The Fan's Journey
Getting from Here to "Scar" and Beyond
By Jason Edwards
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The Magic Flight: It’s Going to be a Wild Ride
Sometimes, Campbell’s heroes must survive what he called The Magic Flight28 in order to return with the Ultimate Boon. This is usually a mad dash to escape the final, last-ditch efforts of some opposing forces that wish to prevent the Hero from returning to his world with the prize. In the case of the Hero-Reader, the archetype is somewhat turned on its head. The only opposing forces with which the Hero-Reader need concern herself at this stage are fairly intangible. First, there is the annoying difficulty of getting her hands on a book that may be in limited supply, and is coveted by scores of other Hero-Readers as well; and then, of course, the need to find time to read the darn thing, what with external pressures in her life demanding that she do unreasonable things like eat, sleep, work, and socialize.
For some Hero-Readers, the Magic Flight begins when she makes her way to a nearby Midnight Book Release, and waits in anxious anticipation with her fellow adventurers. For others, it may begin when she tears open a package from an online bookseller; or when she steals the brand new tome from an unsuspecting sibling and locks herself in her room; or simply gets home from the store or library, book in hand, and sits down to begin reading. And from the moment the cover is opened on that book, the Magic Flight has fully taken hold. The wise Hero-Reader knows that it will be a rush and a thrill-ride, and that she may lose sight of her surroundings while simply living in the moment, hanging on for dear life.
Rescue from Without: “You Know, You Really Should Take a Shower”
For some Hero-Readers, their involvement in the Magic Flight becomes so intense that they do not know how to reach the end, so to speak, but continue to run madly in circles. Some may attempt to read the seventh book in one sitting, only to find that, exhausted from their journey, they are destined to crash before reaching the end. Others may reach the end, and rather than closing the book, turn back to the beginning and start it all over again, not quite sure how to land softly from the mad, Magic Flight. This is to be expected, but it can have unfortunate consequences.
Fortunately, many Hero-Readers can count on a friend or loved-one to step in and pull them out of this mad spiral. This equates to the Rescue from Without29 in the Hero’s Journey. Perhaps it will be a spouse or “significant other” finally getting in the Hero-Reader’s face, with firm instructions to bathe and eat—because “the book will still be there” when that’s done. It might be a parent instructing a young Hero-Reader that it is not acceptable to read at the dinner table. It may even be the trusty old alarm clock telling our dedicated Hero-Reader that, although she never went to sleep, it is nevertheless time to get up and get ready for work, because “Potter Fever” is not an acceptable excuse to call off of work.
Most Hero-Readers should expect to need some form of rescue. It is wise to anticipate this, for often, caught up in the moment, the Rescue from Without might seem to be decidedly hostile; but snapping at a would-be rescuer will only cause problems for the Hero-Reader in the long run.
The Crossing of the Return Threshold: “What Was I Doing Again?”
The Crossing of the Return Threshold,30 for Campbell’s Hero, means returning to the Ordinary World; and dealing with the inevitable shock, given what the Hero has learned on the Journey, of returning to that place.31 Thus for the Hero-Reader, the Crossing of the Return Threshold might begin when she reads the final word of Deathly Hallows, and gently closes the cover. But the true threshold is when her mind begins to allow for the contemplation of other things, things from her life that aren’t wrapped up in questions or feelings or thoughts about what she’s just read. She might go about the activities of her ordinary life, but if she is still preoccupied every moment by what she’s read, the Threshold has not truly been crossed.
The Hero-Reader should not be concerned, however; this feeling is likely to dissipate on its own within a few days, as other concerns inevitably intrude upon her daily life. And if that does not seem to be successful, often simply talking it out with another Hero-Reader who is also trying to cross the Return Threshold will aid the process.
Master of the Two Worlds: It’s Not Always About Harry (But it Usually Is)
This is not to say, of course, that after the Crossing of the Return Threshold, the Hero-Reader is free of the burden of thinking about what she’s read. What she enters into at this stage is the state of being the Master of the Two Worlds.32 She can now move freely between her outside life—the life she knew before she undertook her journey—and her life as a fan of Harry Potter. What she now sees more clearly than ever, is that one shines a light on the other, and that either of the two would suffer if it were chosen at the exclusion of the other. The Hero-Reader, as Master of the Two Worlds, is truly a benefit to all of society, merely by living her life the best way she knows how: bringing lessons she’s learned from one world to bear on the other, thus encouraging others around her to live fuller lives as well.
Freedom to Live: The Story Continues
The Hero-Reader, finally done with her journey, ultimately can live the rest of her days with knowledge that, though a story may end, its impact on the lives of those who cherish it need never fade. This is the Freedom to Live,33 as Campbell referred to it. His Heroes learn to live in the moment, not fearing change; death no longer has the same hold on them.34 The Hero-Reader, on her desperate journey to reach the end of the Harry Potter series, has learned the same lessons. She no longer needs to view the final written words of a story as the end. The story is alive; the world of Harry Potter that J. K. Rowling created will continue on, as vital as ever, always evolving as it welcomes new fans. Each has the capacity to be affected by it in a different way, and in turn to affect each other uniquely as well.
The Hero-Reader recalls the words of Dumbledore, at the end of the very first book in the series: “After all, to the well-organized mind, death is but the next great adventure.”35 To the Master of the Two Worlds, the final book of the Harry Potter series is just a part—a hugely important part, but a part nonetheless—of a story that need never end.
Notes
1. Wikipedia, s.v. “Monomyth.”
2. DeMers, “Introduction to the Hero’s Journey.”
3. Wikipedia, s.v. “Monomyth.”
4. Campbell, Hero, 49.
5. Wikipedia, s.v. “Monomyth.”
6. Campbell, Hero, 49.
7. Ibid., 59.
8. Joey Tribbiani (Matt LeBlanc), Friends, “… Monica And Richard Are Just Friends.”
9. Haber, “Dumbledore Is Not Dead!” www.beyondhogwarts.com/harry-potter/articles/dumbledore-is-not-dead.html.
10. Wikipedia, s.v. “Monomyth.”
11. Campbell, Hero, 69.
12. The Leaky Cauldron, www.the-leaky-cauldron.org.
13. Campbell, Hero, 77.
14. Ibid., 90.
15. Ibid., 97.
16. Ibid.
17. Ibid., 109.
18. J.K. Rowling Official Site, www.jkrowling.com.
19. Campbell, Hero, 120.
20. Wikipedia, s.v. “Monomyth.”
21. Campbell, Hero, 126.
22. Maricopa Center, “Pack Your Bags for… the Hero’s Journey.”
23. Campbell, Hero, 149.
24. Ibid., 172.
25. Maricopa Center, “Pack Your Bags for… the Hero’s Journey.”
26. Campbell, Hero, 193.
27. Ibid., 193.
28. Ibid., 196.
29. Ibid., 207.
30. Ibid., 217.
31. Maricopa Center, “Pack Your Bags for… the Hero’s Journey.”
32. Campbell, Hero, 229.
33. Ibid., 238.
34. Maricopa Center, “Pack Your Bags for… the Hero’s Journey.”
35. Rowling, Sorcerer’s Stone, 297
Bibliography
Campbell, Joseph. The Hero with a Thousand Faces (Third Edition). Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1973.
DeMers, Sandra. “Introduction to the Hero’s Journey.” Making the Middle Ages Fun, June 21, 2000. http://www.loyno.edu/~MidAges/sdemers.html.
Friends. “Episode 313: The One Where Monica and Richard Are Just Friends.” Television series created by David Crane and Marta Kaufman. Episode written by Michael Borkow, directed by Robby Benson. Warner Bros. Television, aired 30 January 1997.
Haber, David. “Dumbledore Is Not Dead!” Beyond Hogwarts, 19 July 2005. http://www.beyondhogwarts.com/harry-potter/articles/dumbledore-is-not-dead.html.
J.K. Rowling Official Site. http://www.jkrowling.com/ (accessed 11 November 2006).
The Leaky Cauldron. / (accessed 11 November 2006).
Maricopa Center for Learning and Instruction. “Pack Your Bags For... the Hero’s Journey,” August 15, 2002. http://www.mcli.dist.maricopa.edu/smc/journey/.
Rowling, J. K. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone. New York: Scholastic Press, Arthur A. Levine Books, 1999.
———. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. New York: Scholastic Press, Arthur A. Levine Books, 2005.
Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia, s.v. “Monomyth.” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monomyth (accessed 10 November 2006).
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