Luke Skywalker and the Hero's Journey
In a harrowing escape, Luke Skywalker flees Tatooine aboard the Millennium Falcon. This scene perfectly encapsulate Joseph Campbell’s hero’s journey step Belly of the Whale. After the death of his aunt and uncle, Luke realizes that there is nothing holding him back, and he agrees to join Obi-Wan Kenobi to Alderaan. Luke, Obi-Wan Kenobi, and the droids go to Mos Eisley, thus signifying the step of crossing the first threshold. The group would find themselves at Chalmun’s Spaceport Cantina, looking to hire a skilled pilot named Han Solo. Here, Luke is quickly involved in some danger. Han Solo finally agrees, and the crew flees to the Millennium Falcon, escapes the chasing stormtroopers, and leaves Tatooine behind.
In this case, this cantina scene represents the Belly of the Whale. Campbell mentions how in this stage, the hero may face some danger. A bar-goer picks a fight with Luke, leaving him in potential danger. Luckily, Obi-Wan, Luke’s supernatural aid, swoops in to save him. The name Belly of the Whale refers to the Book of Jonah, where Jonah is swallowed by a fish and he would eventually be vomited out to shore. Luke’s escape from the cantina perfectly parallels Jonah’s story. The Belly of the Whale is the cantina, an enclosed space like a stomach, on Tatooine, the planet where Luke has never left. He then “vomited” out of there, via the Millennium Falcon, as it shot away, escaping from the Imperial Forces.
This scene plays a crucial part in Luke’s hero’s journey. The Belly of the Whale marks the beginning of the Initiation phase, a phase that takes up most of the movie. Without this stage and thrust into the Road of Trials, the storyline would not have progressed. Like Campbell describes, the hero is separated from the known world and “shows a willingness to undergo metamorphosis.” The idea of “no going back” is important in this stage. As he is “vomited” out of Tatooine and the only life he has known, Luke knows that he cannot return, and he must fulfill his duties. Luke and the crew flee into the unknown and into a new adventure. Immediately following this stage, Luke enters the Road of Trials, such as when he trains with the lightsaber. The Belly of the Whale stage acts as a critical push towards his journey and development.
Luke is a perfect portrayal of Campbell’s journey. Throughout the film, A New Hope, the stages of the hero’s journey is clearly depicted. The Belly of the Whale stage is illustrated via the cantina and the escape from Tatooine scene. The cantina acts as the belly and quite literally, Luke is vomited out of there as he and the crew escapes on the Millennium Falcon. There is no looking back for Luke. He is now thrusted in his journey, as he immediately starts the Road of Trials and continues on in his hero's journey. This scene marks a critical point in Luke’s hero’s journey as a representation of Joseph Campbell’s diagram.
Great blog post, Sarisa! I really like how you were able to closely analyze and present how Luke's experiences in the cantina scene represented Joseph Campbell's Belly of the Whale stage. I also appreciate how you defined what Campbell's BotW stage was so that we as readers could better understand the connections you were trying to draw. When we watched A New Hope together as a class, I also noticed very similar parallels that you drew attention to in this blog. I similary thought that the cantina stage was Luke's BotW because of the danger he faces and the new world of mystery he 'officially answers.' Great post!
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ReplyDeleteHello Sarisa, I really liked how you introduced some context of this scene in the beginning of the post. I think the context adds to your argument that it is the belly of the whale, because not only does this scene embody the characteristics of belly of the whale, but it also neatly fits into the chronological sequence of the belly of the whale step, i.e. right after "crossing the first threshold" by going to Mos Eisely and the "road of trials" which are the millennium falcon experiences. I also like how you showed how the Cantina scene is crucial to the plot that allows the rest of the initiation step to happen, as well as explained Luke's inner realization of being in a new world.
ReplyDeleteI agree, the use of context was very helpful when reading your article. This just occurred to me as I was watching your gifs but the port the space ship that Luke uses to forever leave his home plant was in is a circular space - representing the belly of the whale literally. I think you did a good job at not only highlighting the areas of the belly of the whale but also bringing to light some more subtle aspects of the film. Overall, great post!!
DeleteHi Sarisa, I enjoyed your usage and deep dive into the reference of The Book of Jonah, and thereafter using the 'vomited' reference. I completely agree that after his time in the Tavern, he is spewed into a new world that he was unfamiliar with. I also found interesting how you claimed Obi-Wan to be Luke's supernatural aid this early on in your analysis; Is this because we know he will help later on, or simply how you find it at this point? I enjoy retracing the steps of Campbell's monomyth after seeing how the movie ended. Well written!
ReplyDeleteI think it's interesting how your blog post is somewhat of a continuation of mine! I wrote about how Luke's entrance into Mos Eisley is the moment in which he crosses the first threshold and ended with talking about how the Cantina is the "belly of the whale" phase. I like how you interpreted the Cantina as an actual whale's belly and when Luke leaves, it represents him being "vomited" out. Overall great post, Sarisa!
ReplyDeleteSarisa, I really enjoyed your analysis of the Belly of the Whale stage in Luke’s hero’s journey! Your comparison to the Book of Jonah is a fresh and compelling way to frame the scene, and the idea of Luke being “vomited” out of Tatooine really emphasizes the finality of his departure. I also liked how you placed the Cantina within the broader structure of the hero’s journey, showing how it connects to the Crossing of the First Threshold and the Road of Trials. I’m curious on whether you think Luke’s internal transformation in the Cantina is as significant as his physical departure from Tatooine?
ReplyDeleteSarisa, this is a great post about the Belly of the Whale. The distinction between some of the Initiation stages sometimes is somewhat subtle, and you did an excellent job arguing for the defined section of the Belly of the Whale stage here. I particularly found your point about the concept of "no going back" as crucial for the metamorphosis enlightening and convincing, in contrast to merely entering Mos Eisley or their first encounter with the Stormtroopers, for example.
ReplyDeleteI think one key element of the belly of the whale that is laid out in monomyth diagram is the hero's "willingness to undergo a metamorphosis". In Star Wars, Luke embraces personal transformation by witnessing violence and danger in the cantina but still choosing to persist on his journey. This willingness to embrace change in tandem with the explicit imagery of entrance into the perilous cantina and prominent emergence clearly further strengthens your belly of the whale classification.
ReplyDeleteSarisa, I really loved your blog. I really enjoyed how you made it like an actual blog with all the photos; it made it very fun to read. I completely agree with your description of how the Belly of the whale is when Luke and Obi-Wan are in the bar. That scene really describes the first time that Luke faces danger in his journey. Good job on your blog!
ReplyDeleteSarisa, I agree with this argument. The Belly of the Whale has this element of "not going back" that we can only see in the Cantina. It is also true that the story line would have never progressed if Luke never got to go to a place so different from his home like Cantina. I also found it compelling to read because you added gives to illustrate your points.
ReplyDeleteSarisa, I think your argument in this post is really compelling. I wrote about the same scene and depicted it as crossing the first threshold, but stated that I could see a Belly of the Whale description as well. You did a nice job analyzing the scene, using words like "vomiting" and highlighting the importance of his duties to show the escape as Belly of the Whale. Great work.
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