Archetypes 1 Essay Example

An archetype is a pattern in literature representing human life. The archetypes from Antigone are the same ones that show in the very well known movie, “Star Wars”. Mentors and villains are two of the archetypes that are commonly found in both stories. There are various reoccurring archetypes in archetypes in historical works of literature, such as Antigone, that are still being used today in our modern day literature. One of the most common archetypes in literature is the mentor figure. Practically every book and movie ever made has one. The mentor usually aids the protagonist in achieving his goal. “Star Wars” has an excellent example and even though the mentor changes throughout the saga, there is a mentor present for the duration of the saga. In the original trilogy, the mentor, Ben Kenobi, taught Luke Skywalker the ways of a Jedi. Another example is Rafiki, from “The Lion King”. He helps Simba realize that he must go back to Pride Rock. Similarly, in Antigone, the mentor figure is Tiresias. He helps Creon realize that he has been too arrogant for his own good. Mentors have been offering advice to others since the dawn of time, but a mentor is not the only archetype in use in the past and present. Another archetype that appears in Antigone is the father and son relationship. In the story, Creon and Haimon are father and son and they both had extremely different views. In comparison, we see father and son figures in the movies “Star Wars” and “The Lion King”. In “Star Wars”, Darth Vador and Luke Skywalker are father and son. They are similar to Haimon and Creon because Luke Skywalker disagreed with what his father was doing. Haimon also disagreed with his father about how to govern people and about respect for the dead. Simba and Mufasa, from “The Lion King”, are like Haimon and Creon because, like Creon, Mufasa loves his son, Simba, more than anything and he would do anything for him. The father and son relationship, between Creon and Haimon, is quite