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?