A symbol, theme, setting, or character-type that recurs ... - F+W Media

A symbol, theme,setting, or character-typethat recurs in differenttimes and placesin myth, literature,folklore, dreams, andrituals so frequentlyor prominently as tosuggest (to certainspeculative psychologistsand critics) that itembodies some essentialelement of ‘universal’human experience.[ÄR'-Kĭ-TīP']THE CONCISE OXFORD DICTIONARY OF LITERARY TERMS

Every year at Easter time, Cadbury releases a riff of along-standing commercial concept for the CadburyCreme Egg that features a bunny that clucks like achicken. This campaign is highly memorable because ofits simple humor and sense of play with the unexpected.Archetype in play: The Clown.Sterling Brands’ recent refresh for CelestialSeasonings herb tea packaging harkens to a magicalcombination of sensory and symbolic imageryrepresenting natural ingredients and states of beingthat evoke various transformational moments.Archetype in play: The Alchemist.CHAPTERFOUR15An Invitation to Play

IBM’s one-hundred-year anniversary became a celebration of accomplishments.VSA Partners created one hundred icons that showcasedtheir one hundred years of innovation. Archetype in play: The Innovator.Volkswagen has been demonstrating the consistent and successful use of a specific archetype in itscampaign stories for decades. Case-in-point is DDB Stockholm’s 2009 Rolighetsterorin, or TheFun Theory campaign. In one stunt, a staircase in a Stockholm subway station was converted intofunctional piano keys to encourage people to take the stairs rather than the escalator. The theory isthat by simply making daily activities more fun, people will change their behaviors, and ultimatelytheir willingness to drive environmentally friendly cars. “Piano Staircase” embodies the archetypalessence that has come to be synonymous with Volkswagen’s brand. Archetype in play: The Child.16HARTWELLCHEN

Mexican food restaurant Chipotle’s two-minute 20-second commercial debutedat the 2012 Grammys and practically stole the show. As a commentaryon the modern industrial food chain, the short animated film Back to theStart 1 features Willie Nelson covering Coldplay’s “The Scientist.” The filmdemonstrates the values of the brand and harkens to a time when life andwork seemed more simple and more rewarding. The film is a result of Chipotlefounder Steve Ells’s passionate efforts to source food on a more sustainable andethical basis. Archetype in play: The Citizen (secondary Innocent).These are but seven representatives in a vast sea of examples demonstratingthe power of archetypes applied in design, communications and advertising.Why do they work? Because archetypes create shortcuts to meaning. This hashuge implications for brands: Instant emotional impact and visual depictionof an archetype occurring in the mind of the viewer/user creates instantaffinity. Well-deployed archetypes are easily recognizable in most cultures andpersonify the brand essence to support strategic initiatives without creativeinhibition. Archetypes can therefore become a shorthand for testing brandauthenticity. How would the [insert your brand archetype] talk, behave orbe in relationship?A BRIDGE BETWEEN STRATEGY AND MANIFESTATIONArchetypes cross the divide between the imagination and the cognitiverealm because they are the water we swim in, so to speak. We invite youto jump in and swim. You don’t have to be training for an Olympic 400mfreestyle event to get in the water and feel the ease of tapping into a creativeforce greater than yourself.Please play with the cards. Explore what the image side instinctively communicatesto you without looking at the descriptions on the text side.Become familiar with your own predispositions toward the implied story ofthe card, or its colors or style. An easy litmus test to know if you’re in yourhead is when you are no longer enjoying the process but rather searchingfor the right answer. There are no right or wrong answers with this tool. Getout of your head, say hello to your creativity and imagination and breathesome life into your brand/business.CHAPTERFOUR17An Invitation to Play

ArchetypeCHILD“To be young, really young, takes avery long time.”—PABLO PICASSOEnjoying all that life has to offer, the Child reawakensthe autonomic joys of play and curiosity.The Child is the guardian of innocence, possessingan affinity for the bonds of friendshipwith people and animals alike. Energetically, theChild embodies playfulness, lightness, freedomand the expectation of wonder. This archetypedemonstrates a relentless belief in the goodnessof humanity and uses the power of imaginationto see the possibility for fun in everything. A joyto be around, the Child tends to bring out thebest in others.Like the metaphor of a mighty oak living withinthe acorn, C.G. Jung describes the Child as “potentialfuture” and identifies it as a core universalarchetype. The Child presents its energies in manywidely ranging forms but all congregate aroundthe core issues of responsibility, interdependencyand individuation. The Child archetype triggersbeliefs around family, security and possibility.Existing as a reminder that age is largely a mentaland societal construct, the Child remains eternallyyouthful. Characterized by an open mind-set,nothing inhibits the Child’s passion and enjoymentof life’s playground. Through creativity,laughter and light, the Child personifies hope andthe promise of new beginnings.EXAMPLESSTRENGTHSARCHETYPAL FAMILYCHILDDREAMERIDEALISTINNOCENTMUSETemperament that is easily amused. Inner toughnessand resilience. Positive attitude and energy.Fascination with the world. Openness to possibility.FAMILY SYMBOLCalvin (Calvin and Hobbes). Linus(Peanuts). Pooh (A.A. Milne). RaymondBabbitt (Rain Man). Anne Frank. ShirleyTemple. Nintendo Wii. Volkswagen.CHALLENGESInability to grow up and accept responsibility.Difficulty being reliable, grounded or dependable.Tendency to be highly mutable and vulnerable toinfluence.CHAPTERFIVE37Every Archetype Creates Meaning

F UNDAMENTAL ArchetypeCITIZEN“Give me a place to stand and a leverlong enough and I will move the world.”—ARCHIMEDES, 220 BCThe Citizen is driven by a deeply instilled senseof personal integrity, fairness, equity and responsibilityto the community. Meaning is found inthe personal sense of alignment between beliefsand action. The Citizen fulfills purpose throughservice, stewardship, contribution and moral leadership.Having the courage to stand on principle,the Citizen possesses great energy and optimismbalanced with pacing and pragmatism.Willing to put others ahead of self, this archetype’sidentity is shaped by the experience ofbeing a peer rather than a subject or ruler. A continuouslearner, the Citizen believes in and worksto manifest values that are higher than profit orindividual gain. In Rights of Man, Thomas Painewrites, “My country is the world and my religionis to do good.” The Citizen is motivated by thisbroad perspective: as one people, our humanitydepends on positive action for the whole, andupon the celebration and respect of differencesregardless of race, religion, gender or creed.ARCHETYPAL FAMILYSTRENGTHSADVOCATECITIZENEVERYMANNETWORKERSERVANTStewardship. Altruism. Respect. Fairness.Accountability. Tendency to be a good listener andhard worker.FAMILY SYMBOLThe Citizen finds freedom within responsibility.Able to put aside pointless partisanship, this archetypeis neither an ideologue nor a martyr butrather a conscious change agent believing in thepower of sacrifice and innovation to practicallytackle today’s realities. Seeing the value in thecollective, the Citizen is a systems thinker whotrusts in the inherent good of human beings tocontribute positively to society.EXAMPLESCHALLENGESRighteousness. Apathy. Rebelliousness. Recklessness.John F. Kennedy. Rosa Parks. WillemDafoe in Mississippi Burning.TimeBanks USA. Habitat for Humanity.Panera Cares. Chipotle. TOMS Shoes.Team in Training.38HARTWELLCHEN

ArchetypeCLOWN“My report card always said, ‘Jimfinishes first and then disrupts theother students.’”—JIM CARREYThe Clown wears a mask that covers its true emotionsand that allows for the emotional distanceneeded to break taboos and explore social absurdity.Using humor, the Clown’s mask creates asense of safety, giving permission for boundariesand social norms to be crossed.The Clown represents amusement, freedom andwhimsical engagement. Making others laugh createsa sense of harmony and provides catharsis forthe Clown. A simpleminded archetype, the Clownis wise, prescient and daring within its innocence.The Clown invites us into the potent world offeeling, maneuvering emotions like playthings.This archetype tends to overdramatize, exaggerateand border on the ludicrous as a means ofconnecting with the audience. The Clown canmanifest in both the lead and “the straight man”roles, serving to set up the humor or joke to landwith greater impact.Often self-deprecating, the Clown is distinguishedfrom the Jester by operating on aneveryday, everyman level, rather than an elevatedrealm or strata. Sharing qualities with theEntertainer, the Clown requires an audience tofeel fulfilled. The Clown creates meaning by thefeedback received from others.ARCHETYPAL FAMILYCLOWNENTERTAINERJESTERPROVOCATEURSHAPESHIFTERFAMILY SYMBOLEXAMPLESCommedia dell’Arte. Charlie Chaplin.Lucille Ball. Jim Carrey. Gracie Allen(George Burns’s “straight man”). RalphKramden (The Honeymooners). Ben& Jerry’s. Jack in the Box. CadburyCreme Egg.STRENGTHSCHALLENGESAbility to create fun and to make others laughand cry.Danger of not being taken seriously. Loud, garish orobnoxious behavior.CHAPTERFIVE39Every Archetype Creates Meaning

F UNDAMENTAL ArchetypeHERO“We have not even to risk the adventurealone for the heroes of all time havegone before us. The labyrinth isthoroughly known. We have only tofollow the thread of the hero’s path.And where we had thought to find anabomination, we shall find a god. Andwhere we had thought to slay another,we shall slay ourselves. And where wehad thought to travel outward, we shallcome to the center of our own existence.And where we had thought to be alonewe shall be with all the world.”—JOSEPH CAMPBELLThe Hero acts to redeem society by overcominggreat odds in service to successfully completingextraordinary acts of strength, courage and goodness.The Hero is admired by those who appreciatethe self-sacrifice, stamina and courage required totriumph over adversity and evil.ARCHETYPAL FAMILYSTRENGTHSATHLETEHEROLIBERATORRESCUERWARRIORSelf-sacrifice. Courage. Redemption. Transformation.Faith. Strength. Stamina.FAMILY SYMBOLThe Hero has relatively few distinguishing personalitytraits and can present in many differentforms with many different faces. As a continuouslearner, the Hero seeks to understand the innerlife force and fullest expression of self, whilecoping with difficulty, meeting strange fates andfacing shifting challenges. The essence of the Herolies in the sacrifice required and the price paid toachieve the goal of transformation. Motivated toacquire wisdom, the Hero often endures separationand loneliness.For many reasons, the Hero, as an archetype,takes on a meta position in the collective unconscious,possessing traits that resonate withinalmost every human being. The Hero’s journeyis considered a universal story of the path fromthe ego and the self to a new identity. One phaseof the Hero’s journey is commonly referred to as“the dark night of the soul,” which precedes thetransformation to the new life.CHALLENGESDelusions of grandeur. Arrogance. Temptation of power.EXAMPLESOdysseus. Hercules. Luke Skywalker(Star Wars). Bilbo Baggins (The Hobbit).Simba (The Lion King). Harry Potter.U.S. Army. Nike.54HARTWELLCHEN

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