In the Footsteps...

The Song of the Phoenix is a group of 9th graders in upstate New York who spent about 6 months researching the Hero’s Journey pattern as outlined by Joseph Campbell. Using references to mythology, literature, television, and film, the students began to see how the Hero's Journey permeates not only our culture, but all cultures across time and geographic location. From there, the students explored how the pattern is part of the human condition and how it can be used as a tool to examine their own lives. For sixty days, my 9th graders reflected and shared insights as they explored the archetypal hero within. They blogged daily on a classroom website and responded to one another with sensitivity. Watching video clips, listening to visualization exercises, and mulling over pithy quotations, the students learned to recognize the steps of the heroic process in their own lives as well as in the lives of characters. Their stories reflect this pattern.