Philosophy and the Hero’s Journey

Hegel’s Dialectic – Hegel’s Dialectic—thesis, antithesis and synthesis—offers us valuable insights into the psychological processes that drive the Hero’s Journey. This article explores the strong parallels between the dialectic and the cycle of the journey.

The Hermeneutic Loop – Hermeneutics is “the art of interpretation.” Its clearest expression is the interpretive cycle of the Hermeneutic Loop. Understanding the Hermeneutic Loop can give us a deeper understanding of the transformation that occurs in the Hero’s Journey.

“Hsiang Sheng”: Mutually Arising Opposites – The Taoist concept of hsiang-sheng or “mutually or dependently arising opposites” gives us some profound insights into the psychological process of the Hero’s Journey, especially aspects of the Call, Threshold and Road of Trials.

The Yin-Yang: Polarity and the Hero’s Journey – We are all familiar with the taijitu or Yin-Yang, the Taoist symbol for the unity and cyclic nature of all life. This article explores the meaning of the taijitu and the insights the Yin-Yang concept can give us into the Hero’s Journey.