The Hero Journey of Travis Bickle the Taxi Driver; a Retrospective

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The Hero’s Journey Of Travis Bickle the Taxi Driver A retrospective As the audience meets Travis Bickle, the stage is set for a dark journey for the ”hero” of the film. Snap shots of rainy, dark streets in New York City’s steamy section, allows the viewer to see that this hero is going to be motivated by his own pessimistic view of the world. Travis Bickle is an ex- marine with honorable discharge, and the film is timed just after the Vietnam War. Although Travis never talks about how the war affected him, or why he was discharged, it is obvious that he is haunted by memories from his time overseas. Travis is single and alone, living in a shabby one room apartment, somewhere in or near Manhattan. He is plagued with the inability to sleep, riding around the city in various modes of transportation by night, observing the underbelly of society from his personal “ivory castle”. The voices in his head are a constant drum beat, describing the world of filth that he sees in every face that passes by. This is the ordinary world for Travis. Due to his sleepless nights, he seeks employment as a Taxi Driver. Travis is unaware of his pending journey as the hero of the film, but the Taxi that he is now responsible for has become his stallion, providing for him a bird’s eye view of the world’s problems. Problems which he, as a measly taxi driver, cannot resolve. As Travis begins to work night and day for the Taxi Company, he is introduced to an interesting cast of characters. Still unaware of his role as the hero, he begins to gather visual information that further proves to him the need for change in the world. Iris, a prostitute no more than thirteen years old, briefly gets in his cab before being pulled back out to the “dark side” by Sport, her pimp and boyfriend. The audience is uncomfortable with the fact that Travis just sits there,

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