Practical Guide: Journal Annotation 1

Summary
In Christopher Vogler's essay a A Practical Guide he illuminates the steps that all heroes experience on their journey. Vogler proceeds on to discuss each individual step that the hero encounters throughout his journey. The author illustrates that these steps can take place in real life situations or they involve the hero tackling inner demons and fears. For instance Vogler explains how Luke Skywalker from the Star Wars trilogy defeated his personal demon in Darth Vader, but on the other hand the hero from the Officer and the Gentlemen encounters numerous inner demons that he must defeat to complete his journey. In summation, Vogler offers the reader an illustration of the process each and every individual must complete on their journey to becoming heroic.

Reaction
I found Vogler's opinion on the process it takes to become heroic very interesting and true. I had never taken the time to detach myself from a film, or any instance involving an individual performing heroic deeds, and look at the process it takes to become a hero. It was then I realized that the ten point plan Vogler institutes for becoming a hero did not involve any super human qualities, rather it involved actions and situations that everyday individuals, such as you and me, come into contact with on a daily basis.

Reflection
Continuing with the statement made in the previous section, that, according to Vogler's ten point plan for becoming a hero, it does not take superhuman powers for an individual to obtain heroic status. Rather we all have the ability to become heroes, rather it is a matter of finding oneself in the right environment and making the right decisions. In my opinion, this is why we are so inclined to favoring movies or stories involving heroes, because the majority of heroes do not possess superhuman qualities allowing them to commit heroic deeds, instead they resemble everyday individuals that we can strive to become.

Questions:
Is there more to being a hero than Vogler suggest?

Is it possible for any one individual to become a hero according to Vogler?

Why do we put our mythical heroes on a pedestal? And is this appropriate?