It was the Spring of 1965. I was sitting in Mrs. Houston’s English Literature class. Mrs. Houston was in her 30s, married to a Houston policeman, and the mother of two young boys. She was a kind person who solicited our opinions and perspectives and treated every student with the respect that is typically afforded to adults and strangers.
The unit this particular day was Archetypes in Literature. As you probably remember from your own studies, archetypes are motifs that recur in the stories we read. The most famous are The Hero and the King, but there are others. So, whether we are reading about Hercules, Xena Warrior Princess, Harry Potter or Luke Skywalker, we are reading about the hero. There will be adventures, challenges of strength, wits, and character to test the hero. Other archetypes include the Knight, the Wizard or Magus, the Sage, and a few others.
- Midas of Phrygia, Solomon of Israel, or King Kong of Skull Island: The King is a revered and powerful figure who commands a nation or in King King’s case, an Island. He can summon armies to take into battle and is generally the symbol of law and order if not also justice.
- Merlin, Gandalf, Dr. Strange: The Wizard is a seer and advisor – like a consiglieri with knowledge of the dark arts, he serves the King.
- Lancelot, Conan the Barbarian, Batman, Paladin, The Equalizer: The Knight is a Warrior and a lover. Most often, his love is altruistic – Lancelot being the exception to the rule, of course.
- Socrates, Dumbledore, Yoda: The Sage is an explorer in search of knowledge and seeking truth. He often serves as a teacher and counselor to the story’s Hero.
- Hercules, Xena, Harry Potter, Wonder Woman, Luke Skywalker: The Hero appears in many forms, but a constant feature of this archetype is overcoming hardships. We are all heroes in our dreams.
It is likely that you will be able to add other archetypes and their examples from Arthurian legend and works of history and fiction if not the writings of Carl Jung or subsequent authors who have proposed dozens more archetypes.
This afternoon, I am thinking that we need updated archetypes for this period in human history. Here are a few:
- Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, Vladimir Putin: The Oligarch is on a quest for money and power. More often than not, he is a megalomaniacal male. Ruled by his id, he lusts for control and the adoration of a throng of followers.
- Donald Trump, Bernie Madoff, Joel Osteen: The Grifter is a deceiver with an insatiable appetite for manipulating and controlling others. He pursues this and ill-gotten riches above all else.
- Gregori Rasputin, Emperor Palpatine, Steve Bannon: The Dark Sage is often advisor to the Oligarch.
- Renfield, The Nazgûl, Darth Vader, Steven Miller: The Knight of Darkness does the bidding of his Oligarch. His purpose is to serve his Lord and Master and earn influence as his reward.
- Lord Voldemort, Saruman, William Barr: The Dark Magus uses the law, obfuscation, and the occult arts in the service of his Oligarch – causing evil is not his actual purpose; it is just part of the service.
- Judas Escariot, Benedict Arnold, Enrique Tarrio, Elmer Rhodes: The Traitor, not really an antihero, is a pathetic figure who could have been Everyman, but instead chose a path that makes him the enemy of the truth and light. His purpose is to extinguish the light so that darkness can prevail.
My dear Mrs. Houston, if she is still among us, is pushing 100; her sons are probably in their sixties. I wish she could know that I remember the time that I spent in her class and how much I appreciated her kindness.