The Archetype of the Scapegoat

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The Archetype of the Scapegoat What is the first thing that comes to mind when one pictures a hero? A villain? Archetypes are a primitive mental image of the attributes of a certain character inherited from the earliest human ancestors, and supposed to be present in the collective unconscious (American Psychological Association, 2002). Archetypes can be found in nearly all forms of literature and are used to illuminate and emphasise the personalities of characters, because of this they are cited as important to both ancient mythology and modern narratives (Harper, 2001). One example of an archetype is a scapegoat, defined as a person made to bear the blame, sins and punishment for others. The archetype of the scapegoat is commonly present throughout canonical and contemporary literature (Crystal, 2012) and in the following presentation an example of a scapegoat from each of these eras will be mentioned. From the canonical period the example of the Grimm brothers’ Cinderella will be discussed and from contemporary literature the character of Tom Robinson in the 1962 American drama film adaptation of Harper Lee's ‘To Kill A Mockingbird’ (Mulligan, 1962), will represent a more modern portrayal of a scapegoat. The character of Cinderella is a fitting example of a scapegoat from the canonical period. She can be related to this archetype because of the irrational punishment that she endures from her family. ‘The sisters did her every imaginable injury - they mocked her and emptied her peas and lentils into the ashes so that she was forced to sit and pick them out again. In the evening when she had worked till she was weary, she had no bed to go to, but had to sleep by the hearth in the cinders. As a result of this she always looked dusty and dirty and they called her Cinderella.’ (Grimm & Grimm, 1812) In the 1812 Grimm Brothers’ record of the ancient tale,
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