Archetypes are universal symbols. According to Jung, archetypes are "universal psychic tendencies or 'primordial images' of a 'collective unconscious' that, when given individual or cultural forms--in dreams, art, or literary expressions such as myths and fairy tales, and later, literature--became universally familiar human motifs." "For [Eliade] archetypes are 'sacred paradigms' or 'exemplary models' that characterize the sacred or transcendent aspect of life that springs from primordial 'myth time'--archetypal time--as opposed to the profane aspect of life, that which is dominated by material things and linear time (Leeming 27).

Carl Jung, James Frazier, Northrop Frye, Joseph Campbell, and others have contributed much to the discussion of archetypes and their significance in art and literature (Lee 508). Jung explored numerous archetypes, including, the self, the anima/animus, the shadow, the hero, father, mother, (Lee 3), spirit, the trickster, and rebirth (Cleary 384) as well as various manmade and natural objects, including celestial objects, trees, animals, rings, and weapons (Hall and Nordby 41-2). Frazier, in his classic 12 volume work The Golden Bough, offered numerous examples of archetypal myths and rituals (Lee 508). The myth critic Northrup Frye believed that all literature could be classified according to four archetypal patterns: Spring (comedy), Summer (romance), Autumn (tragedy), and Winter (satire) (Frye162ff, see "Archetypal Criticism: Theory of Myths").

Hero myths often include various literary archetypes. A literary archetype is a "character, action, or situation that is a prototype or pattern of human life generally; a situation that occurs over and over again in literature, such as a quest, an initiation, or an attempt to overcome evil" (Roberts and Jabobs 1546).

There are several archetypal themes and plots that recur in myth and literature, including "the journey underground, the heavenly ascent, the search for the father" (Abrams and Harpham 14), death and rebirth (Abrams and Harpham 13-4), sacrifice (Roberts and Jacobs 699), loss of innocence, carpe diem, the quest for enlightenment (Kirzner and Mandell 3), the journey home, the apocalypse, and the hero quest.

Archetypal Characters

Numerous writers have identified archetypal or stock characters in literature. While stock characters are not necessarily archetypal, they do often seem related to archetypes. During the Age of Faith, the Italian commedia dell'arte included four stock characters: the harlequin, the capitano, the pierrot, and the scaramouche ("Commedia dell'arte," pars. 5-6). The harlequin was a humorous character, a "faithful valet, patient, credulous, and amorous,. . . . amoral without being vicious" ("Harelquin," par. 1). The capitano was a "pretentious but cowardly military man. . . . His blustering claims to wealth and military and amatory successes were exploded, often by the roguish asides of his squire and confidant" ("Capitano," par. 1). The pierrot was a young likeable but "simpleminded and honest servant," who was often "an unsuccessful lover" and the butt of his fellows' jokes ("Pierrot," par. 1). The scaramouche was a con man and ruffian, unreliable, who frequently was in trouble, but managed always to slip away unscathed leaving one or more of his companions to take the blame ("Scaramouche," par. 1).

Literature, especially fantasy, continues to include archetypal characters. Some common archetypal characters (with examples) include the hero (King Arthur, Theseus, Bilbo); the scapegoat (Tessie Hutchinson in "The Lottery"); the outcast (Cain, the Ancient Mariner, Gollum); a demonic figure (Lucifer, Darth Vader, Sauron); an earth mother (Galadriel); the temptress (Sirens, Delilah); the unfaithful wife (Anna Karenina); the wise old man (Yoda, Obiwan Kenobi); the shrew (Katherine in Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew); the neophyte or apprentice (Luke, young Arthur); the eternal youth [puer aeternas] (Peter Pan); and the rogue (Han Solo).