Analyzing the Quest Archetype
Literature from different times is very different at times. It may encompass alternate feelings, morals, or types of characters. On the other hand, literature from different time periods can be very similar in these ways. The quest archetype is something that has been written about for ages. One of the most well-known quest novels is Homer’s The Odyssey. This story tells of the quest that the protagonist, Odysseus, must undertake. Although that was written hundreds of years ago, the same setup is used for many of today’s stories. The quest consists of (not in this order): the Call, the Other, the Journey, Helpers and Guides, the Treasure, and the Transformation. The most difficult part of the quest that the protagonist must go through is the Journey. In Babylon Revisited, Idiots First, Through the Tunnel, Behind the Blue Curtain, The Odyssey, the Journey always introduces the protagonist to a strange, new land or be introduced to a strange, new thing; to test them of their heroic potential; and tells of a flaw that the protagonist has. The short story, Babylon Revisited, by F. Scott Fitzgerald, is one story that tells about the Journey. The protagonist in this story wants custody of his child and will do anything for i . . .
Here, he was treated with supreme kindness and love, but he was a prisoner there. His daughter’s current guardians bring up this point, because they fear for his daughter. He has never been there before, so this is a new experience for him. He’ll put himself at risk just to prove himself. Mendel, the protagonist, goes everywhere that he can think of to gather 35 dollars for bus fare for his son. Ginzburg realizes this and, “His grip on the squirming old man loosened, and Mendel, his heart barely beating, slumped to the ground” (Malamud 259). Odysseus would not have had to been battered as bad as he was if he and the God of the sea were on good terms. Once he discovers his new-found love of swimming and diving, he must have goggles, “But now, now, now! He must have them this minute and no other time. This train station is the strange, new place in this journey. He knows that he should go to his father because he is already late, but he wants to go back to the theater. Odysseus was a very smart person and proved himself as a hero with these acts. This fault brought him much trouble and his life would be better without this the approaching death. The quest archetype has the Call, the Other, the Journey, Helpers and Guides, the Treasure, and the Transformation. He has been there before, but he has never seen it before as he has seen as he embarks on his journey.
Common topics in this essay:
Scott Fitzgerald, Bernard Malamud, Doris Lessing, Odysseus Calypso, Steven Millhauser, Winds Odysseus, , Lorraine Duncan, Odysseus Odysseus, Odyssey Homer, blue curtain, babylon revisited, heroic potential, babylon revisited idiots, idiots tunnel, heroic qualities, quest protagonist, tunnel blue, revisited idiots, short story, tunnel blue curtain, idiots tunnel blue, revisited idiots tunnel, tells quest, quest protagonist odysseus, |
Acceptance Essays
