TED Radio Hour
The Hero's Journey
From the Odyssey, to Robinson Crusoe, to Star Wars — why are we drawn to stories about heroes? And what do they tell us about ourselves? TED speakers explore what makes a hero's journey.
By Guy Raz • • 1 min readHost Guy Raz raises the curtain on this episode by exploring the hidden blueprint embedded within our most popular and powerful stories — including its influence on George Lucas as he wrote the first Star Wars film. Dame Ellen MacArthur, who's journey began when she discovered sailing, describes how years later she undertook her greatest challenge: to sail solo around the world faster than anyone in history. She describes how that journey transformed her. Author and illustrator Jarrett J. Krosoczka says his life could have gone in a completely different direction, if he hadn't had a long line of mentors. In 1942, the US government interned George Takei and his family in a Japanese-American internment camp. Decades later, the actor describes his journey to forgive the country that betrayed him. As a teenager, Ismael Nazario was arrested for robbery and spent more than 300 days in Rikers Island's solitary confinement before being convicted of a crime. He describes how every day was a test to survive.
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