[…] In The Wizard of Oz, Dorothy Gale (Judy Garland) goes on a journey of discovery to Oz and transforms from an orphaned girl who doesn’t feel at home on her aunt and uncle’s farm to someone who when she returns vows, …read more […]

Great post! This is a good reminder about the purpose of stories in our lives. Other terminology that I recently encountered mirrors your phases: Orphan-Wanderer-Warrior-Martyr. It seems to line up with your Disunity-Deconstruction-Reconstruction-Unity. The terms are different but their functions in a story and a character's psychological change seem to be similar.

mgren, I've run across the Orphan-Wanderer-Warrior-Martyr approach before, and you are right: It DOES mirror the one detailed in my post. Orphan: Disconnect from 'authentic' self aka 'Parent'. Wanderer: Thrust into New World, the ways of the Old World decreasingly work, leaving the Protagonist to feel adrift. Warrior: Yet as the P detaches from the Old Ways of Being, they get in touch with and increasingly embrace their Authentic Self / True Being, and thus empowered, engaged in the 'fight' of their physical and psychological journey. Martyr: Joseph Campbell said, "A hero is someone who gives himself to something larger than himself." The process of metamorphosis is about the P 'sacrificing' their Old Self (martyrdom) in order to experience rebirth as the New Self. Thanks for that note, mgren!

Great post -- thank you.