I was going to write a newsletter about the way, but instead find myself writing about not knowing the way. Northrop Frye has an essay called “The Journey as Metaphor” that, as usual, is a rich compendium of illustrations of the imagery of the journey, the way, the quest, in myth and literature. The heroes, they seem to have maps to guide them, like those colored lines in hospital floors that tell you “This way to cardiology,” this way to the knowledge of the heart. In fact, Joseph Campbell says that the heroes have one universal map, of which all individual maps are variations: he calls it the Monomyth. It may be externalized as a real map, which accounts for the enduring popularity of the plot convention of a map showing where the treasure is buried, as in
February 2, 2024
February 2, 2024
February 2, 2024
I was going to write a newsletter about the way, but instead find myself writing about not knowing the way. Northrop Frye has an essay called “The Journey as Metaphor” that, as usual, is a rich compendium of illustrations of the imagery of the journey, the way, the quest, in myth and literature. The heroes, they seem to have maps to guide them, like those colored lines in hospital floors that tell you “This way to cardiology,” this way to the knowledge of the heart. In fact, Joseph Campbell says that the heroes have one universal map, of which all individual maps are variations: he calls it the Monomyth. It may be externalized as a real map, which accounts for the enduring popularity of the plot convention of a map showing where the treasure is buried, as in