Disney’s the Lion King & Joseph Campbell’s Monomyth Super-Structure

Disney’s The Lion King & Joseph Campbell’s Monomyth Super-structure

Joseph Campbell’s monomyth super-structure is clearly represented in Disney’s The Lion King. The protagonist, Simba, embodies the characteristics of the classic monomyth hero. Simba is the young son of Mufasa, the king of Pride Rock. Simba is to inherit the throne, as he learns when his father tells him about the responsibilities he will one day take on, which he refers to as the “Circle of Life”. As they look over Pride Rock, Mufasa advises him never to go to a place beyond the horizons of the Pride Rock covered in shadows. This part of the movie can be identified as the call to adventure from Campell’s monomyth structure.

When they return to Pride Rock, Simba has a run in with his uncle Scar, who is very unhappy that Simba will inherit the throne rather than him. He sparks Simba’s curiosity by telling him that the shadowland his father forbade him to go to is an elephant graveyard, but reiterates that it is very dangerous for him to go there. However, he knows that Simba is now more curious than ever about this place and that he will give in to his curiosity and eventually disobey his father’s orders. As Scar predicted, Simba and his friend Nala go off to explore the elephant graveyard, where they are almost attacked by hyenas Scar has sent there to eliminate the cubs. Mufasa arrives to rescue them and is furious at Simba for disobeying his orders. This is known as the refusal of the call from the monomyth structure, which is the moment when the hero ignores the call to adventure, which Simba has done by disregarding what his father told him. Mufasa wants Simba to understand the reality of the responsibilities he will face as king, so he tells him about past kings and tells him that they are in the stars where Simba can always turn when he needs help. This is known as the aid part of the monomyth, where Simba is given the tools he will need to succeed as king. This is also the part of the...