What are the characteristics of a hero? Does a hero have to have a power, great looks, and are privileged? Does every hero have to be a hyper masculine male who go to a far off land to battle monsters? In movies and novels, heroes are depicted as a perfect hyper masculine male who is considerably perfect in all aspects from the moment of their birth. Going beyond the movie and novel realm, in the modern world most people’s concept of a hero is fairly narrow. Rarely do most people concern themselves to question if the main stream depiction of a hero is too male centric or the fact that the depiction of a hero lacks the representation of women, colored, and under-privilege individuals. Neither do they realize that a hero does not have to be a
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Although, her main character, Macon Dead III, better known as Milkman, embarks on a hero’s journey, a monomyth, of self-discovery, Morrison also makes known the idea that a hero does not necessarily have to be a male figure with the portrayal of Pilate Dead who is in every respect—a self-dependent, wise, and a down to earth figure—the very opposite of both Macon Dead II, and III. Therefore, while in her novel Morrison illustrates the pattern of a hero’s journey through Milkman’s flight of self-actualization, she also takes part in criticizing the male centric perspective of a momomyth with the illustration of Pilate Dead to undermine social …show more content…
Instead of portraying a female figure as the heroine who goes on a journey of self discovery, she uses Milkman; however, she does criticize the idea of the male centered monomyth throughout her novel. On the hero’s journey, Campbell in his book illustrates three stages that the hero, in this case Milkman, will encounter on their quest: departure, initiation, and return. Before the departure phase in the novel, Morrison introduces Milkman as an arrogant, a privilege, an emotionally clueless, and an egotist, who happens to be born to one of, if not the most affluent African American family in one of the cities in Michigan. Milkman’s characteristics is the opposite of the hero figure. He is an egotist and an arrogant individual such that, after he strikes his father, he thought he was ‘the man of the house’ because immediately “He also felt glee. A snorting, horse-galloping glee as old as desire” (p 68). This is exactly the image of a person with an egotistical and arrogant personality, his violence action actually brings him joy. Furthermore, Milkman’s inability to empathize for others is a flaw in his
Although, her main character, Macon Dead III, better known as Milkman, embarks on a hero’s journey, a monomyth, of self-discovery, Morrison also makes known the idea that a hero does not necessarily have to be a male figure with the portrayal of Pilate Dead who is in every respect—a self-dependent, wise, and a down to earth figure—the very opposite of both Macon Dead II, and III. Therefore, while in her novel Morrison illustrates the pattern of a hero’s journey through Milkman’s flight of self-actualization, she also takes part in criticizing the male centric perspective of a momomyth with the illustration of Pilate Dead to undermine social …show more content…
Instead of portraying a female figure as the heroine who goes on a journey of self discovery, she uses Milkman; however, she does criticize the idea of the male centered monomyth throughout her novel. On the hero’s journey, Campbell in his book illustrates three stages that the hero, in this case Milkman, will encounter on their quest: departure, initiation, and return. Before the departure phase in the novel, Morrison introduces Milkman as an arrogant, a privilege, an emotionally clueless, and an egotist, who happens to be born to one of, if not the most affluent African American family in one of the cities in Michigan. Milkman’s characteristics is the opposite of the hero figure. He is an egotist and an arrogant individual such that, after he strikes his father, he thought he was ‘the man of the house’ because immediately “He also felt glee. A snorting, horse-galloping glee as old as desire” (p 68). This is exactly the image of a person with an egotistical and arrogant personality, his violence action actually brings him joy. Furthermore, Milkman’s inability to empathize for others is a flaw in his