7- Heroes and their Quests

Heroes and their Quests

By: Amol, Coralie, Gabriel, and Madalena

Introduction

                 Over the course of seven weeks we have been introduced to various documentaries all conveying different messages and themes. This week we will be discussing qualities of Heroes and their quests. Using a new theory formulated by Joseph Campbell we are able to grasp the concept of Heroes and their quests much better than before. Throughout this blog we will pin point certain actions taken by our heroes, Joe Simpson, Simon Yates and Philippe Petit and find the link between The Journey of the Hero and their actual adventures. 

Touching the Void

Touching the Void, a 2003 documentary film directed by Kevin MacDonald, lasting 106 minutes and produced by John Smithson, depicts the tale of two alpinists, Joe Simpson and Simon Yates, in their quest to climb the previously unconquered West Face of the Siula Grande, in Peru. The structure of the movie is what makes it such a success, as actors reenact the journey described in interviews by both Simpson and Yates, which allows for a greater sensorial experience for the audience.

The structure of the movie, which is separated into seven distinct parts, simply reflects the number of days the journey lasted. The first day starts off with both Simpson and Yates leaving the base camp under beautiful weather conditions, to begin what they believe to be a 3 to 4 day climb. They decide to climb up the mountain alpine style, which is an older technique. This method of climbing has Simpson and Yates carry very little supplies; they rely on each other to survive (tied together for security) and must climb up and down the mountain without the assistance of a third party.

After the first day, Simpson and Yates managed to walk the 4-mile long valley which leads to the bottom of Siula Grande, and have gotten halfway up the 6 356 meter face. On the second day however, the weather conditions deteriorated and Simpson and Yates were soon caught in a severe snowstorm. As they approached top of the face, both men were soon caught in what they would later discover to be “flutings”, which are accumulations of deep and loose snow. After ascending only 200 feet in about 5-hours, they decide to settle down for the night. Waking up on the third day, they found clear weather conditions, which allowed them to reach the summit at a faster pace then expected. As they hurried down, running low on supplies, the weather changed for the worst and they were soon caught in a white-out (severe snow storm, allowing for little to no visibility). Consequently, Yates falls off the ridge. Being tied to Simpson and having fallen only a few feet, he quickly climbs back up unhurt, and they decide to rest for the night. In order to climb such great heights they must keep hydrated, only now they have exhausted their gas supply, which was used for the melting of snow.

The clearer weather allows them to descend the face of the mountain at a faster pace. This soon changes however as Simpson suffers a fall. He has severely broken his leg, and is aware that he is condemned to dying on the mountain. Yates however, decides to lower Simpson down the mountain at 300 feet increments using their ropes. While being lowered, Simpson feels the angle of the mountain get steeper, and falls of the face. Hanging off of the cliff, injured and weak, Simpson had no way of either climbing back up the rope or swinging to get a hold of the cliff in order to let Yates lower him down more. Yates, unaware of Simpson’s situation, could only wait for him to take action. After an hour and a half, Yates took the life changing decision of cutting the cord and therefore possibly killing his friend. He settled down for the night, knowing that he had possibly ended his friend’s life. Simpson however, was still alive and was struggling to survive. He had fallen into a crevasse.

On the morning of the fifth day, Yates continued his journey down until he reached the cliff. It became clear to him why Simpson could not take his weight off the rope and saw the crevasse Simpson had fallen into. He continued his decent and soon reached the base camp where he had to psychologically deal with what he had done. Simpson, who slowly woke up that morning, called out to Yates but it was in vain as his friend was no longer there. He had two options: Try to climb the crevasse or lower himself deeper to find an exit. Unsuccessful with the first option, he lowers himself even deeper into the crevasse and luckily finds another exit point he could reach. Shortly after noon, he finally emerged to the sight of the immense glacier.

His journey was not over; he still had to walk across the 4-mile long valley and the glacier with a broken leg and a shortage of food and water. He luckily found Yates’ footprints and followed them, crawling down the glacier. The overall task of crawling for miles was too much, but Simpson showed signs of extreme courage as he broke down the task and set realistic goals for himself. After clearing the glacier, he must make his way through boulders and rocks in order to get to base camp. He knew he had to hurry because his physical and mental states were quickly deteriorating. Every step is a struggle, pain runs through his leg. He struggled on and later that day, found running water, giving him strength to push on. He continued his decent, the following day and as night fell, fog slowly settled in. He was now drifting in and out of consciousness and had difficulty moving any further. He made it to their waste field.  Joe began calling out Simon’s name and to his surprise, was heard by him. Yates heard someone calling his name. He could not believe it was Simpson but got out of his tent to investigate. He found his friend lying a hundred yards from the camp.  He had managed to survive his ordeal.

The Hero’s Journey

In Joseph Campbell’s book, The Hero with a Thousand Faces he explains the monomyth, or more commonly known as, The Journey of the Hero. Campbell formulated his theory with the analysis of multiple myths. His formula was shortened done into three sequences. The first part of a Hero’s quest is “Seperation” where a hero must leave his ordinary world to practice and gain skills that will help him prevail. Once he has received all the training he can get he is initiated into the quest and must battle his/her way through obstacles, this constituent is called “initiation”. Once they have completed and vanquished their quest, the hero returns home with the prize or feeling of redemption. The “return” brings the hero back to square one, their home where they live life as an ordinary person once again.

In Touching the Void the status quo would be Simon and Joe living their lives in England. Having a passion for mountain climbing, they decide to set their own goal; to be the first people to climb the west face of Siula Grande. Along their journey to Peru, they meet a gentleman named Richard Hawking who remains at the base camp to assist them when they return. They leave base camp to conquer their quest. The higher they climb the more they struggle for survival as unplanned weather conditions are thrown their way and the gas tank is emptied. Their moment of crisis occurs once Joe has fallen off a cliff and breaks his leg. They must adapt to their new situation, in order to climb down the mountain alive. After being pulled down to quickly and having the mountaineers shouts be muffled by the howling wind of the snow storm, Joe is thrown off a cliff, and hangs in the void for more than an hour, above a crevasse, Joe unable to get himself back onto the mountain, plummets to his “so-called death”. The decision to cut the rope was not a pleasant choice. In most myths a hero’s return is always a majestic and joyful one, but in Simon’s case he must deal with the criticism accompanied by his decision to cut the rope. They return home safely, and are directly brought to a hospital for medical attention. 

Man on Wire

Man on Wire, a 2008 British documentary film, directed by James Marsh and produced by Simon Chinn, presents the extraordinary story of a man pursuing his dream at all cost. The movie, which is constructed in a similar way to Touching the Void, in the way of having interviews conducted asking the main characters to tell their story. Along with these interviews there are reenactments of their story. In the case of Man on Wire draws emotions from its viewers, allowing for a sensational experience.

Philippe Petit, a French high-wire artist, dreamed of walking across the World Trade Center (WTC) since the age of 17 and finally did at the age of 25. The movie shows how difficult of a journey it was to reach his goal. It all started when he read a news article about the possible construction of two buildings, which would become the tallest the world had ever seen. He knew that there was a slight chance he could achieve his goal but believed in it anyway. He practiced his skills as a high-wire artist and eventually became extremely good. He undertook his first life-changing walk when he crossed the towers on the Notre-Dame Cathedral. After successfully performing this act, he was hooked and knew he would one day achieve the cross between the WTC.

 Months after this first success, Philippe Petit read a second article about the World Trade Center, which described how the towers were going to be built. Philippe Petit could not have been any happier. This meant that his dream was now tangible, and that it was now possible for him to undertake such a task. His training continued as the towers were being built and in 1973, he crossed the Sydney Harbour Bridge, in preparation for his task the following year. Being that this act was once again a success, Philippe Petit grew more confident and prepared for the World Trade Center act. After visiting the towers and gathering information and help in order to achieve his quest, he decided that he was ready and travelled to New York City for what would be his culminant performance. That day however, it seemed obvious that he would not be able to reach his goal. He had not prepared enough for the task at hand and would surely fail if he attempted. Reluctant, Philippe Petit travelled back to France and this time, prepared himself better.

A few months later, he was back in New York City, happy with his preparation and ready as he would have ever been for the performance. After sneaking in both towers of the World Trade Center at night, Philippe Petit and his team prepared the wire for the event. After dropping the wire and having to pull it back up, Philippe Petit was finally ready for his lifetime goal. It was now morning and although exhausted, he decided that he had to take a leap of faith and climb on the wire. His act, consisting of a total of eight crossings, lying down on the wire, kneeling on it and waving to the crowd below, ended when he realized that he had achieved his dream: he would not die to extend the moment any longer. After being arrested and charged with trespassing and disorderly conduct, Philippe Petit returned to France where he continued his career and passion as a high-wire artist.

The Hero and his Quest

As we mentioned previously, the topic of this blog revolves around the hero, and their quest. A hero is someone who experiences a life changing journey, leaving his or her “ordinary” world and entering a “special” world. Every hero gets called to an adventure, with a bit of help they depart on their journey leaving their ordinary lives behind. Throughout their journey, the hero is faced with challenges and obstacles that they have to overcome. There is a moment where we see the hero’s weakness but he pushes forward, to beat their goal. Man On Wire relates to what we learned in class because Philippe Petit does something no one has ever done. Philippe begins his journey by setting a personal goal, which is to place a wire between the Twin Towers and walk across it. One day Philippe was reading the newspaper and saw a picture of the World Trade Center and had an inspiration of attaching a wire from one building to the other.  In order to achieve his goal he must prepare by separating himself from his immediate world and to focus on enhancing his wire walking skills. As practice, Philippe decides to walk across the clock towers of Notre-Dame church in Paris, and later on, walk across a bridge in Sydney, Australia. It takes him and his partners several years to prepare for the performance. Not only must Philippe practice, his friends along with him must create a concrete plan to break into the towers and set up the equipment. These preparations are part of the quests “initiation” along with the actual performance conducted by Philippe. Once he completes his stunt, he returns to his life on the ground and is welcomed by fans and news reporters asking for explanations. After clearing his name of the charges held against him, he returns to a life of fame and recognition, and is showered with appreciation and respect for his stunt.

The Hero within Ourselves

These films both exemplified the qualities that every human being possesses: heroism. Every individual can be a hero, it's just a matter of showing it and expressing it. Joe and Simon were both normal individuals that carried out daily routines just like the rest of us, with the exception of their mountain climbing hobby, but they were heroes. Joe from Touching the Void and Philippe from Man on Wire both had to face an excruciating situation, but they ultimately persevered and showed their heroism. Being a hero does not necessarily mean that one must slay a dragon to save a princess or has to save a planet against an evil villain.

For Joe, he broke his leg, faced dehydration, faced a seemingly dead end but despite all that, was able to escape with his life. He motivated himself by setting small goals to show himself that it was in fact not impossible. He is a hero because he was able to conjure his will power and continue moving forward. Being strong minded forced him to move ahead and to push harder and harder for survival. Although his strong will to live was based on his fear of dying alone, he managed to use it in his favor.  His body was prepared to stop him from progressing but it was his mind, wishful thinking (finding Simon) that had him hop along till the base camp. They are qualities which we all possess, but often only use when a certain situation arises. Similarly Philippe, in Man on Wire, did something perceived to be impossible. Getting to the top floor of the buildings was impossible because it was prohibited by law to these people. So, he improvised and used hideouts at night to install equipment and disguised himself to have access and take photos. Like Joe, he showed ingenuity and found a way to achieve his goal.

The video below explains certain scenes and scenarios which occur during the walk across the twin towers. It is a great clip because we have both, the director’s perspective and Philippe Petit’s perspective on the film and on his work. It answers the question “Why?” without really answering the audience’s question. 

Being a hero is someone that can defy the odds and portray "god-like" qualities and abilities to achieve a goal. The quest is often what makes a hero. Throughout the hero’s quest there are obstacles they must face, which may fool them and make them do something impossible. A broader way to look at it is that the life is a quest, in its own; that we all try to conquer in our lives and every single person must apply qualities such as perseverance, hard work, management in order to live happily and successfully. But there are also smaller experiences, like the ones Philippe and Joe had, that are quests that can change a person's life. Both films, in which we see those experiences, we can understand how Joe and Philippe conquered their respective quests because we see firsthand, that these people displayed extraordinary qualities in the face of challenges presented on the journey and we realized that we too, though it may seem impossible, can exhibit the same heroism. 

These films truly show us all that we have the ability to be heroes. If there are situation, or quests as Joe and Philippe experienced, that truly challenge you beyond what you think are your limitations, it will provoke you to surpass those and make you learn something about yourself. What we saw with Joe and Philippe were life changing moments, but we may conduct acts of heroism without even knowing it. Organizing social fundraisers to support a certain group of people is a form of heroism, because you may not be changing your life, but your changing the lives of others for the better all while achieving a goal you set yourself. Or on a broader context, a fundraiser that helps needy children across the planet is also an act of heroism. We all achieve such acts almost on a daily basis, we organize our ideas so that the goals can be achieved and we ultimately help ourselves and/or others become better people all while discovering something new about ourselves.

Conclusion

Heroes can be any one of us, we do not need to be dropped into a radioactive substance to gain super powers or be bitten by a radioactive bug. All we need is our will power and our passions to lead us towards our goals. A goal to one person is a quest for another. We are aware of our strengths and weaknesses and are capable of pushing ourselves forwards and will accomplish our goals. Ordinary people are heroes because they manage to find something worth doing that will make themselves push and grow as a person. It is the little things which create a heroic image of certain people. When we were younger adults would ask us who are hero was, we would answer our mother or father because they were capable of many great things in our child eyes. Now that we have grown into adults the term Hero has changed because our eyes have given us knowledge of the world around us. In a figurative sense hero means Batman, Harry Potter, Hercules etc. but at the end of the day we realize the people we look up to, our models, whether they are celebrities, business men, family members, they are the true Heroes.