The Star Wars trilogy is basically one film, showcasing, to the utter most detail, the Hero's Journey.
- The call to adventure - Ben Kenobi reveals Luke's true past and asks him to help him answer Leia's call to help defeat the empire
- Refusal of the call - Luke says he has to stay and help with the harvest.
- Some sort of supernatural aid - The force
- The crossing of the first threshold - Flying away from the planet that is surely the farthest from the center of the galaxy
- Then we have the road of trials (lightsaber training), the meeting with the Goddess (Luke seeing Leia for the first time, enamored with her), temptation from the true path (the dark side), atonement with the father (the end of Return of the Jedi), apotheosis (Luke becoming a Jedi), etc. etc. etc.
- We have the mentor (Ben Kenobi), The prochecy (Luke overthrowing the dark side), The oracle (Yoda), the shapeshifter/someone who the hero doesn't know he can trust (Han Solo), etc.
Videos
The Hero's Journey - A New Hope [5:21 mins]
Have you ever noticed how a lot of stories have a similar pattern? Well, that's all because of a basic story structure that's been shared throughout time. Coined by academic Joseph Campbell in 1949, the Hero's Journey has influenced movies and tv shows for the last few decades.
SOURCE: Behind the Screenplay (2020), The Hero's Journey - A New Hope, posted on YouTube, https://youtu.be/mtfSTHQUE6k
Star Wars and The Hero's Journey [20:51 mins]
In 1977, George Lucas released Star Wars and changed storytelling forever. But without inspiration from Joseph Campbell — author of The Hero with a Thousand Faces — Star Wars may have never been. In this primer on the Hero's Journey, we take a look at the relationship between Campbell and Star Wars, and break down A New Hope to see how the narrative structure of the Hero's Journey has been used in this film.
SOURCE: Off Screen (2019), Star Wars and The Hero's Journey, posted on YouTube, https://youtu.be/UinipY7Pkmk
Star Wars, Episode IV A New Hope (1977) [1:48:12 mins, Rated PG]
A young Luke Skywalker begins to discover his destiny when, searching for a lost droid, he is saved by reclusive Jedi Obi-Wan Kenobi.
SOURCE: Lucas, G (Dir.) (2015) Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope, posted on ClickView, URL: https://clickv.ie/w/7GDs
Resources
- Article: Move over Odysseus, Here comes Luke Skywalker [PDF]This article examines the ways in which George Lucas used the Hero's Journey when creating Star Wars.
- Monomyth Chart [PDF]Students can use this worksheet to identify the various stages of Campbell's monomyth in film or literature. This particular version works well with Star Wars, but is easily adaptable to other films or literature. (Includes more stages than the Hero's Journey worksheet listed.)
- Star Wars: The Hero's Journey [PDF]This PDF identifies the stages of the Hero's Journey present in the 1977 film Star Wars (also known as Episode IV: A New Hope). As George Lucas used Campbell's monomyth to structure his film (and its sequels), it is a great film to use when teaching the Hero's Journey.
Related Links
- Review: Star Wars: Leia, Princess of Alderaan
Without a doubt, Star Wars: Leia, Princess of Alderaan serves as a nucleation point for Leia’s place in the pantheon of Star Wars heroes while staying true to the spirit of Leia’s royalty lineage. - Article: Why Star Wars is the perfect example of the Hero's Journey.From The Write Practice by David Safford (n.d.)
- Story StructureThe Story Structure Database records all the major plot points of the "Star Wars - A New hope" story.