The Matrix & The Mono-myth

The "hero" is given a choice

Ericka Freyre
The Matrix & The Mono-myth
June 7, 2011

Everyone enjoys hearing adventurous stories about a hero that comes from nothing and rises above. According to Joseph Campbell every hero is destined to be sent on their quest. In The Matrix, Neo goes on a step by step journey that a "hero" in Joseph Campbell’s theory must undergo.

In Joseph Campbell’s theory the mono-myth  is a twelve stage hero’s journey. This is commonly found in numerous Hollywood movies such as Star Wars and The Wizard of Oz. One in particular is The Matrix. In this there is a basic three act structure (Benzite). It starts off in what is considered the ordinary world then to the special world and back to the ordinary world. There are many stages into the journey. The first stage is being in the ordinary world, then call to adventure, refusal of the call, meeting the mentor, crossing the threshold, tests allies and enemies, approach to the inmost cave, ordeal, reward, the road back, resurrection, and lastly the return with the elixir(Vogler). The first five stages take place in the ordinary world, and the next five are in the special world then finally the last two are back in the ordinary world.

In the Matrix Neo was sent on his quest that a hero must undergo to bring change and have some kind of knowledge when they return. The first stage is the character known as the hero in an ordinary world. The hero is normally a character that can be considered a recluse. Neo does not fit into his environment. After the intense fight scene we finally meet Neo where he comes into the movie asleep and is woken up to his computer. This can be a display of boredom. Sleep can be connected to boredom. At work, he called into his boss’s office where he seems distracted as he stares out the window. Here we can also infer he doesn’t like his job. He also has a side job as a hacker. His hacker name is Neo and, his work name is Thomas A. Anderson.

The second stage of his journey is the call to adventure. In this stage is the point in a person's life when they are told that there life is going to change ( Vogler). In the Matrix Neo received his calling when the computer (Morpheus) told him “follow the white rabbit.” The white rabbit was a tattoo on his clients girlfriends shoulder. At first he did not see the importance of this and it led him to Trinity they met in the club to which the white rabbit brought him to. She walks over to him and brings him in when she says “He told me that no one should look for the answer unless they have to because once you see it, everything changes.  Your life and the world you live in will never be the same.  It's as if you wake up one morning and the sky is falling” (Wachowski).  At this exact moment, Neo appeared to be captured by Trinity’s words. According to Vogler’s explanation on Campbell’s mono-myth this is when his ordinary world is disrupted and he is presented with the challenge that must be undertaken. What is the Matrix?

The third and fourth stage somewhat rely on one another. Just as all of the stages do but these two stands out to me the most. This is exactly when the adventure to finding one’s self begins, and this is when the hero receives his calling (Stroud). The fourth stage is when Neo meets his mentor. Stage three begins when Neo then receives his message from Trinity and he finally talks to Morpheus. Morpheus helps Neo escape from the Agents that are out to get him because he is “the one”.  Morpheus guides him to safety but out of fear which is the fourth stage (refusal of the call) he is captured by the agents. In the mono-myth this is brought on by the refusal of the call that in a result of refusal is suffering.. When he finally meets Morpheus they become acquainted in a room with two chairs. Neo finally gets to decide his destiny because he does not believe in fate. He is finally given a choice. According to the mono-myth in the time of finally meeting the mentor the hero is given something of great importance (Vogher).Morpheus asks Neo to choose between a blue pill or red pill. The blue pill will allow him to continue his life in the Matrix never knowing the true “reality”. The red pill opens up his mind and allows him to gain knowledge he never had before. He obviously chooses the red pill. Thus ultimately awakening Neo into reality or what truly is the Matrix.

In crossing the threshold (stage five) Neo finally enters The Matrix from being connected on the Nebuchadnezzar while he is “asleep.”  This is the beginning of Neo’s journey with his eyes open. When he finally see’s the Matrix for what it really is. In a “hero’s journey”, after he receives his calling the hero may do it whether it is willingly or he is forced to. He must make a cross between the world he is familiar with and one he is not. Thus bringing forth the change in the three act structure and finally being introduced into being in the special world (Benzite).  Neo is finally in the seat where he appears to be reborn onto the ship where he faces doubt with if he wants to stay on the ship with the crew.

After being in the Matrix for so long Morpheus brings Neo into the training program. This is where he tests Neo’s skills as a fighter through the knowledge the crew member Tank gives to him through this training program. It was said that “the one” would be fast enough to fight off the Agents, particularly Agent Smith. Stage six is about testing your(the hero’s) allies and enemies. The hero is brought out of his comfort zone and is given a series of challenges that will test him to see if he reaches the standards. His fight against Morpheus was preparation for when he fought against Agent Smith. At first he was difficult for Neo to fight but then he succeeds. Stage six is tests allies, and enemies. In this stage the location the character is in will bring terrible danger.

The seventh stage is known as the approach to the inmost cave. The settings in which the hero is in may appear to be dangerous. I see this as the scene when Trinity and Neo go back to save Morpheus. This scene is the most interesting because it shows how far Neo has come from when he first arrived on the ship. Although this is not the final battle, this is when Neo comes face to face with his fear and helps him understand his journey more. What awaits him is his final match when he goes head to head with Agent Smith.

Neo is faced with the eighth stage when the agents are breaking into the system. Neo and Trinity are trying to escape by going into the phone booth. This get away was very important because in this scene is when the hero must come face to face with the crisis he must survive. Neo and Agent Smith begin their fight. Neo finally becomes intact with his powers and the abilities that only “the one” has. He sees the Matrix for what it truly is and becomes stronger and faster than Agent Smith. In this he is overcoming stage nine when he reaches his greatest challenge and gets his reward ,Neo’s strength against Agent Smith increases to its highest capacity(stage nine).As he remains in the “ordinary world” throughout the battle he dies before he can beat Agent Smith(stage ten). When he resurrects to become stronger and faster he defeats the Agents and goes back onto the ship (stage eleven). This is when Neo is finally at the final stage. In this case when Neo returns the elixir isn’t a sword or a ruby pair slippers, Neo returns with great strength and the knowledge that he is the one.

Throughout the stages you notice a drastic change in Neo’s character he becomes more aware of his surroundings and isn’t the odd one anymore. On the ship he fits in and finally belongs. He gains knowledge throughout his quest and defeats the bad guys maintaining the role of a hero.

For more on scripts and a hero's journey:

The Handsomest Drowned Man in the World & The Tell-Tale Heart

Ericka Freyre
May 30, 2011


The Handsomest Drowned Man in the World starts off with children playing by the sea. In the water they discover what appears to be a ship but is actually a man. The children played with his body until someone spotted them. Men brought him back to the village noticing how big he was they thought it happened because he drowned in water. The corpse had scales on its body. They noticed he was not apart of their village and went off to find where he came from. The woman removed the scales from his body while admiring his beauty. Questioning where he was from and why he had no place to belong to. The eldest of the village states “he has a face of someone called Esteban” the younger woman describe him to be Lautaro. They deeply admire his features as they clothed him. With no place to call him the village decides to bury him in the sea. The women refusing for him to be tied down by an anchor that the men suggested. They were pleased at the thought of his return not allowing the men to tie an anchor around him so that he may return. The village was never the same. They enlarged everything in case someone like Esteban were to return


The Tell-Tale heart is a story about a man who feels deeply malevolent towards a man with an eye of a vulture. He offers to take caring and loving to the man a week before he decided to kill him. Every night around midnight he would creep to his door only opening it a bit so that the lantern he had can fit and he watch this man. He felt tortured by this man’s eye and only hated the eye and not the man. When he finally got caught by the old man it was because a mistake he made with the lantern. The old man grew scared as he laid in bed. To comfort himself he blamed it on what could have been a mouse running across the floor. When he kills the old vulture eye man he buries him underneath the floor board. Where becomes haunted by his heart. The police show up and he continues to hear the heart. The police men make their way around the old man’s house. But find nothing. As the man sits above the older man’s body he becomes anxious and confesses. It was not the old man he hated but the old man’s eye.

Research Reflection.

Professor McCormick has taught us many key things in our English 103 class. Before this class I was in a writing class. Which is much different than writing a research paper. We only wrote papers about stories and compared them. We never cited information just quoted. So it’s a lot different.

Professor McCormick taught us a lot from making detailed outlines for every paper to adding to it to build on that paper. I was never a fan of making outlines but it is key to starting a paper. It helps me a lot with my first draft. The key thing I do is write my thesis before beginning my paper so that I have a basic idea of what I will be writing about. Recently we learned things when writing a paper on a story you must write in present tense. Professor McCormick also taught us when writing a research paper to construct it with what can be seen as a sandwich. You start with your introduction and you contextualize. The middle is quoting and you end it with your analysis that connects with your thesis statement. When writing a research paper it is very important to cite information. Every source has a different citation instruction.

The easiest citation is for books!!
Author's Last Name, Author's First Name. Full Title. Place of Publication: Publisher, Date. Medium of Publication [Print]. Series

Citations can be so confusing. But following the citation format can be very helpful. Thank you Dr.McCormick for introducing us to these techniques.

The Matrix & The Mono-Myth

Ericka Freyre
Draft 1: The Matrix & The Mono-myth
May.16, 2011

(Note: VERY Rough Draft!!!)

According to Joseph Campbell every hero is destined to be sent on their quest. In the Matrix, Neo goes on a step by step journey that a "hero" in Joseph Campbell’s theory must undergo.

In Joseph Campbell’s theory it is a twelve stage hero’s journey. This is commonly found in numerous Hollywood movies such as Star Wars and The Wizard of Oz. One in particular is The Matrix. In this there is a basic three act structure. It starts off in the ordinary world then to the special world and back to the ordinary world. There are many stages into the journey. The first stage is being in the ordinary world, then call to adventure, refusal of the call, meeting the mentor, crossing the threshold, tests allies and enemies, approach to the inmost cave, ordeal, reward, the road back, resurrection, and lastly the return with the elixir.

In the Matrix Neo was sent on his quest that a hero must go on to bring change and have some kind of knowledge when they return. The first stage is the character known as the hero in an ordinary world. The hero is normally a character that does not fit in. Neo does not fit into his environment. He comes into the movie asleep and is woken up to his computer. This can be a display of boredom. At work he called into his boss’s office where he seems distracted as he stares out the window. Here we can also infer he doesn’t like his job

The second stage is the call to adventure. The call to adventure is the point in a person's life when they are told that there life is going to change. In the Matrix Neo received his calling when the computer told him “follow the white rabbit.” At first he did not see the importance of this. This led him to Trinity they met in the club that the white rabbit brought him to. She walks over to him and brings him in when she says “He told me that no one should look for the answer unless they have to because once you see it, everything changes. Your life and the world you live in will never be the same. It's as if you wake up one morning and the sky is falling.” At this exact moment is when Neo appeared to be captured by Trinity’s words. According to Campbell’s mono myth this is when his ordinary world is disrupted and he is presented with the challenge that must be undertaken. What is the Matrix?

The third and fourth stage somewhat rely on one another. Just as all of the stages do but these two stands out to me the most. This is exactly when the adventure to finding one’s self begins. This is when the hero receives his calling. Now after Neo receives his message from Trinity. He finally talks to Morpheus. He helps him escape from the Agents that are out to get him because he is “the one”. Morpheus guides him to safety but out of fear which is the fourth stage (refusal of the call) he is captured by the agents. In the mono-myth this is brought on by the refusal of the call that in a result of refusal is suffering. The fourth stage is when he meets his mentor. When he finally meets Morpheus they become acquainted in a room with two chairs. Neo finally gets to decide his destiny because he does not believe in fate. He is finally given a choice. According to the mono-myth in the time of finally meeting the mentor the hero is given something of great importance .Morpheus asks for Neo to choose between the blue pill or red pill. He obviously chooses the red pill. Thus ultimately awakening Neo into reality or what truly is the Matrix.

In crossing the threshold Neo finally enters The Matrix through being on the Nebuchadnezzar while he is “asleep.” This is the beginning of Neo’s journey with his eyes open.
In a hero’s journey this is after he receives his calling and may do it whether it is willingly or he is forced to. He must make a cross between the world he is familiar with and one he is not. Thus bringing forth the change in the three act structure and finally being introduced into being in the special world. Neo is finally in the seat where he appears to be reborn onto the ship where he faces doubt with if he wants to stay on the ship with the crew.

Technology and Mythic Narrative:The Matrix as Technological Hero-Quest

In the article "Technology and Mythic Narrative:The Matrix as Technological Hero-Quest" it does into detail in which Joseph Cambell's theory is shown in The Matrix. In his theory there is a step by step procedure in which the "Hero" must undergo. He calls this the Hero's Journey(also known as the mono-myth).

1. Hero is not comfortable with his environment
2. He receives his call to the adventure
3. Refuses the call because of fear
4. Overcomes his fear by meeting his mentor
5. Crossing threshold setting out on adventure
6. Test allies and enemies
7. Approach to face battle or struggle
8. Actual moment of facing struggle
9. Reward, if you survive
10.Road back and finish your quest,known as the chase.
11.Resurrection. death once more at a deeper level
12.Return with the elixir

Hero must go on journey to bring change and have some king of knowledge when they return.

Neo was in an environment he did not feel a part of. In the beginning he was asleep and went to work where he seemed distracted. He received his call when he had to 'follow the white rabbit' and went to the club and met Trinity for the first time.He then refuses because his fear. And in the movie it appeared to be his fear of heights. But it has a deeper significant meaning. He overcomes the doubt when he meets Morpheus who has faith of him being the one.As he questions his surronding's on the Nebuchadnezzar. He faces the battle to bring Morpheus back.He was faced with a great challenge in which he found out he was the one. And when he comes back he is awakened after his resurection and brings forth the knowledge he never had.

Cyberpunk & The Matrix

Cyberpunk is a science fiction story based on a computer based society. The basic characters to any cyberpunk story are hackers, artificial intelligence and mega-corporations. The time period is to be based in futuristic time period. These are all found in The Matrix. The Matrix is the computer based society in which Neo lives in. In most cyberpunk writings the story can take place in a cyber space, online or an alternate reality that is unclear whether it is real or not. The directors the Wachowskis brothers bring out the question is it real? You must pay close attention to the storyline so you don’t lose track of what’s going on. The hackers would be Neo, Trinity, Morpheus and the rest of the group. They constantly go in and out of the Matrix. The mega-corporations would be the three sinister agents that are in the Matrix.

TPODG Draft.

Ericka Freyre
The Picture of Dorian Grey: Influence


ALOT TO WORK ON!

Influence plays a big part in our everyday lives. Influence can be used for creativity, love and manipulation. All in which have to do with the imagination. In the story The Picture of Doran Grey all these influences are brought to life and shown in Basil Hallward, Dorian Grey as well as Sybil Vane.


In all four characters they are influenced in this way that two with what can be viewed as a positive outcome and two with a negative outcome. Basil’s love for Dorian Grey betters his painting career by painting a masterpiece. As well as the love Sybil has for Dorian gives her the experience of true love. On the other hand the influence of Lord Henry destroys Dorian Grey's perception. Just as Dorian Grey’s love for Sybil destroyed her creativity. In all situations they end badly no matter how positive the intentions are. But also in the perspective that all along it was Dorian causing the negative influence.

Throughout the whole story Dorian Grey actually becomes the bad influence. Perhaps the only reason Lord Henry spoke those words to Dorian was simply because Dorian’s sex appeal is what triggered Lord Henry to speak words he did not know he would say. Just like Basil became in terror over Dorian’s looks and the love for Dorian killed Sybil’s imagination. All these different influences cause one ending.

Influence can have a different outcome. Influence comes from being influenced. And being influenced has many different outcomes.

A beautiful Mind

The movie A Beautiful Mind displays acts of genius, insanity and madness. The lead character of this movie is a man named John Nash. John was a mathematician who went to Princeton. In Princeton he dorms with his good friend Charles.
John Nash is a genius who invents what I think was an economical equation. With his theory he is then put on a top secret mission. He is given his own practice were he chose two of his friend to work with him. He becomes distant with Charles as he begins working on his top secret mission as well as with his two college buds.
Throughout the movie whether he is truly is a genius is questioned. After John Nash comes up with this equation the top secret mission he was put on does not exist. Nash has a best friend and he has a niece and a boss who works for the CIA. When Nash is diagnosed it is revealed that he has schizophrenia. It appears that he made up these people to become comfortable in the new environment he was in, he had no friends and thus Charles was created. Being chosen for a top secret mission gave him importance. I think Charles niece was a very important character to help Nash realize what was real and what wasn’t. He no longer needed Charles when he had his friends.
In order for Nash to overcome his insanity his ‘genius’ kicked in and realized Charles niece never grew up after five years. So through his madness that was caused by the insanity he overcame his troubles by finding the solution and with his wife Alicia’s help he continued to try.

Right Brain :)

Right Brain/ Left Brain Quiz The higher of these two numbers below indicates which side of your brain has dominance in your life. Realising your right brain/left brain tendancy will help you interact with and to understand others. Left Brain Dominance: (7) Right Brain Dominance: (9) Right Brain/ Left Brain Quiz

Dodgson in Wonderland By: Joanna Richardson

   In the article Richardson it goes into deep detail about how Dodgson (Carroll) puts his reality into Wonderland. From the main character Alice to the Cheshire Cat.

Alice is actually Alice Liddell the daughter of the Dean of Christ Church. Alice describes Dodgson is great detail by saying he always wore black clergy man’s clothes in Oxford, but when he took us out on the river he used to wear white flannel trousers….a straw hat and black boots…” Richardson describes Dodgson as uptight and a children lover. Dodgson says “I cannot understand how anyone could be bored by little children. ”So this brings me to the idea of Dodgson’s feelings for Alice specifically making her the main character of wonderland. Dodgson explains his feelings towards Alice on a trip with Duckworth. Who is actually the same duck from the story Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. Duckworth is the duck in the chapter Pool of Tears. When telling the story to Alice Duckworth says “Dodgson, is this an extempore romance of yours?” And he replies “Yes….” I think that, that right there shows his feelings towards Alice and they do not appear innocent. He tells the story of Alice’s Adventures Underground which was the original name of the story. As we get into the story Alice’s Adventures Underground, in the article it is as though it is Dodgson saying it to Alice. Richardson explains how the idea of the characters came about. Dodgson not only puts Alice Liddell in his story but the Mad Hatter was a man living in Oxford whose name was Theophilus Carter. He was a man that wore his hat on the back of his head. The Cheshire Cat was an idea that came from an article Dodgson read about a Cheshire grin thus the invention of the Cheshire Cat. Other characters that play a role in Dodgson’s life in the Pools of Tears chapter are Lorina Liddell as the Lory and the youngest sister Edith as the Eaglet. A lot of the characters in the story played a role in Dodgson’s life.

Peer Review Worksheet

1)  I feel that my first sentence is attention grabbing as well as relevant to the topic.
2) My thesis is to the point.
3) I feel that my paper is well organized but i can develop my ideas a bit MORE.
4) Because it is my paper I'm not aware of any of my grammar mistakes. But I'm sure they are there!
5)I said what pages i found my information on.
6) I have well developed idea.

Alice's Diagnosis- First Draft.

Have you ever had a dream that was so vivid you thought it was real? We all know the story of Alice in Wonderland. Every character in this story is completely wacko. They can all be diagnosed with a variety of diseases. I chose to diagnose Alice with cognitive distortion.

Cognitive distortion is a type of defense mechanism. In this defense mechanism a person would unconsciously try to reduce anxiety. You would most likely dream what you are unconsciously thinking. Just like Alice. The definition of cognitive distortion is a gross reshaping of external reality to meet internal needs. Sound familiar? Cognitive distortion is broken down to several branches. I chose three in relation to Alice,and they are mental filter,emotional reasoning and magnification and minimization. This also known as the binocular trick.

In the story Alice in Wonderland Alice is a little girl with a very weird imagination. Assuming that Alice is a seven year old it is very hard for me to believe that she is a “normal child”. A dream is your subconscious thoughts. To have cognitive distortion means you are a negative person with self-defeating thoughts. Alice is constantly questioning others. As a seven year old shouldn’t you just listen to what you are told? Not Alice. Which brings me to my main diagnosis: Wonderland is Alice’s reshaped reality that meets her internal needs.

This brings me to my first point. It is known as the mental filter. According to psychologists this is when your vision of reality becomes darkened or distorted.When reading about Alice in her ‘wonderland’ my over all feeling is that it is Alice’s darkened view of her life. Many people can say its just a typical little girls imagination but hers appears different.Although we do not see what her life is like we can infer from her dream because dreams are your deep thoughts that lie in your subconscious. Alice appears to be a know it all seven year old.

Next is emotional reasoning. Alice always goes against what anyone else says. In the chapter when she joins the tea party. Like all seven year old she questions many of the characters. At the table is the Hatter, March Hare and the Dormouse. On page 97 the discussion begins and ends on 97 where each character bickers at what Alice is saying. I’m sure it is because she always has something to say. What made me think this is emotional reasoning is because the word hastily was used. This can be seen as a normal conversation but the word hastily means in a hurry.Emotional reasoning is making decisions and arguments based on intuitions or personal feeling rather than an objective rationale and evidence. Alice starts the argument by saying “I’m glad they’ve begun asking riddles-I believe I can guess that”. Followed by the March Hare saying “Do you mean that you think you can find out the answer to it?” She then gives her hastily remark. But the Hatter jumps in and explains the different between “I see what I eat and I eat what i see. The bickering can also be found on pages 99 and 101. Where she begins to pick at other things.


According to psychologist the binocular trick means to exaggerate the importance of things ,or you inappropriately shrink things until they appear tiny.In the dream its self Alice becomes big and small when she eats a cake she becomes small when she drinks she becomes big. Maybe that is her way is describing herself. Since we do not see what Alice’s real life is like we can infer that this can possibly be her reflection of herself. Perhaps she likes somethings about herself or surroundings more then others. The dream interpretation for shrinking reflects your feelings of unimportance. So this can mean she thinks little of herself at times. At since it is only sometimes. Perhaps it depends on her surroundings.


Cognitive distortion can relate to other characters as well. What makes it stick out the most in Alice is its her dream,and her mind. Which worries me because she is so young and has such a negative perception. Alice can get help.Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is a type of talking therapy, that aims to solve problems dealing with your inner emotions.

Proposal " A crazy bad wonderful idea."

I don't have just one idea when trying to connect Alice in Wonderland to anything psychological. The story can link to many different things.I think I'm going to focus on:
Dreaming & Sleeping-
Dream- Each charachter in wonderland can represent someone in 'real life'
Sleep - When having the sleeping disorder insomnia you make be unsure what is real and what isn't.

Alice in Wonderland

As I was growing up I always enjoyed the story Alice in Wonderland. The story is very interesting. Re-reading the story always seems fun. I catch different things in the story that I didn't notice before. The story begins with Alice talking to her sister and then see's the rabbit that brings her to wonderland. He brings her into a room where she comes across the 'eat me' cake and 'drink me' bottle.  In the second chapter she floods a hall with her tears and talks to the mouse.

About Me

Hello, my name is Ericka Freyre. My last name is pronounced Fray-er for those of you who don't know how to pronounce it.  I am 19 years old. I have four brothers and finally a baby sister on the way. I am a painter , but the chances of me being recognized as one are slim to none. I do it because I enjoy it, not to become famous or anything. I would like to be a science or history teacher. Not really sure yet. I'm not good at writing about myself. And im pretty sure I was staring at the first two sentences for sometime now. But now its just flowing. Maybe because im typing a load of crap! But atleast its coming to me. I dont think i'll post this. Maybe just show it to Kelly. I met Kelly in our first semester. We had a writing class together. I'm going to have to do this over when I get home. 

On a more serious note. I am a pretty quiet person, I enjoy listening to music. My favorite band is Emarosa. I used to go to alot of shows to see alot of different bands. Its been a while. Im in a relationshiop with a guy I met in kindergarten. We have changed alot since then. Hes a lifeguard. I like to say hes my muse. Its pretty silly. But he sorta inspires me. When i first started painting it was just for a class but then i fell in love with it. I have 12 painting done so far. I have only 2 of them. The current one im working on is train tracks going into a pool of water. The painting is zoomed in on just  what looks like train tacks in water. Its pretty great so far.
The majority of my paintings are just abstract. I totally suck at still life.

I dont watch T.V. I stick to netflix. Im currently addicted to Desperate Housewives. My favorite show is The Office. I absolutely love The Office.


This is a little about me..i'll be sure to write more later.