Why does he think his ill fortunes are unjustified?
For this discussion I want you to consider the reading in Campbell (The Crossing of the Return Threshold, Master of the Two Worlds, Freedom to Live) and the subject of doomsday myths that envision the end of the world (as well as those that seek to answer what happens after death).
What larger connections overlap between the end of the individual hero’s journey and the end of life in the individual and collective sense? For this question think about how mythology discusses the end of everything (Ragnarok and other such end times beliefs) versus the end of the
individual (death). Are those two process similar? If so how? Are they different? Explain your answer. Campbell states, “The boon brought from the transcendent deep becomes quickly rationalized into nonentity, and the need becomes great for another hero to refresh the word” (Campbell 188). (Indeed, reread the whole paragraph that sentence can be found in). How does this connect with our lecture on doomsday myths? Where
do you see the connections in specific myths discussed in this module’s lecture (and, after using that evidence you can also include evidence from past modules as well). Of course, also consider and refer back to Campbell’s examples in the chapter and text. As we see from the Letter to a Dead Wife, death often wasn’t the end of complex relationships. Spend some time reflecting on the situation this windower find himself in
and answer the following questions: Why does he think his ill fortunes are unjustified? Do you see any hints in the document as to what his ill fortunes are? Take a guess what you think prompted this letter? What do you think is going wrong in his life that he would write this letter to his deceased wife?