Here's a great description of the principals of 'the hero's journey' as they're conveyed in the Romance genre - that was posted to the
YT page of the recent MindMatters show:
Elizabeth Ellen Carter
"Originally, the term romance referred not the contents of a book, but rather its form. These original romances were epic adventures full of daring deeds and heroism.
From the 1300s, romance referred to reciting a narrative from the Old French romancier, which meant ‘to translate into French’. Prior to that, it had come from romanicus, meaning of the Roman style.
These narratives, although written, were often performed. Can you imagine everyone gathered around the flicking firelight while one of the household recited the passages from Beowulf or the story of King Arthur? From there we get to chivalric romances – noble knights imbued with honour, fulfilled their quest and returned to claim the hand of the beautiful maiden. The French particularly specialised in tales of courtly love.
Okay the history lesson from the historical romance writer is over.
What about the romance bit?
1. A hero has a quest
He knows his purpose in life. He doesn’t let life happen to him. He has a clear objective and a clear morality. He knows there is risk. And he takes it any way in the pursuit of the highest good. In fact the word virtue comes from the same Latin root word as virile, so it’s no accident.
2. A hero takes responsibility
Not only for himself and his actions, but also for other things about him. He doesn’t leave it for other people to do. A hero is willing and able to deal with an issue, even if it is not of his own making. A hero has ‘response ability’ which means he has trained and prepared himself to act effectively when the situation calls for it.
3. A hero has courage
A hero knows things aren’t going to go his way all the time. Sometimes the odds are really stacked against him. Sometimes he has to descend to the depths of hell to defeat the foe. He know what is at stake if he fails. He know what the opportunities are if he succeeds. He finds his courage because he draws on his purpose, moral clarity and ‘response ability’ to fight for victory.
4. The hero acknowledges that a weak man cannot be a virtuous man
A hero masters his inner beast, the dark force, the capacity for malevolence that lives within his heart. He doesn’t deny it. Instead he acknowledges it and uses it to develop his courage and strength. Think Luke Skywalker tempted by the Dark Side; Christ’s temptation in the wilderness. A hero is good because he chooses not to be bad. A hero who has integrated his darker nature, and mastered it, becomes a formidable man.
What about the heroine?
A true romantic heroine is no helpless damsel in distress. She is an equal partner on this joint quest but acknowledges there are some paths the hero must walk alone.
She encourages the hero to find his inner courage and helps him fully realise his capacity for valour and honour.
A real romantic heroine never betrays the hero. As the adventure becomes dangerous, she is the one person above all on whom he can rely. And if the heroine herself has dragons of her own to slay, she has enough courage to allow him to step in help, if needed."
