"In symbolic form [the uninvited gods] represent essential forces and impulses that we suppress . . . the parts of ourselves that we send into exile...Dreams can then turn into nightmares. The spring dry up, songs become silent and inner regidity prevents all movement."
Friedemann Wieland
The Journey
of the Hero

Lesson Plan: The Call Refused

(This lesson plan is from The Hero's Journey: A Guide to Literature and Life, teacher's manual, by Reg Harris and Susan Thompson, copyright 1997 by Ariane Publications. All rights reserved. Go to Ordering Information for information on ordering the curriculum. Please honor my copyright and work. Do not reproduce this material.)

Introduction

The Call Refused is a crucial part of this unit because it shows what happens when we reject the Call to grow. The great tragedies in literature often deal with characters who have refused, in one way or another, a Call: Macbeth, Willy Loman, Romeo and Juliet. Many of our students are in the process of refusing their Calls, without understanding or realizing it. The results of this interminable immaturity are obvious. Understanding the consequences of refusing the Call can help students look more deeply into literature and have a better perspective on the consequences of their own choices.

Key concepts

Refusing the Call is a rejection of the natural process of growth and responsibility.
The adventure doesn't go away just because we refuse it; it becomes a horrible mirror, reflecting our weaknesses and fears; it becomes a source of bitterness and frustration.
When we refuse a Call, we will find ourselves facing the same types of situations (i.e., the same as the one we rejected) again and again because if we don't confront our fears, needs and weaknesses, they will haunt everything we do.
Much of our great literature and film deals with a character refusing a Call and then suffering the consequences or struggling to rectify the mistake.

Objectives

Students will see refusing the Call as a choice to reject the natural, fulfilling process of growth.
Students will be able to see how many tragic characters in literature and film have, in some way or another, refused a Call.

Suggested Approach

Read the introduction to The Call Refused (SB 49, SP 33) aloud in class. Then ask students to think about decisions by asking and discussing these questions about Gawain, Buddha, and Terence Mann and Archie Graham in the film Field of Dreams. (Questions could also become a writing assignment or journal entry.)

How did Gawain grow by accepting his Call? If he had rejected the challenge, how would he have felt? How would he have viewed life? How would his life have changed? How would Camelot and the Knights of the Round Table have been different?
In the "Legend of Buddha," Siddhartha feels discontent with his princely life. What would have happened if he had rejected his Call to enlightenment? How would he have viewed his family and life? What kind of ruler would he have been?
Look at Archie Graham from Field of Dreams. Was playing professional baseball his true calling? What would have happened if he had kept playing? In the film, Archie faced the same choice he faced early in his life: play baseball or be a healer. Why did Archie step across the line? How would his "life" have been different if he had not accepted that Call?
In a sense, Terence Mann (Field of Dreams) is a good study of a man who has refused his Call. He was seen as a great writer, thinker and leader, but he became disillusioned and dropped out. How did his life change when he rejected his call? What kind of person did he become? How does his apartment door (with its locks) symbolize the consequences of refusing his Call? Why does he go with Ray?

During the discussion, which could take most of a class period, be sure to bring out the "Key Concepts" listed above. Your students should be aware that if we don't deal with a weakness, fear or need when the opportunity (Call) presents itself, we will find ourselves facing similar situations which attack that weakness again and again. We create our own labyrinths, going around and around, seeing the same scenery, looking for an exit. The truth is, deep down inside we know where the exit is, if we can only find the help (an Ariadne) and the courage to take it.

We see the uninitiated all around us, trapped in roles because they ignored or missed a call to growth:

the martyr who can never say no and ends up living her life for others because of that weakness,
the diffident man for whom every opportunity evokes fear, anger, bitterness and frustration,
the cynic who is negative and bitter about everything, who suspects everyone, and thinks only of herself,
the innocent/novice who never accepted the Call to growth and self-responsibility, who looks for a "parent" in every situation to rescue and care for him,

the warrior who sees every situation as a challenge to be met with strength, brute force, and power.

With this introduction, you are ready for Groundhog Day, a film that illustrates metaphorically the trap we face when we refuse the calls in our lives. (See the Lesson Plan for Groundhog Day, page 115.)

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