A Modern Myth: Neuromancer

One of the tools writers use to create memorable stories is writing to formula. One of the most successful and commonly used formulas available to us is the Hero's Journey, also known as the Monomyth. The ancient Greeks, Sumerians, Romans and others used it for virtually all their mythologies. George Lucas used it in the Star Wars saga, Frank Herbert borrowed from it extensively in the Dune cycle, and the Percy Jackson series is nothing but a series of monomythic plots.

Today I thought it would be fun to examine a novel considered by many, including myself, to be Visionary Science Fiction. A "modern classic", if I may use such an oxymoronic turn of phrase. I've been re-re-re-rereading William Gibson's "Neuromancer" for about the tenth time, and couldn't help but notice similarities between it and the classic Hero's Journey.

How's that, you say? But "Neromancer" is so groundbreaking and different! It's nothing like "Star Wars" or the myth of, say, King Minos of Crete. It's cyberpunk! It must be new and bold.

Not at all. Strip away the veneer of gritty street reality, cybercrime and Artificial Intelligences, and what you find underneat fits the classic Monomyth structure. Allow me to explain.

First, we must study the basic plot structure of the monomyth as it has been passed down through the ages. Joseph Campbell breaks down the Monomyth into three acts with 17 stages:

Stage 1: Departure
1.1 - the Call to Adventure
1.2 - the Refusal of the Call
1.3 - Supernatural Aid
1.4 - The Crossing of the First Threshold
1.5 - the Belly of the Whale

Stage 2: Initiation
2.1 - Road of Trials
2.2 - Meeting with the Goddess
2.3 - Woman as Temptress
2.4 - Atonement with the Father
2.5 - Apotheosis
2.6 - The Ultimate Boon

Stage 3: Return
3.1 - Refusal of the Return
3.2 - The Magic Flight
3.3 - Rescue from Without
3.4 - The Crossing of the Return Threshold
3.5 - Master of Two Worlds
3.6 - Freedom to Live

The plot of Neuromancer is fairly simple, as most plots are. Case, a down-on-his-luck cybercriminal, addicted to drugs and waiting for the street to kill him, is given a second chance at life by a mysterious stranger and the stranger's female hireling. No details are given early on about the nature of the job; he only knows that someone wants him to do it and is willing to pay a lot to have it done.

That's the plot. Now to apply the story elements to the monomyth structure:

Stage 1: Departure
In this stage, we meet the hero at his Rest State. He's in his comfort zone (or, in this case, his discomfort zone), living peacefully and minding his own business, when suddenly someone offers him a chance at adventure. The hero is Case, a hacker who's had his talent ruined by his former employers. He's spent his last wad of cash and has now taken to selling "proscribed biologicals" to finance a drug habit that's killing him.
1.1 - the Call to Adventure: Case meets the herald of the gods, represented here by Molly. Molly is a "razorgirl", a tough, no-nonsense bodyguard and assassin with knives in her fingers and mirrored lenses over her eyes. She takes case to meet Colonel Armitage, who offers case a second chance and the tools to get his life back.
1.2 - Refusal of the Call: before accepting the offer, Case tries to run from Molly. This part doesn't last very long, as the hero really doesn't like his current life very much and wants to get back to the way things were.
1.3 - Supernatural Aid: Case goes through with the operation to restore his nervous system to health. In later chapters he is also given the tools he needs to do the job (a computer, modem and other implements). This is called "Re-arming" in some structures. He is also given, in addition to a repaired nervous system, a new pancrease that filters his blood to remove and prevent drug addiciton. Specifically, the stimulants he'd been kiling himself with.
1.4 - Crossing the First Threshold: After accepting the operation, Case leaves behind his old life and accepts the new one. In this story, he is told that in addition to having a repaired nervous system, he also is on a timeline. Fifteen toxin sacs have been bonded to his circulatory system. If he does the job, he'll be set free. If he fails, he goes right back where he came from. At this point, there's no turning back.
1.5 - Belly of the Whale: Usually the hero in the monomyth must undergo a spritual awakening or pass through a period of darkness or near-death. In Neuromancer, the operation itself can be considered the Belly of the Whale.

Stage 2: Initiation
In the Initiation stage, the hero passes through a series of trials and temptations before meeting the final challenge. He's now on the road of adventure, and has no real choice but to move forward to the conclusion.
2.1 - The Road of Trials: The journey begins with Case and Molly breaking into a major corporate database to steal, both physically and cybernetically, a valuable piece of data which will be used as a weapon in the final battle. The tool, called the "Dixie Flatline", is the computer construct of Case's old teacher, who died several years ago. The teacher represents the Father, which will become apparent later.
In this phase, Case meets other characters along the way. These include the Finn, a collector, dealer and broker who represents the Armorer of myth; Rivera, a drug-addicted conceptual artist with holographic projectors implanted in his body, who represents the Trickster; and others.
2.2 - The Meeting with the Goddess: The goddess figure in Myth represents a mother archetype, or sometimes a lost love. Case learns about the Tessier-Ashpool clan and its current leader, Lady 3Jane Marie-France. During the final Battle he meets her and learns the truth.
2.3 - The Woman as Temptress: Before beginning the final battle, Case is tempted back to his old habits by a young woman offering him powerful psychoactive drugs strong enough to get past his new pancreas. He accepts the offer the first time, but learns his lesson. The road only goes forward, not back, and he rejects her the second time.
2.4 - Atonement with the Father: Case's mentor asks to be erased after the job is done. Case agrees.
2.5 - Apotheosis: In the final battle, Case dies ("flatline") while cracking the ice of a powerful Artificial Intelligence. He is later reborn, and finds himself transformed, as we see in 2.6.
2.6 - the Ultimate Boon: In addition to having completed his mission, Case learns that his body miraculously manufactured the enzyme it needed to remove the toxin sacs. Good thing, too, since Armitage goes insane during 2.5 and forgets all about Case and his problems.

Stage 3: Return
In the third stage of the Monomyth, the hero returns from the world of adventure to the real world. He is sometimes either unable or unwilling to return to the world he left, and requires assistance. Gibson glosses over most of these elements, but some do appear in Neuromancer.
3.1 - Refusal of the Return: In Neuromancer, Case is unable to jack out of the matrix after freeing the A.I. programs and requires help from outside.
3.2 - the Magic Flight: Case returns to Earth literally.
3.3 - Rescue from Without:
3.4 - Crossing the Return Threshold: Case gets a new pancreas and new blood as part of his reward before returning to the world.
3.5 - Master of Two Worlds: Case returns to the world, without Molly but with his talent restored.
3.6 - Freedom to Live: Case is on his own and free to live.

So now we see that even in the most modern and "visionary" of science-fiction stories, if you strip away the layers of story, the same classic structure remains. Departure, Initiation and Return are all there. Some of the elements are left out or glossed over, but the Monomyth is evident throughout Neuromancer.