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July 9, 2006

Campbell's Elixir or Storyteller's Smart Pill

February 04, 2009 03:13 PM EST (Updated: February 04, 2009 03:24 PM EST)

views: 128 | comments: 43

Campbell's* Elixir
Or
Storyteller's Smart Pill (Rictameter)

Driven
To seek the truth
And save the needy clan
The hero's bout in blighted swamps
Wrests the precious boon with valor and blood
More time and perilous testing
So to gift the treasure
With devotion
Driven

Hmm. Not a bad tenet for creating plot, either . . .!

*The Hero with a Thousand Faces by Joseph Campbell

Tags: jim ross, poem, poetry, rictameter, joseph campbell, myth, heros journey, writing, fiction, campbells elixir or storytellers smart pill, campbells elixir, storytellers smart pill

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Comments: 43

Bhawana 'Gather Proud Mom' Feb 4, 2009, 3:14pm EST

Truth, beauty and words...all are complimenting each other...Really in good shape.

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C C. Feb 4, 2009, 3:14pm EST

thanks for posting to commentsneeded.gather.com.

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Cristina S. Feb 4, 2009, 3:15pm EST

Jim, I don't exactly know what it's about, but it sounds beautifully nasty!

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Jim Ross Feb 4, 2009, 3:29pm EST

Thanks Geeta. Smiles.

My pleasure, CC. thank you.

Actually, Cristina, Campbell's work is a must for writer's who work with form. He's gone now, but highly (and rightfully) venerated.

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Jennifer Lee Feb 4, 2009, 3:34pm EST

Powerful and wonderfully penned my friend. I enjoyed the read. Thank you for posting to our group.

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Angela A. Feb 4, 2009, 3:42pm EST

Thanks for posting to my group, Anythingwriting

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Jim Ross Feb 4, 2009, 3:43pm EST

Hi, J. R.. My pleasure. Thank you so much.

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Jim Ross Feb 4, 2009, 3:43pm EST

My pleasure, Angela. Thank you for the nice comment.

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Ann M. (Site Scryer) Feb 4, 2009, 4:18pm EST

I've never seen The Hero's Journey so beautifully distilled. You even managed to shape your poem like a diamond!

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Kim B. Feb 4, 2009, 4:39pm EST

Very nice

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tammie p. Feb 4, 2009, 5:21pm EST

thank you for sharing this

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Pavan K. Feb 4, 2009, 5:58pm EST

thanks for posting

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DJ L. Feb 4, 2009, 7:38pm EST

looks good to me

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lynn a. Feb 4, 2009, 9:00pm EST

No one can ever replace Joseph Campbell. When his series was on PBS I'd watch it over and over to make sure I didn't miss a thing. And we had some of his books.

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Jim Ross Feb 5, 2009, 3:58am EST

Thank you, Ann. Campbell was a great teacher. Most of what he said actually stuck! Whenever my storytelling goes flaccid I turn to the hero's journey for help. The credit for the diamond shaped actually goes to the co-inventor of the rictameter form, Jason Wilkins. You can find several of his pieces here on Gather.

Thank you, Kim.

My pleasure, Tammie. I'm glad you liked it.

Hi, Pavan. My pleasure. :-)

Cool, DJ L.. Thank you for the nice comment.

I agree, Lynn. His work on mythology is monumental. Regarding the hero's journey, you might want to take a look at Christopher Vogler's "The Writer's Journey". Chris is a desciple of Campbell's, and has applied the tenets to the craft of storytelling. I highly recommend it. Thank you for your wonderful remembrance of an engrossing, soul filling
program by the master.

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C C. Feb 5, 2009, 9:51pm EST

thanks for posting to commentsneeded.gather.com

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Jim Ross Feb 6, 2009, 12:21am EST

My pleasure, C C. Thank you.

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Barbary Chaapel Feb 6, 2009, 6:09am EST

How clever! I love your innovation here, Jim.

And have a Joseph Campbell book within sight on the shelf above my computer at all times.

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Johnice R. Feb 6, 2009, 8:39am EST

This is a wonderful post...Thanks!
Happy Birthday!

Congrats, Member of the day from---Random Acts of Comments member.

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Jim Ross Feb 6, 2009, 9:44am EST

Hi, Barbary. Thank you. Kindred spirits.

Thank you, Johnice. Much appreciated.

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Marilyn M. Feb 6, 2009, 1:42pm EST

Excellent word crafting, Jim.

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Kelly K. Feb 6, 2009, 1:53pm EST

Very nice. I love Joseph Campbell, by the way.

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**AngelEyez** a. Feb 6, 2009, 4:32pm EST

this was very nicely written and great!!!

RAOC!

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Jim Ross Feb 6, 2009, 5:46pm EST

Thank you, Marilyn.

Cool, Kelly. he's sure got a lot to say! :-)

Thank you, AngelEyez. Much appreciated.

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juley g. Feb 6, 2009, 7:38pm EST

I love it!

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Jim Ross Feb 6, 2009, 11:09pm EST

Thank you, Juley G. much appreciated.

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Ruth MacGill Feb 7, 2009, 5:54am EST

I find most modern poetry quite inhibiting. once Iventure beyond Coleridge, Longfellow and James Whitcomb Riley an others of their ilk I'm ridiculously easy to mystify. Your poem and information opens up a new vista for me. I don't know anything about Joseph Campbell but I will look him up. I thought your poem might be about a Scottish war or feud.

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Coffee Lady Feb 7, 2009, 11:50am EST

Thank you for reminding me of Campbell's work; we all need a hero. He is now going onto my "must read" list. You use the rictameter for to it's fullest, and how bright you wor use is. Thank you, Friend

CoffeeLady

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Jim Ross Feb 7, 2009, 12:20pm EST

I can't wait to hear what you think about Campbell, Ruth. All I am trying to do here is sketch the steps of the Hero's Journey so to mirror his grand concept of it. Thank you so much for your comment. You always enlighten and bring cheer with your comments.

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