Recently, I had the pleasure of spending two days hanging out with seventh graders. The English department at Cheyenne Mountain Junior High (Go Thunderbirds!) had contacted me and asked if I would be interested in talking about literary archetypes in teen literature with their students as part of their unit on literary elements and characteristics (the Colorado Academic Standards/Common Core State Standards for Reading: Standards 2.1, 2.3, and 3.1, if you want to know).
Are you kidding? A chance to hang out with the age group for whom I write? To talk about reading and writing and favorite books? To chat with future authors during break about the struggles and joys of writing? An opportunity to use my Lord of the Rings lunch box that comes with its own matching Thermos?
Yeah. I couldn’t say yes in fast enough.
First of all: What is an archetype? To paraphrase several Jungian experts: An archetype is a constantly recurring or repeating symbol or motif that represents universal patterns of human nature. It is NOT a stereotype (which takes a general type of person and oversimplifies their qualities into predictable or clichéd types).
The psychologist, Carl Gustav Jung, used the concept of archetype in his theory of the human psyche. He believed that universal, mythic characters—archetypes—reside within the collective unconscious of people.
Male Archetypes:
Warrior
Pilgrim
Wildman
Lover
Patriarch
Healer
Magician
King
Prophet
Trickster
Female Archetypes:
Maiden-Mother-Crone (the essence of the feminine changes through time)
The Innocent
Waif/Orphan
Spunky kid/Jester
Seductress
Librarian
Rebel
Nurturer/Creator
Now, please keep in mind that there is no hard and fast rule about the number or types of male and female archetypes. Some archetypes, too, can be both male and female: magician, pilgrim, warrior, and ruler. And, certainly, many characters will be a blend of several types. But, no matter how they are use, these universal motifs can be a powerful tool for writers.
Darby Karchut is an award-winning author, dreamer, and compulsive dawn greeter. A native of New Mexico, she now lives in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains, where she runs in blizzards and bikes in lightning storms. When not dodging death by Colorado, Darby is busy writing for children, teens, and adults. Darby has recently been chosen as one of nine Mentors for the SCBWI-Rocky Mountain Chapter’s 2016/2017 Michelle Begley Mentor Program. She will be working one-on-one with an aspiring MG or YA writer for 6 months starting in January. Darby is represented by Amanda Rutter at Red Sofa Literary.
Purchase Darby’s newest book in the Finn Finnegan series, Finn’s Choice.
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