There are three parts of a story that are difficult to write: the beginning, the middle, and the ending. (I was going to start the article by referencing the ending of a story as one of the hardest parts, but then I realized… it’s all hard. Ahem.) Each has its own special set of challenges, […]
May 17, 2021 by 32 Comments CharactersArchetypal Character Arcs, Pt. 15: Introduction to the 6 Flat Archetypes
In studying character arcs, writers easily recognize Positive-Change Arcs and Negative-Change Arcs. But somewhat more baffling can be the stories that appear to feature neither. These are stories in which the protagonist does not change or seems to have no character arc at all. How do these stories fit into the discussion of archetypal character […]
April 5, 2021 by 41 Comments CharactersArchetypal Character Arcs, Pt. 9: The Maiden’s Shadow Archetypes
In so many ways, we view life as a story. Within the lifelong journey of this story, the first challenge is that of becoming an autonomous individual—an independent and responsible adult. However obvious that may be, the journey itself cannot be taken for granted. Indeed, although we may all grow up chronologically, the struggle to […]
March 29, 2021 by 55 Comments CharactersArchetypal Character Arcs, Pt. 8: Introduction to the 12 Shadow Archetypes
Where there is light, there is shadow. Where there is a right way to do things, there are usually several ways to do it wrong. So it goes with archetypal character arcs and their potential shadow archetypes—of which there are two for every positive archetype. Over the last few months, we have explored six successive […]
March 22, 2021 by 70 Comments CharactersArchetypal Character Arcs, Pt. 7: The Mage Arc
The final two archetypal character arcs in the life cycle deal primarily with questions of Mortality—and thus inevitably with the ultimate questions about the meaning of life. Throughout this series, we’ve viewed the six “life arcs” as part of a unified story structure, or Three Acts. The First Act—featuring the Maiden and the Hero—focused on […]
March 15, 2021 by 69 Comments CharactersArchetypal Character Arcs, Pt. 6: The Crone Arc
Within the saga of the six archetypal character arcs representing the cycle of human life, the two “elder” arcs that comprise the Third Act of life are perhaps the least dramatized. These arcs are those of the Crone and the Mage. In studying these arcs, it becomes evident that the Third Act of story structure […]
March 8, 2021 by 53 Comments CharactersArchetypal Character Arcs, Pt. 5: The King Arc
If we view the human life and thus the six archetypal character arcs of the “life arcs” as taking on the classic story-structure format of Three Acts, then it is no coincidence that the all-important Midpoint marks the transition from the Queen Arc to the King Arc. In any story, the structural Midpoint represents in […]
March 1, 2021 by 75 Comments CharactersArchetypal Character Arcs, Pt. 4: The Queen Arc
What happens after the happily ever after? This is a question we often ask but seldom explore. As discussed in previous weeks, the two archetypal character arcs that begin the cycle of six “life arcs” are the Maiden and the Hero. Together, they account for a great majority of the archetypal stories we read and […]
February 22, 2021 by 70 Comments CharactersArchetypal Character Arcs, Pt. 3: The Hero Arc
Ah, the hero. Heroic stories are so important and so prevalent throughout the history of storytelling that the word “hero” itself has become all but synonymous with that of “protagonist.” That the Hero Arc is in fact but one of many important archetypal character arcs does not lessen its importance within the cycle. The Hero’s […]
February 15, 2021 by 132 Comments CharactersArchetypal Character Arcs, Pt. 2: The Maiden Arc
The First Act of the human experience—roughly the first thirty years—may be thought of as a period of Initiation. It is a period of integrating the parts of one’s self. In many ways, it is a period in which the overarching, symbolic antagonist may be thought of as Fear. We use the arcs of this […]
