The Debate on "Universality"

image from: https://theteachingfactor.wordpress.com/2017/09/24/the-heros-journey-a-study-in-film/

Joseph Campbell’s Hero’s Journey (and even Christopher Vogler's 2007 adaptation) has been widely promoted as a universal storytelling tool, exploring the underlying themes of many myths and narratives. It has generated immense revenue for Hollywood, as some of its highest-grossing films have followed the monomyth structure. However, while it remains a prominent theory, commercialized and popularized by the media, it is important to recognize that it does not accurately reflect all stories and contains aspects that may be outdated in our times.

The Origins of the Hero's Journey

Joseph Campbell had this epiphany when he began teaching students as a resident artist and found that "children were already starved for deep story." They would reduce intricate storylines to simple statements such as "A man killed another man" or "They lived, they died. The End" (Campbell, PDF, pg. 20). Their young minds were not processing the full complexity of events, already influenced by games and cartoons that reinforced these reductive interpretations. This issue made him a vocal proponent for the usage of mythologies and more complicated storylines in media, "the mythic is as needed as air and water. The mythic themes not only teach but also nourish and, especially, energize the psyche" (Campbell, PDF, pg. 21). As emphasized, this was not to merely educate the public but an important part of psychological and cultural well-being. The term "energize" implies that myths actively inspire and push individuals towards growth, and that a lack thereof is detrimental for future generations. 

The Water Jar Boy and Cultural Misinterpretation

Campbell asserts that myths worldwide follow the same pattern of a lone hero overcoming obstacles and achieving self-actualization, narratives from Yolngu, Arrernte, and Tewa cultures (for example) challenge this claim. These Indigenous traditions emphasize collective identity, continuity, and spirituality rather than individual conquest and ascension. For this analysis, I will focus on the Tewa Water Jar Boy story and its misinterpretations. However, I encourage readers to examine the myths cited in The Hero with a Thousand Faces with fresh eyes—not searching for steps of the Hero’s Journey—and assess whether they truly conform to Campbell’s model.

The Tewa Water Jar Boy story, which Campbell framed as a hero’s journey of discovery and a "symbolism of salvation" (Hero with a Thousand Faces, pg. 333), is instead a reflection of Tewa cosmology, where interconnectedness with the land and spiritual balance takes precedence over individual achievement. According to Hambly, "The Tewa see all elements of existence including clay, rocks, and plants as alive" (pg. 142), meaning the boy is not simply a hero proving himself but a figure whose journey embodies the Tewa worldview of cosmic balance, "each breathes the breath of life and participates in the overall cycle of give and take" (Hambly, pg. 142). His (the Water Jar Boy) descent into the water is not about overcoming obstacles or achieving personal transformation, but about returning to the source of life, reconnecting with his father, and restoring harmony. Campbell, however, ignores this aspect of the cultural context.

The Water Jar Boy also challenges the Hero’s Journey by rejecting its emphasis on linear progression and conflict-driven storytelling. In Campbell’s model, the hero must experience a transformation through trials and hardships. Yet, in Tewa mythology, success is not measured by individual triumph but by the ability to maintain harmony within the community. The Water Jar Boy does not face enemies or internal struggles like Campbell’s heroes; instead, his journey follows a pattern of interconnected relationships that reflect Tewa's beliefs about balance. His final decision to remain in the water with his reunited family does not signify a victory over adversity but a return to his rightful place within the cosmic order. As Hambly explains, "'triumph' is achieved through descent," (pg. 144), directly opposing Campbell’s notion that the hero must ascend or reach a climax.

Gender Bias in the Hero’s Journey

In addition to cultural bias, the Hero’s Journey is fundamentally sexist, reinforcing traditional gender roles that limit women’s agency in stories. Campbell’s structure is rooted in a male psychological development model, where the hero must break away from dependency, face symbolic or literal "father figures," and achieve mastery over the external world. Women in this framework are used to serve symbolic roles, such as the Goddess—a who has a prize for the hero to claim, whether it be wisdom, love, nourishment, strength—or the Temptress, a distraction that must be resisted. The Woman as Temptress stage explicitly portrays femininity as an obstacle to the hero’s progress, reinforcing patriarchal ideas that equate female influence with danger or moral weakness. Even in powerful positions, women are represented mainly as figures from whom the hero takes advice or as obstacles who lead him astray. Take Princess Leia in Star Wars: when she led the team through the garbage chute to escape, despite no better alternative, she was still framed as causing their unfavorable predicament. The lack of female stories and experiences (as an example) limit its true universality.

Concluding remarks...

While an admirable mission, criticisms of Campbell's research are not new. He has repeatedly been accused of inadequate and biased research practices like misrepresenting the myths he chose to support his claim, not fully mapping out his outline, etc. It is ironic that to support his claim of universality, he must go to great lengths—even stripping stories of their cultural and social contexts—to validate his framework. This approach contradicts his original reasoning for creating the monomyth and raises concerns about the integrity of his research. Rather than viewing Joseph Campbell’s Hero’s Journey as a universal framework, it should be recognized as a primarily Western construct. Due to misinterpretations of myths, this model has reinforced Western dominance over media—rather than celebrating and encouraging a diverse range of stories.

Works Cited 

Campbell, Joseph. “THE HERO with a THOUSAND FACES.” Www.eriesd.org, 1949,   

www.eriesd.org/site/handlers/filedownload.ashx?       moduleinstanceid=35845&dataid=53662&FileName=The%20Hero%20with%20a%20Thousand%20Faces.pdf.

Hambly, Glenda. “The Not so Universal Hero’s Journey.” Journal of Screenwriting, vol. 12, no. 2, June 

2021, pp. 135–50. EBSCOhost, https://doi.org/10.1386/josc_00056_1.

Reichard, Gladys A. “Good Stories: Water Jar Boy.” The Journal of American Folklore, vol. 56, no. 219, 

1943, pp. 69–71. JSTOR, https://doi.org/10.2307/535919. Accessed 21 Feb. 2025.