Story Basics Part IV: Archetypes, not Straightjackets

A note as I go along with this series. The best way to think of an archetype is a role that a character plays, not as a description of who they are.

Some examples:

Obi-Wan Kenobi is considered the classic example of a Mentor. He shows Luke what he could be and how to get there.

But he does not stay in the Mentor all the time. The emotionally powerful scene where he confronts Darth Vader is created when he steps into the Hero role. He is moving the action in that scene, not merely instructing or demonstrating things to Luke. When a character shifts archetypes for a scene, the stakes go up. No matter how many times I see Star Wars, I cry when Obi-Wan is defeated in the light saber scene.  This intense emotional reaction comes from him changing his role in the movie.

A second reason to think of the archetype as a role and not a personal characteristic is this creates a fuller, more interesting character in your story. If your Mentor just sits around dispensing wisdom and pithy comments all the time, well....Ok, let's face it. That is boring.

If your character delves into a new archetype, they are suddenly deeper, truer, more emotionally resonant people. Don't think of archetypes as limiters.

They exist to liberate your creation.

Thought provoking article from New Zealand.

What distinguishes discrimination against women from other forms of such reprehensible behaviour is that it is an integral, deliberate, and entrenched element in cultures and religions around the world and from time immemorial.

The New Zealand Herald.

Story Basics Part IV: The Mentor Archetype

The name Mentor comes from a character in the Odyssey. Telemachus, Odysseus' son, goes on a quest to find his father. The goddess Athena takes the guise of Mentor (a human male) to give Telemachus advice, training, aid, or necessary gifts to finish the search.

The Mentor is a very rich archetype. Joseph Campbell named this role as The Wise Old Man or Woman. The Mentor's job is to represent our highest selves, the part of the heroine who is wise and far seeing.  A mentor decides if the heroine has earned gifts to help her, or can act as her conscience. The Mentor motivates and initiates the heroine, too.

Mentors can be kindly  parental figures or they can be dangerous, teaching the Heroine through hard knocks. A Dark Mentor is one who starts a character on a tragic arc, leading her into danger or destruction. Fallen Mentors have lost their own way, and part of the Hero's story is to make the Mentor pull herself together. There are often multiple Mentors in a story, as well.

After all, James Bond not only has M, he has Moneypenny and Q to help teach him what he needs. Arthur has Merlin, but also his brother Kaye, his father, and even his half-sister to teach him lessons.

Mentors can be funny, mystical, young, old, or even part of the Heroine's inner landscape as a memory or code of honor. They can show up in the beginning, middle, or end of the story. Don't get stuck thinking your Mentor has to be Obi Wan with a beard and a nifty sword. Anyone and anything can teach your Heroine what she needs to know.

Story Basics Part IV: Archetypes and Joseph Campbell

Last year (to the day!), I said I would do a series on various archetypal thought systems that can inspire a writer. Today (and until I get done with it), I'm going to discuss Joseph Campbell's breakdowns according to Christopher Vogler .
Vogler names the most useful, basic archetypes for writers:

• Hero
• Mentor
• Threshold Guardian 
• Herald
• Shapeshifter
• Shadow
• Trickster

First things first. According to Vogler,

The concept of archetypes is an indispensable tool for understanding the purpose or function of characters in a story. If you grasp the function of the archetype which a particular character is expressing, it can help you determine if the character is pulling her full weight in the story. The archetypes are part of the universal language of storytelling, and a command of their energy is as essential to the writer as breathing.  (p. 29, emphasis his)

It's very easy to call character A the Mentor, and that is her only function - to mentor and educate the Hero, then to let her go into the world on her own. But in order to make a story character interesting and three dimensional, the Mentor will most likely play many roles, just like real people. Someone can give you excellent advice one day, then the next tie your shoelaces together. This person has embodied both the Mentor and the Trickster/Shapeshifter archetypes.

For the next few days, I'll breakdown each individual archetype. This is going to be fun!

I has empty brain

I'm deep in the first draft of The New Book, so my brain doesn't have much for my blog. So instead, here is a cute picture of The Charming Man in Paris, instead.

There's always room for The Charming Man. :)

Cross Pollination

Today, I will have an afternoon with my dear friend Kim Sakkara. Kim is a disgustingly talented woman. She is a brilliant clothes designer, a seamstress, an entrepreneur, organizer, dancer, and general genius.

I love visiting Kim. Even though we are creative in different ways, I always feel refreshed and full of ideas after our time together.

Kim lives in a world of color, texture, design, shape, shine, drape, flair, and fit. I live in my head in a world of words and improbable acts. Going into her studio is like descending into Aladdin's magic cave - her colors dazzle me and her gift with texture and layering makes my fingers itch to hit my keyboard. I would descend into mad poetry to describe her space.

I have had the great privilege of owning a Kim Sakkara original design and being a model for her. Here are a few pictures to make you sigh and dream of Kim's beauty.

04/2007 Copyright Kim Sakkara. Location: La Mode Macabre fashion show at the Fez ballroom in Portland. Custom costume design by Kim Sakkara & Magidah with beadwork by Sera Richardson. Model: Magidah. Photo: Circle 23.

All photos c. Kim Sakkara and used with permission. The model is the lovely Grace of Deviant Dance.

My gorgeous custom outfit from Kim.

2006 Copyright/velvet skirt & gauntlets: Kim Sakkara. Bedlah: made in Egypt. Photo: Lenny Gotter. Model: Linda

Tendril pants

2008. Copyright/pants/choli tops Kim Sakkara. Photo:Circle 23. Models: Grace, Linda and Tanya Magdalena.

Kim designs for all sizes and shapes. That's your not-skinny author in front.