The Story of Harris Communications

from Reg Harris

Search for a new approach

Several years ago Susan Thompson and and I worked together as English teachers at Vintage High School in Napa, California. We became frustrated with the typical approaches to teaching literature because so many students seemed unable to see how literature related to their lives. Spurred by our dissatisfaction, we began searching for a new approach.
Ironically, our search for something new led us to something as old as human experience itself: the archetype of the Hero's Journey (as described by Joseph Campbell and others). We discovered that the Hero's Journey is the fundamental pattern of human experience, so it could be used as a foundation for studying literature and film. As a bonus, we found that when students learned the pattern, they were able to relate the themes from literature to their own experience and to better understand the journeys in their own lives.

Developing a curriculum

With a clear understanding of the power and applicability of the journey archetype, we spent more than four years developing our new approach. The result of our effort is a curriculum we called The Hero's Journey: A Guide to Literature and Life.
Both of us had experience in publishing and graphics, so we decided to form a partnership to publish and market the curriculum ourselves. Thus, in 1995, Ariane Publications was born. ("Ariane," which rhymes with Mary Ann, is French for "Ariadne," the woman in the Greek myth of Minos and the Minotaur who helped Theseus escape from the labyrinth.) Now, nearly eight years later, the Hero's Journey curriculum is being used by schools in 28 states and four foreign countries, helping students understand the labyrinths they encounter in both literature and life.

Still a teacher-owned business

Susan left the partnership early on and I ran Ariane Publications as a sole-propriatorship until this year, when it became Harris Communications. I still teach full-time at Vintage High School. My goal with Harris Communications and in the seminars I present is still to use the archetype of the heroic journey to help teachers use literature, writing and film to guide their students in unfolding their own journeys.
To that end, I not only sell our original curriculum, but I continue to share ideas related to classroom instruction, educational reform and personal growth. I welcome communication with teachers and others interested in these areas. (To contact me, click here.)

"The Journey of 1000 miles begins from beneath your feet."

The Story of Harris Communications

Search for a new approach

Developing a curriculum

Still a teacher-owned business

"The Journey of
1000 miles begins from beneath
your feet."