History, Wonder Tales, Fairy Tales, Myths and Legends How to Write A Good Fairy Tale | Page 32

Working in organisations, Finlay uses "The Hero's Journey" to enhance the empowerment of
others so that they can see their situation in a different way, as an archetypal journey.
(Archetypes are deep and abiding patterns in the human psyche that remain powerful and
present over time) Joseph Campbell first wrote about the Hero's journey in "The Hero With a
Thousand Faces" (1973). He describes the stages of the universal journey and the
challenges and dangers that faced the hero at each stage. The hero is the person who "takes
off on a series of adventures beyond the ordinary, either to recover what has been lost, or to
discover some life giver elixir" (see Figure 1 below).

The stages are:
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innocence, where all is well and stable
the call, where someone is called to be more than he/she currently is
the refusal
the second call, often comes with a "push" eg a lost job, an accident
initiation, the acquiring of the skills to undertake the journey
allies, the hero/heroine doesn't go it alone. Allies can be human, technical, spiritual
the road of trials/the descent. The obstacles to be overcome
breakthrough, the moment when the change becomes conscious/clear.
The hero/heroine has "come through"
celebration
homecoming: the hero/heroine returns changed and/or with a gift for the tribe.

Working with the journey, Finlay tells the story of "Star Wars", a modern myth, a story most
people are familiar with and a wonderful example of the mythical journey. After the story,
Finlay invites people to tell personal stories. In describing, for example, the role of Ben Obi
Wan Kenobi she asks people to tell a story about the people in their lives who played the role
of helpers/mentors. What was the gift they gave? What meaning does this have for the
present situation? This questioning is repeated at various stages.
Finlay also uses the story of local/national heroes/heroines such as the late Fred Hollows.
The process places individual experience in a larger context, work lives are seen as heroic,
each person a hero in their own story. It gives meaning to the changes being experienced
and strategies to cope with them.