But that one is about how myths and legends in the world seem to follow the same pattern. And then we saw Tolkien and George Lucas following it consciously with LOTR and Star Wars, and then Harry Potter, The Matrix etc. was modelled on those works. Cambell did figure out an ancient pattern for truly immersive entertainment, that one is for sure.
But did Campbell really come up with the idea that Average Guy could also use myths about legendary heroes to reflect upon and improve his own rather petty life? I don't think in the past people were taking self-help advice from Heracles and Achilles or in the modern world from Neo and Luke Skywalker... it must have been obvious that you as Mr. Average Guy are not made of the same mold as them besides they are fiction anyway, right?
I don't think in the past people were taking self-help advice from Heracles and Achilles or in the modern world from Neo and Luke Skywalker
I don't know how the ancient Greeks related to their legends (although I'm sure that historians of the period do, and it would be worth knowing what they say), but The Matrix and Star Wars are certainly used in that way. Just google "red pill", or "Do or do not. There is no try." And these things aren't just made up by the storytellers. The ideas have long histories.
Literature is full of such prac...
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