What are archetypes?
We had talked about archetypes in the blog “The Tarot cards – about archetypes and the personal growth process“.
The term ‘archetype’ comes from Ancient Greek. from the words ‘arche’, meaning ‘original or ancient’; and ‘type’, meaning ‘pattern, model, or type’. The combined meaning is an “original pattern”.
It is Carl Gustav Jung who introduced the word archetype to indicate that there are universal, archaic symbols and images that emerge from the collective unconscious and are widely recognizable to all people, regardless of culture, history, era,… Thanks to these images, people can think, feel, perceive and act through fundamental, unconscious, biological aspects
These archetypal images are passed down through our ancestors, like a kind of blueprint that we are born with. Man is thus born with a form of non-specific knowledge, derived from the sum of human history, which guides and adjusts conscious behavior in advance.
Carl Jung calls this ‘memory image’ archetypes, patterns that can be observed in people’s behaviour, while they are fixed in the collective unconscious.
The Lord of the Rings
The archetypes can be found in old stories, myths, legends, fairy tales and in books, movies,… To make it a bit more image-rich and clear… Archetypes can be found, for example, in the main characters of the film trilogy The Lord Of The Rings. This film is based on the books of the same name by the linguist and university professor J.R.R. Tolkien. Tolkien drew inspiration from Norse and Celtic mythology to create the archetypes of his characters. I like to use this fantasy story because almost everyone knows it, it appeals to the imagination and it also immediately evokes inner recognition images that every reader of the book or viewer of the film recognizes in themselves.
In one sentence, the story is about a meek Hobbit from the Shire and eight companions who embark on a journey to destroy the mighty One Ring and save Middle-earth from the Dark Lord Sauron.
A lot of archetypes are already contained in this one sentence:- meek Hobbit = the hero
- Eight Companions = The Allies
- Dark Lord Sauron = the villain, the enemy
The story in the triptych is the recognizable archetypal battle between good and evil, in which on the one hand there is the dark power struggle that has already caused a lot of damage and on the other hand the world of the intuitive, the emotional and the supporting, wise voice of the unconscious. The latter seems to have been snowed under in our time, symbolically seen as the disappearance of elves, dwarves and creatures from a world that is unreal and irrational to us.
This battle between Good and Evil has an important essence: it is the struggle between materialism and power on the one hand and spirituality and connection on the other. On one side are 2 mages: Sauron, who wants to take control of the whole world in a ruthless way and sows death and destruction wherever possible. He has the ring spirits at his disposal as spies, over whom he has power and who have become willless. And the other mage, Saruman, who carries out Sauron’s orders.
This is the mythical image that is very recognizable among many people today: the negative energy in our world that is only after power and money, and has an ‘over corpse’ mentality. This energy has already caused the necessary destruction in recent centuries and is still going on. And there are always people who participate with a ruler who represents this energy: then you also have power yourself and it gives you the feeling of being on the ‘safe side’ because then you can continue your comfortable life. Dictatorial regimes, for example, can only survive if there are enough ‘saru men’ to carry out their orders and do the dirty work.
On the other side are Gandalf, Aragorn, Frodo and Sam and all those other allies who, out of love for each other, their connection and out of love for the world, put aside old feuds and disputes to embark on a journey together to fight against injustice and lust for power.
But there’s more to the story than the outward finger-pointing projection at the world and its power structures. It is also our own personal story. Although we may not be residents of the Tower of Sauron, but without knowing it, we are residents of the Tower of Saruman. You just don’t think about for example If you go shopping at a supermarket, how big the carbon footprint is that you are unknowingly contributing to because of all the packaged, plastic, electric, battery-powered,… products. You have no idea when you’re just going to pay digitally, have everything done with your mobile phone, start using artificial intelligence,… How you just ‘join’ the greats of the world and nod yes like a saru man to everything that is asked above. The structures become more powerful, richer, they invade the privacy in your living room and you can get the feeling that you can’t do anything about it.
“The Lord of the Rings” shows us a facet that is very important for our time: the enormous responsibility of the individual. Or you may feel insignificant and powerless in the world in which great (commercial and other) forces operate. Or can you realize that you are here on earth with a destiny? It doesn’t have to be a grand mission. If you follow your calling and essentially live with who you really are and can live out your qualities and dreams to the fullest, then your actions and behaviors can, unintentionally even, lead to great developments. If only because you help guide the dreams of your own children, who then also pass it on to their children, which perhaps can lead to a grandchild who, because of this background, has the courage to take a step that is important for the world.
The trick in this whole story is to write your life story. Reflecting on who you really are, what your qualities are and what your calling is here on earth instead of doing a job that may pay well but that doesn’t really give you satisfaction. Your gut feeling will call this out to you from time to time! That’s your intuition, that’s the irrational images, the elves, the dwarves, Frodo or Sam who are guiding you. Are you listening to them?
De underdog held: Frodo Baggins
This brings us to our first archetype: Frodo Baggins, the hero of the story. As in many stories and fairy tales, the hero is usually an underdog figure. Cinderella (kept small by the stepmother and stepdaughters), the youngest of the king’s three sons, the small, ruddy one (David from the Old Testament)… all portray a classic Underdog archetype. As a hobbit, he is no match for any enemy he encounters in terms of strength. He has no special power or magic, and no training in battle. Like the other hobbits, he also fulfills the Innocent archetype, naïve about the world beyond the peaceful, isolated Shire.
Gandalf has learned that there are threatening clouds in the sky and believes the time is more than ripe to take action. Sauron’s spirit has awakened, and by capturing Gollum, he has learned that the Ring must be in the Shire with the hobbits. Sauron opens the gates and sends the nine ring spirits, the so-called Nazgul, to visit them. When they reach the Shire, the peace and harmony in the peace-loving Shire is over. Gandalf sends Frodo on his way… For a hobbit, this is terrible: he has to leave his beloved region and his comfortable life and face an uncertain future. Frodo accepts his fate and destiny, takes a leap into the dark and sets out on his way, despite all the fears and doubts, despite the uncertain prospects, despite the chance that it might even lead to his death. We can sometimes find ourselves in completely unexpected situations and fate asks us to follow a different destination. E.g. sudden dismissal… So the path that belongs to you is indeed something different from doing the job that you like or that is easy because it is well paid. What is your true calling? Where are your potential growth opportunities?
The hero is symbolized in the major Arcanas of the Tarot cards with the first card, card zero is correct, not card 1, the beginning. It’s even before the series of numbers starts. It is the beginning of the story, “once upon a time, a very long time ago,…” The card mentions “the Fool” and a young man stands on the edge of the abyss with his knapsack and a warning dog… What is the hero of this story doing? Fall? Or…?
As a hero, Frodo is set out to take on the task of saving Middle-earth by destroying Sauron’s Ring. Frodo proves his worth as a hero as he endured trials and self-sacrifice on his perilous quest to Mordor with Sam.
The Caretaker: Sam
Frodo teams up with Sam, his loyal servant and friend, who has accidentally eavesdropped on the secret conversation between Frodo and Gandalf. In the whole rest of the story, they are a kind of duality. Without Sam, the mission would not have succeeded. When you look at the interaction between Frodo and Sam, you see that Frodo thinks more, worries and carries the load, and that Sam guides Frodo very involved and concerned Sam is a perfect example of the archetypal caretaker. He is kind and generous, putting the needs of others before his own. He just wants to be of use to Frodo on his difficult quest. Sam won’t abandon his friend. He is attentive and practical, and you can often find him cooking, carrying a backpack, or offering Frodo genuine support and companionship. He often comes up with comments that can often be characterized as ‘common sense’. Very direct and sincere, but not always deliberate. Sam is, as it were, Frodo’s instinctive common sense, and Frodo is the consciousness that has to stay in charge and make the right choices, even all alone at the end without Sam.
While Frodo represents the path of the individual, the hero’s journey, our life’s path, Sam represents our natural voice, our faithful ally that supports and encourages us, the strength within us that helps us persevere.
The Leader/Mentor: Gandalf
“A wizard is never late. Nor is he too early. He’ll arrive when that’s the thing.” These are about the first words Gandalf utters when he sees Frodo again and the little hobbit reproaches him for being late. It typifies the intuitive knowing of the Wise man. Gandalf the sorcerer is one of the statues of the Wise Ancient Man, an archetype that is also present in all of us. He is also symbolized in the 9th Tarot card of the Major Arcanas: “the Hermit”. On this map, the Hermit stands at a snow-covered height, referring to the highest knowledge that can be shared with us on the way to awareness.
Gandalf is clearly the leader of the Fellowship, as well as the mentor or wise man. He discovers the truth about Bilbo’s ring and puts Frodo on the first part of his quest to steal the Shire’s ring. Once the Fellowship is formed, he provides guidance and leadership in planning the group’s journey. In true leadership style, Gandalf sacrifices himself to save the others when the group is threatened in the mines of Moria.
As a Mentor, Gandalf is very wise and often seems omniscient. However, we should not equate this archetype with the ‘omniscience’ within us, but rather with the coming to an understanding and clear knowing in order to bring the hero’s actual calling, your travelogue, to completion. On our path through life we will be confronted with both the Good and the Evil in us and we need this archetype to show us the way. If we have a sympathetic ear for him…
The Warrior/Leader: Aragorn
The figure symbolizing the archetype “leader” is not a warrior or leader at all in the beginning of the trilogy. Aragorn is a wanderer (also called Walker), a man who roams. He denies his authentic existence and is therefore a wanderer. His true lineage and identity is that he is the direct descendant of none other clan King Isildur, who defeated Sauron but did not return the Ring to the fires of Mount Doom, allowing evil to rise again. Aragorn has no royal ambitions whatsoever and visibly has a hard time with this course of action of his distant ancestor. which he appears to identify with too much, which also makes him ashamed.
Aragorn will have to come to terms with this and find and wear his true identity. Otherwise, he runs the risk of being lived more and more by his own Shadow, and that too can make him susceptible to evil. If Aragorn really wants to do something for the quest of the Ring and fight evil, it is a prerequisite that he confronts his own Shadow, and takes the road to consciousness. Over the course of the epic, we see Aragorn grow step by step; It’s a storyline that beautifully mirrors the individuation process. So you see that not only does the hero of the story have his own growth and individuation process, but that a storyline is also created within the story.
At the beginning of the Lord Of The Rings films, Aragorn is a warrior. He is trained in combat and is resourceful, competent, and confident. He is also courageous and honorable, commanding the respect and love of the elves, and the trust and friendship of Gandalf. Despite this, he does not become a leader until later. Aragorn begins to do this as part of the Fellowship, and later completes his transformation by leading armies and reclaiming the throne of Gondor.
Want to know more about archetypes in the Lord Of The Rings?
Want to learn more about the other archetypes and story of “The Lord of the Rings”?
- Do you want to know what the elves, the dwarves mean as archetypes and how both relate to our unconscious?
- What is the Queen as an archetype?
- Are the jester and the deceiver (Gollum) also in me?
- How do the 2 archetypes, Evil and Good, relate to me?
- What is the fate of the individual in his life’s journey? How is he to come to terms with his own Shadow?
- What is man’s individuation process, in which he must shed flight behavior and become the man he was meant to be?
- What is the role of the Anima and Animus here in this story?
- What role do the forces of the past play in this story and in my life?
- What is the role of nature in my life?
- …
Then the lectures on “The Lord of the Rings” are an interesting topic for you to work with. By following these lectures, you will look at this film in a completely different way. And experience the depth and richness of such an elaborately written fantasy epic. If you are interested, please send me an email with this form.