold Guardian. These characters are used in stories to test the hero, usually after they have already decided to go on the adventure, to see if they are really dedicated to it. The next stage in the journey is called the Meeting with the Mentor. This is the time in the story where the hero almost has to make contact with some sort of wisdom before the adventure begins. This form of wisdom most commonly comes in the form of a Mentor who give the hero the supplies, knowledge, and confidence needed to overcome fear and commence the adventure. For the storyteller, it’s a great chance to immerse the reader even more by providing the popular type of relationship in which the wisdom and experience of one generation is passed. The mask of the Mentor can also turn into other types of characters at any point of the story. It could be used to trick the hero into a life of crime, or they could turn against the hero becoming the shadow.

I enjoyed reading this section of Vogler, and enjoyed looking back at my own refusal of the calls before embarking on changing events of my life. Also with the mentor, I liked thinking back to Greek myth and the different mentors used in the various myths. As for the type of mentor that can trick a hero into a life of crime, I thought of Robin Williams character in August Rush.

1.Would the gods in Greek Mythology be considered mentors? Why or why not?
2.What other types of mentors can you think of that tricked the hero into a life of crime?
3.Do threshold guardians and refusal of the call go hand in hand? Why or why not?