THE HERO'S JOURNEY: WINNING MORE TRIALS BY TELLING EMOTIONALLY COMPELLING STORIES

CLE Credit: 1.0 Wednesday, June 18, 2014 11:50 a.m. - 12:50 p.m. Ballroom B Northern Kentucky Convention Center Covington, Kentucky

A NOTE CONCERNING THE PROGRAM MATERIALS

The materials included in this Kentucky Bar Association Continuing Legal Education handbook are intended to provide current and accurate information about the subject matter covered. No representation or warranty is made concerning the application of the legal or other principles discussed by the instructors to any specific fact situation, nor is any prediction made concerning how any particular judge or jury will interpret or apply such principles. The proper interpretation or application of the principles discussed is a matter for the considered judgment of the individual legal practitioner. The faculty and staff of this Kentucky Bar Association CLE program disclaim liability therefore. Attorneys using these materials, or information otherwise conveyed during the program, in dealing with a specific legal matter have a duty to research original and current sources of authority.

Printed by: Evolution Creative Solutions 7107 Shona Drive Cincinnati, Ohio 45237

Kentucky Bar Association TABLE OF CONTENTS

The Presenter ...... i

Introduction ...... 1

The Definition of Story ...... 1

The Hero's Journey ...... 6

Conclusion ...... 14

THE PRESENTER

Frank M. Mungo Frank M. Mungo Attorney at Law 7310 Turfway Road, Suite 550 Florence, Kentucky 41042 (859) 372-6670 [email protected]

FRANK M. MUNGO is a trial lawyer, representing plaintiffs in civil cases and those accused in criminal cases in both Kentucky and Ohio. He consults nationally with trial lawyers to help them uncover the emotional core of their cases and structure their stories to motivate jurors to help their clients. Mr. Mungo is an instructor at the Trial Lawyers College in Wyoming, founded by Gerry Spence, and an adjunct at Salmon P. Chase College of Law where he also received his J.D. in 1998. He received his B.S. in physics from Presbyterian College and M.S. in aerospace engineering from the University of Cincinnati, and M.S. in mechanical engineering from North Carolina State University.

i

ii THE HERO'S JOURNEY: WINNING MORE TRIALS BY TELLING EMOTIONALLY COMPELLING STORIES Frank M. Mungo

I. INTRODUCTION

Chances are that if you find yourself standing before a jury on a regular basis you think of yourself as a trial lawyer, a storyteller. And for your clients who have lived through almost unimaginable pain and adversity, you are their only hope for justice. And because you're a trial lawyer, you welcome this responsibility. But it's becoming harder to get justice for your clients. We live in the era of tort reform, painting our clients as malingerers who file frivolous lawsuits in hopes of winning a lottery verdict, and sensationalized media coverage that presents, analyzes, and convicts our clients even before they walk into the courthouse. So, how do we persuade jurors who are exposed to this toxic rhetoric? The solution is that we must tell a better story than our opponent. In essence, whoever tells the best story wins. But how do you tell a story that cuts through this haze of skepticism and fear to reach inside the heart of each juror so they can really know your client's story? In this article you will go on a journey to learn the definition of what story is and the power of the Hero's Journey, the story structure that influences even the most skeptical listener.

II. THE DEFINITION OF STORY

Since about 30,000 years ago, people have told stories to pass along information. In fact, human beings are hardwired for story. Neuroscientist Antonio Damasio has written: "The problem of how to make all this wisdom understandable, transmittable, persuasive, enforceable – in a word, of how to make it stick – was faced and a solution found. Storytelling was the solution – storytelling is something brains do, naturally and implicitly . . . . [I]t should be no surprise that it pervades the entire fabric of human societies and cultures."1 "The story's power, then, is twofold: It provides simulation (knowledge about how to act) and inspiration (motivation to act)."2

From the first time young lawyers walk into a courtroom, they are inundated with the sound advice from experienced attorneys that to win you have to tell the jury your client's story. Perhaps the noted trial lawyer Gerry Spence sums it up best:

Give me the story – please, the story. If I can finally understand the case in simple terms, I can, in turn, tell the same story to the jury and make them understand it as well. I go about my life confused most of the time, but when I get something clear I can usually communicate it. Getting it clear is not the work of huge minds, which often are baffled by themselves, but the labor of

1 Antonio Damasio, Self Comes to Mind: Constructing the Conscious Brain 293 (2010).

2 Chip Heath and Dan Heath, Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die Loc. 3252 (2007).

1 ordinary minds to understand [the] simplest of stories . . . most of all, lawyers must be storytellers. That is what the art of advocacy comes down to – the telling of the true story of one's case.3

But what does the word "story" mean? Is it synonymous with the word "narrative"? In the realm of the courtroom, these two words differ significantly in how they persuade jurors.

A. Narrative Defined

As defined by the Oxford Dictionary a narrative is "[a] spoken or written account of connected events; a story. Note the temporal element contained within this definition. A narrative is a sequence of events. For example, let's imagine we're standing in front of a jury and start our opening with this "narrative":

This is a case about the negligent driving of John Smith who failed to yield the right-of-way to Jane Doe as he was merging North onto I-75 while on his cell phone. As he moved into her lane, he smashed into her. The impact caused her to lose control of her car and crash into the guardrail. As a result, Jane, who is thirty-eight, suffered a fractured skull, ruptured her spleen, and fractured both of her legs. Jane's medical expenses are over $250,000, and her lost wages are over $85,000. She no longer is able to attend her son's baseball games. She can't sleep well at night because of her painful headaches.

Many practicing attorneys would consider this a cogent description of a personal injury case. It is an accurate accounting of the specific series of events detailing the harm caused to Jane. In fact, this sequence of events that has happened to Jane is called a "plot." Plot is "the arrangement or ordering of the incidents in a story, play, novel, etc. Plot is the sequence of events."4 A story needs a plot to hold it together; it is the story's temporal backbone. Think of plot as what the protagonist does. The example above is called a plot-based narrative.

But does the plot alone make a story? Does it pull you into the story or, instead, hold you at a distance? No doubt you can intuitively feel the problem with a plot-based narrative – it keeps the listener at a distance from what the protagonist feels, which prevents the listener from emotionally connecting with her. Plot-based narratives do not trigger the jurors' interest or create meaning. A good plot is critical to a good story, but jurors will need more than just a good plot to be pulled into the story.

3 Written remarks of Gerry Spence at the NACDL 1999 Fall Conference, Lawyering on the Edge: Pushing the Limits of Aggressive Advocacy, Chicago, Illinois (November 3-6), reprinted in ABA Bar Journal, Apr. 1, 1986.

4 Kendall Haven Story Proof: The Science Behind the Startling Power of Story 17 (2007).

2 Here is another example.

I received a call from dispatch about a possible drunk driver on Hwy 18 driving a red pickup. I responded to the area and located the vehicle. I pulled in behind the pickup and observed the vehicle cross the center line on three occasions. I turned on my emergency equipment and pulled it over.

This is not a story. "Just because the events occur in chronological order, it does not necessarily mean those events create a story. Such a narrative will fail to hold an audience's attention for more than the shortest period of time."5

B. Story Defined

As you can see from the narrative example, just telling what happened to Jane doesn't trigger an empathic-emotional response, other than perhaps some degree of pity, which isn't the emotional connection you seek from your jurors.

In describing what is story, author and film director Michael Welles Schock writes, "A story is a series of events about human beings dealing with a problem, unified by a premise, told in a structured order."6

Author and professional storyteller Kendell Haven provides one of the best working definitions of story – "Story: A detailed, character-based narration of a character's struggles to overcome obstacles and reach an important goal."7 If plot is what the protagonist does, her character is defined by her actions. We learn about her personality through her actions.

Let's break down Haven's definition into its individual parts so we can understand what our jurors need from our client's story.

1. A detailed . . . . Specifics persuade, generalities don't.

2. . . . character-based . . . . Viewpoint is taken from Jane's point of view; you see what she sees, feel what she feels.

3. . . . narration of a character's struggles to overcome obstacles. Characters need both a plot (sequence of events) and obstacles to overcome to create drama so we are interested.

5 Michael Welles Schock, Screenwriting Down to the Atoms: Digging Deeper into the Craft of Cinematic Storytelling 22 (2013).

6 Id. at 27.

7 K. Haven Story Proof: The Science Behind the Startling Power of Story at 79.

3 4. . . . reach an important goal . . . . Goals provide the story's motivation, without goals there's no meaning to the story.

C. Story Spine

Screenwriters and improvisational actors are taught story structure by using a story spine, which is a technique to structure the story in a manner that makes its plot (sequence) and meaning apparent. The story spine follows a specific pattern, which, as you will see, corresponds to the story structure of the Hero's Journey:

1. Once upon a time . . .

2. And every day . . .

3. Until one day . . .

4. And because of this . . .

5. And because of this . . .

6. Until finally . . .

7. And ever since that day . . .8

Let's put the some information into the story spine, told from Jane's point of view.

1. Once upon a time, there was a thirty-eight-year-old woman named Jane who lived in Florence with her husband, Dan, and her ten- year-old son Steven.

2. And every day, she would make breakfast for her family then get into her blue Camry and drive to General Electric in Cincinnati, where she's worked for the last fifteen years.

3. Until one day, when she was driving North on I-75, John Smith, while on his cell phone, crossed over into her lane and struck the side of her car, causing Jane to lose control and crash into the guardrail.

4. And because of this Jane had to be rushed to the hospital and straight into the operating room where doctors removed her damaged spleen, put pins in both of her legs to set her broken bones, and drilled a hole in her skull to relieve the pressure on her brain.

8 Brian McDonald Invisible Ink: A Practical Guide to Building Stories that Resonate 5 (2010); Carl Bettinger, Twelve Heroes, One Voice: Guiding Jurors to Courageous Verdicts 10-11 (2011).

4 5. And because of this Jane couldn't work for over a year. She went to physical therapy three times a week for months to learn to walk again. Dan and Jane spent $250,000 for her medical care. She was in too much pain to go to any of Steven's baseball games. Jane can't sleep most nights, because now she gets throbbing headaches in the evening.

6. Until finally, Jane brought this lawsuit to hold John Smith accountable for causing the crash.

7. And ever since bringing this lawsuit, Jane longs for the day when the jury will finally get to hear her story and hold John Smith responsible.

D. Structure of the Story Spine Explained

In the first two steps: "Once upon a time” and “And every day," they tell the listeners all they need to know about the protagonist to understand the story that is about to unfold. Why is that important? It is in this part of the story where a bond develops between the listener and the protagonist. Listeners compare themselves to the protagonist. The more alike they are, the easier it is for the listeners to empathize with her. They begin to travel alongside her on her journey. These two steps take place in the ordinary world of the protagonist, one she knows well and feels the comfort of its certainty.

The third step, "Until one day," is the Call to Adventure, otherwise known as the inciting incident, inciting event, or call to action. "All agree that some event is necessary to get a story rolling, once the work of introducing the main character is done."9 This also signals the end of the first act. An act "is a series of sequences that peaks in a climactic scene which causes a major reversal of values, more powerful in its impact than any previous sequence or scene."10

The fourth and fifth steps, "And because of this," begin the second act and continue what happened at the end of the first act in a cause-and- effect manner. It is in these steps where we see how Jane was affected by the crash and how she deals with it. She is now in a strange new world vastly different from her ordinary one.

The sixth step, "Until finally," begins the third act. It moves toward the climax of the story. The protagonist will fight back against what she fears. In the courtroom, this would be closing argument. This begins the transition from this new world to the return to her ordinary one. She will return a new person by the end of her journey.

9 Christopher Vogler, The Writer's Journey: Mythic Structure for Writers 99 (3d ed. 2007).

10 Robert McKee, Story: Substance, Structure, Style, and the Principles of Screenwriting 41 (1997).

5 The seventh step, "And ever since that day," is called the denouement. In a story it is when the protagonist returns to her home after the climax. In the courtroom, this is when the jury returns a verdict that our protagonist will take back to her home, forever changed.

You don't have to use the exact language of the story spine. Preferably, take the story spine structure and produce a character-based plot of your client's story by using your own words and facts. The story spine mirrors the structure of the Hero's Journey.

II. THE HERO'S JOURNEY

As a trial lawyer, would you like a method of telling your client's story so that jurors will identify with your client, connect with them, empathize with their struggles, remember key facts, admire their resolve, and feel empowered to act in your client's favor? If so, let me tell you about the greatest story structure in history – the Hero's Journey.

In 1949, American mythologist Joseph Campbell published The Hero with a Thousand Faces.11 From this work, Campbell developed the classic Hero's Journey. The Journey is constructed of eighteen stages, although not every story has every stage. "The Hero's Journey is the pattern of life, growth and experience for all of us."12 What resonates about Campbell's work is that he believed "all storytelling, consciously or not, follows the ancient patterns of myth and that all stories, from the crudest jokes to the highest flights of literature, can be understood in terms of the Hero's Journey: the 'monomyth' whose principles he lays out in the book."13 Over 5,000 years ago, when the first written story of King Gilgamesh was found etched in stone in Samaria, every culture has used the mythic structure of the Hero's Journey as a vehicle to remember important information. The Hero's Journey is an "all-embracing metaphor for the deep inner journey of transformation that heroes in every time and place seem to share, a path that leads them through great movements of separation, descent, ordeal, and return."14 Campbell wrote: "Popular tales represent heroic action as physical; the higher religions show it to be moral; nevertheless, there will be astonishingly little variation in the mythology of the adventure, the character roles involved, the victories gained."15

Why concern ourselves with the Hero's Journey? The answer is clear – stories that follow the Hero's Journey trigger visceral feelings of empathy and

11 Joseph Campbell, The Hero with a Thousand Faces (1949).

12 Thomas D. Penfield, "Whoever Tells the Best Story Wins: Storytelling as Persuasion in Jury Trials", Winter 2008 AAJ-CLE 217 (2008).

13 C. Vogler, The Writer's Journey: Mythic Structure For Writers at 4.

14 Stuart Voytilla, Myth and the Movies: Discovering the Mythic Structure of 50 Unforgettable Films Loc. 153 (1999) (quoting Christopher Vogler in the Forward).

15 J. Campbell, The Hero with a Thousand Faces at 38.

6 inspiration.16 In short, the listeners feel a positive emotional response to its structure. Neuroscience research has "demonstrated that human beings make decisions in an emotional manner and then justify them rationally."17 The archetypes of hero, villain, transformation, and overcoming adversity resonate within all of us, including our jurors. Screenwriter Christopher Vogler described the Hero's Journey as the "golden key of storytelling," because the structure's power conveys the knowledge of how to do something packaged with the motivational trigger to stir us into action.18 Recent research in "neuroscience reveal that our brain is hardwired to respond to story; the pleasure we derive from a tale well told is nature's way of seducing us into paying attention to it. In other words, we're wired to turn to story to teach us the way of the world."19

Advertising, marketing, filmmaking, and political campaigning "have absorbed the lessons of heroic archetypes because we respond viscerally to certain story patterns unconsciously . . . regardless of age."20 Research has demonstrated that "the elements that define story structure create context and relevance, which promotes memory retention and recall.21 To illustrate the universal appeal of this mythic story structure, the following table shows the top ten highest grossing films in the United States:22

Rank Movie Title and Year U.S. Box Office 1 Avatar (2009) $760,505,847 2 Titanic (1997) $658,672,302 3 The Avengers (2012) $623,279,547 4 The Dark Knight (2008) $533,316,061 5 Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace (1999) $474,544,677 6 Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope $460,935,665 7 The Dark Knight Rises (2012) $448,130,642 8 Shrek 2 (2004) $436,471,036 9 E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982) $434,949,459 10 The Hunger Games: Catching Fire (2013) $423,626,642

16 Elizabeth Svoboda, "Do 'Hero's Journey' Narratives Create Heroes?", Psychology Today, Dec. 12, 2012, available at http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/what-makes-hero/201312/do-heros- journey-narratives-create-heroes.

17 Patrick Renvoise' and Christopher Morin, Neuromarketing: Understanding the "Buy Button" in Your Customer's Brain, Loc. 190 (2007).

18 S. Voytilla, Myth and the Movies: Discovering the Mythic Structure of 50 Unforgettable Films at Loc. 145 (quoting Christopher Vogler in the Forward).

19 Lisa Cron, Wired for Story 1-2 (2012).

20 Ruth Ann Robbins, "Harry Potter, Ruby Slippers and Merlin: Telling the Client's Story Using Characters and Paradigm of the Archetypal Hero's Journey", 29 Seattle U. L. Rev. 767, 769 (2006).

21 K. Haven Story Proof: The Science Behind the Startling Power of Story at 7.

22 IMDB, All-Time Box Office: USA, available at http://www.imdb.com/boxoffice/alltimegross.

7 Regardless of the genre – animation, romance, or science fiction – every movie on this list adopted the structure of the Hero's Journey. The story structure of the Hero's Journey, however, is not "a parlor trick used to draw attention away from the logic of the law. It is part of the logic itself."23

A. The Mythic Archetypes of the Hero's Journey

Psychologist Carl G. Jung used the term archetypes, referring to "ancient patterns of personality that are the shared heritage of the human race. The same character types seem to occur on both the personal and collective scale."24

In the hero-centric story, five universal archetypes occur most frequently:

1. Hero.

2. Villain (Shadow).

3. Mentor.

4. Victim.

5. Trickster.

Hero – Who is a hero? Is it the smartest, strongest, or wealthiest of us? Nope. The best heroes are everyday folks – just ordinary people. The ordinary quality of such a person contrasts nicely when they act in extraordinary ways or persevere through intolerable circumstances. The hero must have a goal or a quest. No matter how arduous the task, the hero must never give up. The hero, however, is often reluctant to get involved, to leave the world that he/she knows and begin a difficult journey. "[T]he hero and the heroine are those people who do not give in to temptation. The hero story is about a person undergoing a test that he or she didn't choose . . . the strength of those heroes comes from the power to resist."25 The hero begins as an ordinary person but transforms into a more complete one by journey's end. "The dramatic purpose of the hero is to give the audience a window into the story. Each person hearing a tale or watching a play or movie is invited, in the early stages of the story, to identify with the [h]ero, to merge with him and see the world of the story through his eyes. Storytellers do this by giving their heroes a combination of qualities, a mix of universal and unique characteristics."26 Certain attributes identify the hero in the story – they may be the

23 R. A. Robbins, "Harry Potter, Ruby Slippers and Merlin: Telling the Client's Story Using Characters and Paradigm of the Archetypal Hero's Journey", 29 Seattle U. L. Rev. at 767, 769.

24 C. Vogler, The Writer's Journey: Mythic Structure for Writers at 23.

25 C. Bettinger, Twelve Heroes, One Voice: Guiding Jurors to Courageous Verdicts at16 (quoting David Mamet, Three Uses of the Knife, Vintage Books, 1998).

26 C. Vogler, The Writer's Journey: Mythic Structure for Writers at 30.

8 underdog, placed in unexpected danger, possess a special skill or talent, or embody a quality of innocence. The hero can possess any one or more of these attributes. But the one quality that she must possess is that the hero always must choose the needs of others before their own. Only the hero can save the day.

Villain (Shadow) – How do you identify the villain, also known as shadow, in the story? You know intuitively that every good story must have one. In contrast to the hero, the defining quality for a villain is that he always chooses to satisfy his needs before those of others. While the villain may do something kind for others, he does so because he is "always motivated by self-interest."27 To help identify the villain, look for a betrayal. To accomplish his selfish goals, often you'll see the villain betraying the trust of the hero or the victim. The villain is the "hero's ethical counterpoint. The hero pets the dog; the villain kicks it to death."28

Mentor – The archetype of the mentor is to guide or train the hero: Obi- Wan Kenobi mentored Luke Skywalker, Morpheus mentored Neo, and Haymitch Abernathy mentored Katniss Everdeen. The mentor often serves to motivate the hero and help them overcome their fear. Mentors never complete the journey with the hero, who must face his fears alone. The mentor, despite his skill and power, cannot save the day; thus, he can never be the hero. In the courtroom, the trial lawyer plays the role of the mentor.

Victim – The victim suffers because of the villain's acts and is helpless to stop him. Often the villain betrays the trust of the victim in the story. In story, as in life, we often feel pity for the victim but may not feel motivated to help. Thus, it's never a good idea to portray your client as a victim. Instead it's better to betray them as the reluctant hero who fights back but is never helpless.

Trickster – The trickster "is the character who speaks the truth that others are unwilling or unable to say."29 In the courtroom, a trickster may appear as a juror during voir dire or witness during trial. Their identifying quality is that they speak out loud what everyone else is afraid to say. The trickster can be a great ally if embraced or cause harm to the hero if ignored.

B. The Journey from the Ordinary World to the New World

In describing the Hero's Journey, Campbell wrote, "A hero ventures forth from the world of common day into a region of supernatural wonder: fabulous forces are there encountered and a decisive victory is won: the

27 C. Bettinger, Twelve Heroes, One Voice: Guiding Jurors to Courageous Verdicts at 17.

28 Id. at 18.

29 Id. at 20.

9 hero comes back from this mysterious adventure with the power to bestow boons on his fellow man."30

In his work, Campbell describes eighteen stages that the hero must travel on his journey. Screenwriter Christopher Vogler amended Campbell's work and reduced the number of stages to twelve, which were then adopted by most of Hollywood's screenwriters.

As Vogler puts it, "At heart, despite its infinite variety, the hero's story is always a journey. A hero leaves her comfortable, ordinary surroundings to venture into a challenging, unfamiliar world."31

The Stages of the Hero's Journey:

Ordinary World Act I ordinary world Call to Adventure Act I ordinary world Refusal of the Call Act I ordinary world Meeting with the Mentor Act I ordinary world Crossing the First Threshold Act II ordinary world Tests, Allies, Enemies Act II new world Approach to the Inner Most Cave Act II new world Ordeal Act II new world Reward Act II new world The Road Back Act III new world Resurrection Act III ordinary world Return with the Elixir Act III ordinary world

30 J. Campbell, The Hero with a Thousand Faces at 30.

31 C. Vogler, The Writer's Journey: Mythic Structure for Writers at 7.

10 1. Ordinary World – The ordinary world is where the hero lives. It is his world, and he knows it like the back of his hand. His day-to- day routine provides comfort in its certainty. Think of Luke Skywalker on his home planet, Dorothy on her family farm in Kansas, or Neo in his apartment in front of his computer. This is the place where we compare ourselves with the hero. He is a lot like us, going about his daily life, just as we do. Also, think of your jurors at home living their lives before they get summoned for jury duty.

2. Call to Adventure – The Call to Adventure is also referred to by other names such as the catalyst, trigger, or inciting incident or event. The comfort of the hero's ordinary world is disrupted, requiring him to undertake a journey to face a challenge or solve a problem. The stakes are high should he refuse to undertake this journey. The form of the Call to Adventure can show up in many ways: a death, a serious injury, a message, or a sudden storm. For our jurors, the Call to Adventure takes the form of a summons for jury duty.

3. Refusal of the Call – Often the hero refuses the Call because he is reluctant to leave the comfort and security of his ordinary world. It may take several attempts for him to respond to the Call. The refusal of the Call heightens the risk involved in the journey. In The Matrix, Morpheus tells Neo to escape the pursuing agents by stepping out onto the ledge of a high-rise building. However, Neo refuses Morpheus's request, steps back inside the building and is captured by the agents. Reluctant to have their lives disrupted by jury duty, those called may make several attempts to avoid serving.

4. Meeting the Mentor – In meeting with the mentor, the hero gains the supplies, knowledge, training, motivation, and/or confidence needed to overcome his fear and undertake the perilous journey. The hero may seek wisdom from the mentor because he has crossed the threshold into the new world before. The mentor may be a person, or it can be symbolic like an object such as a book, map, or diary. It may be that the hero has to dig deep and remember his personal code of honor before he undertakes the crossing of the threshold. In the courtroom, the role of the mentor is played by you, the trial lawyer. The jurors are nervous and afraid about being selected to judge the case. You are the one with the wisdom of this new world, the courtroom, and must help them believe that they are up to the task of deciding this case and returning justice to your client. The Meeting of the Mentor usually ends Act I.

5. Crossing the First Threshold – In crossing the first threshold, the hero has finally committed to the journey. The Threshold separates the ordinary world from the new world. The Crossing usually begins Act II. The Crossing is the point of no return for the

11 hero; he finds himself in this strange new world. In The Matrix, Neo must choose between taking either the red or blue pill. When he takes the red pill, Neo crosses the threshold, leaving the old world of the matrix and enters this new world that is dark, desolate, and dangerous. In the courtroom, those that showed up for jury duty cross the first threshold when they are selected and given the oath.

6. Tests, Allies, Enemies – To navigate this strange world, it is important for the hero to form allies and alliances. The hero needs to know who he can trust in this new world. The hero may encounter obstacles and face challenges when entering this new world. In The Matrix, Neo joins the crew of the Nebuchadnezzar, forming new friendships, and learning how to master the rules governing the matrix. In The Wizard of Oz, Dorothy travels the yellow brick road, forming friendships with the Scarecrow, Tin Man, and Cowardly Lion. In the courtroom, once impaneled, jurors form a group, a "tribe." They will help each other navigate this new world of the courtroom. Their enemies would be anyone who interferes with their mission to decide the case. Interfering with their mission might take the form of a disruption in the trial, excessive objections, lack of preparation of a lawyer's case, or confusing jury instructions.

7. Approach to the Inner Most Cave – In the Approach, the hero readies himself in preparation of facing his greatest fear. Preparation may be further training, a needed rest, or to rekindle his confidence. In the courtroom, this is the time right before the jury retires to deliberate the case.

8. The Ordeal – When facing the Ordeal, the hero is engaged in "the central life-or death-crisis, during which he faces his greatest fear, confronts his most difficult challenge, and experiences "death." The Ordeal is the central, essential, and magical Stage of any Journey. Only through "death" can the Hero be reborn, experiencing a resurrection that grants greater powers or insight to see the Journey to the end."32 Turning to the movies, in a romantic comedy, death would be the breakup of the relationship. In The Matrix, Neo is shot by Agent Smith and appears dead, but arises like Lazarus, possessing a greater understanding of the matrix.

In the courtroom, the jurors are the heroes; they're the only ones who can save the day for our client.

However, for that to happen, certain parts of them must come alive and other parts must die. All epic heroes come to their journey to be transformed

32 S. Voytilla, Myth and the Movies: Discovering the Mythic Structure of 50 Unforgettable Films at Loc. 410.

12 from the ordinary to the extraordinary. The purpose of the story's increasing challenges is to force the hero to take greater and greater risks until his true nature is revealed. The climax to any good story presents the hero with a dilemma, forcing a choice between two options. Either option will cause harm, but only one will result in the character trait that defines the hero: self-sacrifice for the higher good. As the mentor, you guide your heroes [jurors] to recognize the central question the trial poses, to recognize and use the power they have to bring justice to your client.33

For example, old limiting beliefs held by some jurors, like those of tort reform, must "die" off and be replaced. To inhabit the role of the hero and solve the central problem of the case, "a part of the jurors must die. There is something in every juror that must suffer a metaphorical death: those pieces of themselves that the jurors brought with them from the old world that have been challenged in this new world by the villain's conduct."34

9. Reward – The hero has faced his greatest fear and has earned the reward he has sought. The reward may come in various forms: a magical amulet, magical sword, an elixir, greater insight, enhanced knowledge, or reconciliation with a friend or lover. In the courtroom, the verdict is the reward, earned from the hard work done while deliberating the case.

10. The Road Back – The hero must recommit to completing his journey and accept the Road Back to his ordinary world. This turning point of the story may require the hero to make an internal decision. If he makes it, he moves forward to complete the journey; if not, he fails. In the courtroom, the line between the Reward and the Road Back may be difficult to distinguish. It may be that before the jury returns to their ordinary world (Road Back), the judge has to send them back to deliberate until the deadlock is broken and the verdict is reached, their Reward obtained.

11. Resurrection – This is the climax of the story. Having passed through the Ordeal, the hero has changed, transformed. The hero must face his greatest challenge and bring to bear his new skills or weapons to defeat his foe. The stakes of this battle are high; other lives might be at risk. This is the point of the story where the hero ascends to his heroic status. In The Matrix, after surviving his death and acquiring greater knowledge, he faces down and destroys Agent Smith. Neo ascends to the status of the One. In the courtroom, this is the moment when the jurors leave the

33 C. Bettinger, Twelve Heroes, One Voice: Guiding Jurors to Courageous Verdicts at 33-34.

34 Id. at 140.

13 seclusion of the jury room and reenter the courtroom to face the villain and return their verdict. They are not the same people that began the trial, they have transformed during the process. If you as the mentor have done your job correctly, inspiring them to cease their power, they will return a verdict that saves the day for your client.

12. Return with the Elixir – The hero returns to the ordinary world, bringing the Reward to share with the village. The elixir can be a treasure, a magic sword, or greater knowledge. The hero is not the same as he was at the beginning of this journey. He has transformed into the best version of himself. The stage is now set for the hero to receive the next Call of Adventure.

IV. CONCLUSION

The mythic structure of the Hero's Journey appeals to our need for story. Its structure causes the listener to identify with the protagonist, creating an empathic bond, which causes the listener to care. In the courtroom, the client and the jury are each traveling the Hero's Journey. The jurors listen to your client's story, while you act as their mentor. If done correctly, you will empower them to act and return a verdict that gives your client justice.

14