Archetypes
“Women’s mythology is all about cycling from larger to smaller, pregnancy to slimness, waxing mother to waning crone.” – p 173
“Once, the whole Goddess reflected the entire spectrum: kindly and terrible, as the awesome Mother Earth. However, the conquering patriarchy split her into three aspects.” p 174
“Antonia Wolf, longtime mistress of Carl Jung, formulated four feminine archetypes: Mother, Hetaera, Amazon, and Mystic.” p 174
“To women, struggling to discover the Self, centuries of literature and symbolism that consider her man’s helpmate and support undermine her journey.” p 175
“When these archetypes are placed in a circle, patterns appear. It is most important to note that each archetype’s shadow, or direct opposite, appears clearly across the circle.” p 176


“Thus the heroine’s journey is mirrored by the shadow’s journey, as the Terrible Mother descends into the darkest realm of the self and ascends to cronehood as the fairy godmother, who gracefully ages until she passes into the realm of the spirit, the greatest power of all.” p 177
Smart Girls Rule! The Adolescent Questor
“Here is the traditional heroine – the simple, good-hearted girl carrying food through the forest or outwitting demons and kings.” p 182
“Even in the Bible, women were once celebrated for their feminine potency, in a way that modern tradition has in many ways forgotten.” p 186
“Here is the heroine’s task: pure creativity and life-force, wielding craft, magic, and devotion as weapons to accomplish her goals.” p 187
“Facing death, acknowledging its power and inevitability, is part of the heroine’s journey, as is saving one’s loved one from its grip.” p 187
SOURCE: Frankel, V. E. (2010). From Girl to Goddess: The Heroine’s Journey through Myth and Legend. Jefferson, N.C: McFarland.
The Heroine’s Journey
Separation from the feminine
Identification with the masculine
Road of trials
“Strengthening her skills of communication helps the heroine to get along with different types of people.. And having the courage to present her vision inspires other women to trust their images and words.” p 56
The illusory boon of success
“When woman can find the courage to be limited and to realize that she is enough exactly the way she is, then she discovers one of the true treasures of the heroine’s journey.” p.69
Strong women can say no
Initiation and descent to the goddess
Urgent yearning to reconnect with the feminine
“She brings us wisdom about the interconnectedness of all species; she teaches us how to live together in this global vessel and helps us to reclaim the feminine in our lives.” – 129
Healing the mother/daughter split
Finding the inner man with heart
Beyond duality
Featured image in post: English: Sculpture in Pershore A sculpture in the graveyard of the former St Andrew’s church in Pershore is a two-sided modern sculpture of the ‘Garden God’ (known locally as the Moon Goddess). The sculpture is by Peter Inchbald.