The Writers Journey: Mythic Structure for Writers, 2nd Edition - Softcover

Vogler, Christopher

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0941188701 ISBN 13: 9780941188708

Publisher: Michael Wiese Productions, 1998

Synopsis

Provides new insights and observations from Vogler's pioneering work in mythic structure for writers.

About this title

Review:

At the beginning of The Writer's Journey, Christopher Vogler asserts that "all stories consist of a few common structural elements found universally in myths, fairy tales, dreams, and movies." Some may be hard-pressed to accept this idea (and will wonder how storytellers from Homer to Shakespeare to Robert Altman might respond to the proposition). Others may imagine that since Vogler uses movies like the Star Wars trilogy and The Lion King to defend his mythological philosophy, he is, unwittingly, listing the reasons why Hollywood films of the last 20 years have been so unimaginative. But there's no doubt that Vogler's notion, based on psychological writings by Carl Jung and the mythmaking philosophy of Joseph Campbell, has been profoundly influential. Many screenwriters have used Vogler's volume to understand why certain scenarios sell, and to discover a blueprint for creating mythic stories of their own.

Now in its second edition, The Writer's Journey sets forth archetypes common in what Vogler calls "the hero's journey," the mythic structure that he claims all stories follow. In the book's first section, he lists the different kinds of typological characters who appear in stories. In the second, he discusses the stages of the journey through which the hero generally passes. The final, supplementary portion of the book explains in detail how films like Titanic and The Full Monty follow the patterns he has outlined. --Raphael Shargel

About this edition

• Publisher: Michael Wiese Productions
• Publication date: 1998
• ISBN 10: 0941188701
• ISBN 13: 9780941188708
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 2
• Number of pages: 325