ENG 311 AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL WRITING, FALL 2016
“Human Life and the Hero’s Journey”
We have only to follow the thread of the hero path, and where we had thought to find an abomination, we shall find a god; … where we had thought to travel outward, we shall come to the center of our own existence. (Joseph Campbell)
This section of Autobiographical Writing will explore the theme of the Hero’s Journey popularized by Joseph Campbell as a helpful template for reflecting on our own life narratives. We will read and discuss the ideas of Campbell and others before him who mapped out the most characteristic qualities of heroic behavior and the hero’s path, such as the quest, magical helpers, confrontation with the villain and/or monster, mastery, return, and re/union with the beloved and/or family. We will also consider how literature, cinema and popular culture tend to follow the same template in their depiction of heroic activity from antiquity to the present day. For example, we will explore such questions as the following:
–how Star Wars, Star Trek, The Matrix, The Lion King and Harry Potter are actually the same movie;
–how The Hobbit, Lord of the Rings, the Iliad, the Odyssey, the legends of Pele and Hi`iaka in Hawai`i and Nafanua in Samoa share the same basic structure;
–how that similar underlying structure is found in various cultures around the world in various time periods;
–how archetypes inform our understanding of literature and the worlds;
–how the hero, her quest and his ideals are still valid and useful in today’s world.
For technique and form, we will study, discuss and practice the personal essay as basic building block of autobiographical writing. We will read exemplary essays as models of craft and method. Written assignments will range from classroom exercises, blog entries responding to readings, and essays of different lengths. Class time will alternate between discussion of readings, technique and work-shopping your essays. The workshops will provide practice in the arts of constructive critique and analysis which are key to excellence in writing and thinking.
ASSIGNMENTS & EXPECTATIONS
• Weekly responses to readings and prompts posted online to a class blog;
• Four essays (of 1000 words each, minimum);
• In-class writing exercises;
• Attendance and Active Participation in class.
REQUIRED TEXTS:
• The Hero with a Thousand Faces, Joseph Campbell
• The Elements of Style (latest edition), Strunk & White
• Model essays provided by instructor as handouts on Laulima.