Part Two: The Cosmogonic Cycle Chapter 4: Dissolutions 1. End of the Microcosm In this chapter, Campbell discusses the final part of the hero journey, death. There are two types of deaths that mythologies describe, the first is personal, and the second is universal. “The End of the Microcosm” is the personal death of the … Read more

Part Two: The Cosmogonic Cycle Chapter 3: Transformations of the Hero 1. The Primordial Hero and the Human This chapter is about how the cosmogonic cycle is carried out by mortal heroes rather than gods and stories about children, who are predestined to become the heroes of their culture and the founders of new cities. … Read more

Part Two: The Cosmogonic Cycle Chapter 2: The Virgin Birth 1. Mother Universe Some mythologies emphasize the maternal rather than paternal aspect of the creator, and she plays the roles that are traditionally assigned to males. She’s also a virgin, because her husband is the Invisible Unknown. 3. The Virgin Birth Here Campbell tells us … Read more

Part Two: The Cosmogonic Cycle Chapter 1: Emanations 1. From Psychology to Metaphysics Myths resemble dreams, they are both manifestations of the unconscious. Symbols represent unconscious desires, fears, and tensions. “Mythology, in other words, is psychology misread as biography; history, and cosmology.” But myths are not the same as dreams although they come from the … Read more

Part I: The Adventure of the Hero Chapter 4: The Keys “The Keys” was a commentary on how myths have become watered down in many different traditions today. But the poetry of mythology is ruined when one considers these texts as scientific or historical – as it is easy to invalidate mythology under those frameworks. … Read more

Part One: The Adventure of the Hero Chapter 3: Return 1. Refusal of the Return After the hero completes his quest, he must still return with his life-changing boon. The usual course of events sees the hero sharing his wisdom with his community, or the world. But this responsibility has often be refused. Campbell cites … Read more

Part I: The Adventure of the hero II. Initiation 1. The Road of Trials This stage of the hero journey is often the most exciting. After passing the threshold, the hero moves on to a new landscape where he must survive a series of trials. Previous generations relied on mythological symbolism and religious tradition to … Read more

Part One – The Adventure of the Hero Chapter 1: The Departure 1. The Call to Adventure The call to adventure is the first stage of the mythological journey. Destiny calls on the hero to move his spirit outside the comfortable confines of his society and into the zone of the unknown. The unknown harbors … Read more

Summary The Hero with a Thousand Faces is a book about the stories of the past, and our deep human longing to connect with the ancestral spirit that informs these stories. Campbell informs us that there are many different ways of interpreting the purpose of mythology, but essentially they are a “conveyance, vehicle, to use … Read more