Preview

Hero's Journey Of Grenouille

Better Essays
Open Document
Open Document
1508 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Hero's Journey Of Grenouille
The Ironic Hero’s Journey of Grenouille in Patrick Süskind’s Perfume In Perfume, Patrick Süskind illustrates Grenouille as a villain through language, however, the structure of Grenouille’s story mirrors one of a hero. The scholar Joseph Campbell defines a popular structure in literature of a hero’s story, called the “Hero’s Journey” (Vogler). This structure follows a hero through his/her adventure and the things that he/she faces. It includes a call to adventure, supernatural aid, threshold, revelation, transformation, and return. Süskind constructs a story with this structure to ironically juxtapose Grenouille’s true character. This irony creates a much more intriguing character than a stereotypical villain, creating a disturbing quality …show more content…
This character’s epiphany represents more maturity and growth from who they were when they began. It leads to transformation as the character accepts change. Süskind demonstrates the revelation when Grenouille resides in the mountain for seven years emerging as a new person. When he first arrives to the mountain he “needed a very long time to believe what he was not smelling” (Süskind, 120). The shock he experiences highlights amazement of finding a peaceful place for him. Often, monks go to remote locations alone to “find themselves”. The monks emerge very different people as they put themselves through fasting, vows, and living a life of non-indulgence (Vallely). Thus, Süskind includes the connection to monks to highlight the irony of the situation. Grenouille is a murderer and yet he puts himself though the life of a non-violent, religious monk. He doesn’t embark on this path to reach God, but to know himself (Süskind, 123). Süskind organizes the story so that Grenouille will go through a change via self-reflection. Similarity to the life of the monks makes it apparent that Grenouille will change and the structure of the story compliments this thought process. Having Grenouille kill someone, then the revelation, manifests hope in the readers to believe he will emerge being a hero. Süskind manipulates the expectations of the readers to crate …show more content…
Once Grenouille creates a human scented perfume, his “transformation” of ability creates a self-assured hero who can blend in with the rest of society and defy forces against him. Grenouille embodys the “cuckoo’s egg, in their midst as a human being among human beings” (Süskind, 153). Cuckoo’s lay their eggs in other bird’s nests. The cuckoo chick grows faster than other birds and evicts the other chicks. The cuckoo mother tricks the new mother into thinking the cuckoo belongs to her and the new mother feeds it and treats it as her own. (Greenspan) The cuckoos, like Grenouille lives as an imposter among others that look the same. Süskind includes this metaphor to call attention to Grenouille’s transformation. Süskind does this by contrasting how society treats him before, as now as the townspeople accept him as one of their own. Süskind implements irony here because Grenouille possesses characteristics that make it impossible to fit in: his “definite limp”, his “odor, which he could not smell”, and his “murder”, but against all odds, Süskind reveals that Grenouille can fit in (Süskind, 225, 241,

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    To fully understand James chapter four, it is important to understand who the author James was. According to Kenneth Mackenzie, D.D. “James must have been of authority in the infant Church. He is the presiding officer at the momentous council in Jerusalem (Acts 15)… [Paul] admits the evident leadership of James in Gal. 2:12.” (Mackenzie, 1939.…

    • 649 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Storyline 1. At the beginning of the month of October, a little Canadian student named Charles had a day off from school, so he decided to go for a walk in the forest right near his house. He packed a bag, took a map, and now, he’s ready to leave his house. 2.…

    • 740 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    A boy wakes up in an elevator with no recollection of his name, where he comes from, or where he is. As he emerges from the earth, he finds himself in a community of boys, living in a glade. As the boy slowly starts unearthing memories, such as his name, Thomas, he also finds out more sinister things from the other boys about the place he's landed. The boys are held prisoners within the centre of a gigantic maze, and for three years they've been looking for a way out. And now it's up to Thomas to find that way. But the road isn't going to be easy, as any who dares enter the maze finds himself hunted by the Grievers.…

    • 307 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Better Essays

    Chapter Two Sam caught the keys and nodded. He put the witch’s body in the trunk, and he walked around to the other side of the car and got in the driver’s seat. Dean opened the door and put Cas’s hand on the seat so he knew where they were. Cas allowed Dean to lower him into the car before scooting over to sit behind Sam.…

    • 1642 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Western and nonwestern heroes come from different regions of the world; therefore, have different cultural backgrounds. More specifically, western heroes come from the Greco-Roman or Judeo-Christian traditions. Nonwestern heroes come from other parts of the world that would not associate with these traditions. While these heroes might seem to have little in common when it comes to origin, “The Hero’s Journey” by Joseph Campbell demonstrates that all heroes have “similar patterns” (Campbell). However by examining the non-western hero, Mulan, in “The Ballad of Mulan” demonstrates how this figure is different than the hero outlined in Joseph Campbell’s “The Hero’s Journey” in the following ways, Mulan does not have any kind of “supernatural aid”, “tests that lead to the final showdown”, or a “life-changing experience for her or many others” (Campbell).…

    • 776 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Every story needs a hero, right? For centuries authors and poets have included this essential character into their work. Without knowing literature has been seldom following the same archetype, The Hero’s Journey. Joseph Campbell discovered that most stories follow this pattern which is why he dubbed it the monomyth. Through years of studying he found that this popular motif is made up of ten basic steps that a hero follows through a story. Well known film writer and director George Lucas molded the film Star Wars around Campbell’s monomyth not only with intent but quite distinctively. Lucas is not the only one doing this in Hollywood either, many screenwriters and directors have caught on to this including Andrew Stanton as he depicted his version of the monomyth in Finding Nemo. This animated film follows the archetype laid out in Joseph Campbell’s, The Hero With a Thousand Faces.…

    • 2154 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    This essay will explain about the narrative voice that is used in novels and how it misleads or mystifies the reader. Narrative voice defines the tone of the narrator stating their point of view. It presents the reader the situation which causes the narrator to have control over the reader’s mood. For example in the novel Perfume: the story of a murder by Patrick Suskind the author created a third person omniscient point of view. Therefore it allows the reader to know multiple characters feelings and thoughts.…

    • 308 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Gilgamesh Hero's Journey

    • 884 Words
    • 4 Pages

    In Gilgamesh, we see several of Campbell’s stages of the heroic myth. We see Gilgamesh introduced in his ordinary world, he is called to adventure twice, he passes the first threshold, he meets several helpers and encounters tests, he reaches the innermost cave, endures the supreme ordeal, seizes the treasure, is resurrected, and returns home with the treasure.…

    • 884 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Hero Journey

    • 1780 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Joseph Campbell describes the 17 stages that occur during a hero’s journey, also known as Monomyth. The Odyssey by Homer is a story based on Ulysses and his journey, I will be describing the stages of Monomyth based on Campbell’s ideas. These stages will focus on Ulysses and his son Telemachus. According to Joseph Campbell, a hero’s journey normally entails three phases; the departure, the initiation, and the return. (Wikipedia)…

    • 1780 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    My Hero's Journey

    • 529 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Joseph Campbell was a scholar who studied ancient mythology for many years. Eventually, he came up with the concept of the Hero’s Journey. The Hero’s Journey says that all heroes will come across many stages throughout their journey, each stage bringing the hero closer to his or her reward you will earn. In the past years of my life, I realized that my journey was like the hero's journy .It was when i got invited to a big league soccer club. I have practice every in order to make my journey a good rewarding .…

    • 529 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    He strode down the empty path, on to the next location. It had been like this for months, he was not travelling for money, of that he already had he already had enough for hundreds of lifetimes, nor was he traveling for the sense of adventure, an aspect he had long lost. No, he was simply travelling to try and find a reason; a purpose for going on. His time on this world was long and not kind to him, however it never took away his drive and determination. He kept striding for greatness despite the dark path he was set on from a young age. In time he succeeded and grew, however this also made him into the subject of dread for millions.…

    • 385 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Third person omniscient point of view through Grenouille of passages in Perfume assist in the development of a plot for dramatic irony and also help to build tension in the plot. Grenouille says that his life will have no meaning without the girl’s (from the rue de marais) scent, so he kills her to get it, and finally feels happiness for the first time in his life. Diction that supports this is “no meaning”, “never”, and “happiness”. This passage builds tension (through suspense of the girl and Grenouilles future) by us knowing Grenouilles intentions and true feelings of pleasure, and provides dramatic irony, because the reader is knowledgeable of Grenouilles presence and what he wants to/is about to do, while the girl who is so close to him does not. After seven years in the cave, Grenouille becomes extremely afraid of not knowing himself, and realizes he possesses no scent. Key words that support this are “ghastly fear” and “no odor”. This third person point of view passage helps advance the plot in his terms of Grenouilles self discovery and accepting of who he is, and also where it will lead him next. At another point in time, Grenouille reconsiders getting the final, and most perfect girls scent, and thinks about what would happen if he lost it after obtaining it. Diction that reveals his feeling are “doubts receded”, “revitalized”, and “decision”. The use of third person point of view in this passage develops plot through dramatic irony because the reader can already speculate that he would still go ahead with his plans and murder her. Overall, third person point of view is important to plot development because it allows Grenouille’s character to develop a framework for dramatic irony and build tension in the…

    • 305 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Throughout the story “Perfume” by Patrick Suskind, Grenouille is presented as an outsider who is a product of both social and moral decay shown through his birth, description of the setting and description of Grenouille’s characteristics.…

    • 694 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    From beginning to end in the book of Perfume: Story of a Murder, the author Patrick Süskind implements a lot of the evidence suggeting that the antagonist of the story, Grenouille, resembles the Devil. From his birth to his death, Grenouille proves that he is like the Devil, summed up by both the views made by his masters and peers, and by his actions taken throughout the story. Also, greed plays a major role in both Grenouille and his victims throughout the story, which also helps link the accusation of Grenouille having the resemblance of the Devil, not physically, but mentally.…

    • 1384 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Perfume Essay

    • 800 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Our job as human beings in this world is to give life a purpose and have full responsibility of our existence. This lays stress on the existence of mankind to produce authentic decisions and responsible ways of dealing with life and the world. These concepts, as well as the philosophical implications of existentialism are evident in the novel Perfume: The Story of a Murderer by Patrick Süskind. An existentialist philosophical mindset permeates Süskind’s novel and it is evident in the protagonist Grenouille. There are three decisions that Grenouille chooses throughout the novel: leaving people, killing innocent young girls and creating scents/perfumes. Through an examination of these events, it is evident that Süskind paints a picture of an existentialist way of thinking but also criticizes society and the weaknesses of human nature.…

    • 800 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays