The Unveiling Unearthed
Archetype: ä-kĭtīp [Gr. arch=first, typos=mold]
A term whose earlier meaning, "original model," or "prototype," has been enlarged by C. G. Jung and by several contemporary literary critics. A Jungian archetype is a thought pattern that finds worldwide parallels, either in cultures or in individuals (a child's concept of a parent as both heroic and tyrannical, superman and ogre). Jung believed that such archetypal images and ideas reside in the unconscious level of the mind of every human being and are inherited from the ancestors of the race.
Emit Archer:
The GenX* “Hero” Archetype
Pensive, pragmatic, introspective. Aware of the frailties and anomalies in his life and psyche—many of which brought on by a new global consciousness—he's willing to address them but with no reference point in history. He has a sense of honor in sacrifice, responsibility and integrity but no illusions that these traits are innate. * Generation X is sandwiched between the two largest population groups in history—The Baby Boomers and the Millennials. As such, GenX has never been successfully catered to in the market directly because we are hard to parse and define, but we are also not as profitable as our seniors and juniors. One key component of any Hero archetype is Sacrifice. And, as the in-between generation, Xers will pay more for social benefits and get less than their senior and junior generational counterparts. Xers historically and socially embody the aspect of sacrifice.
Jack, Dakota and The Guide
A New “Wise Old Man” Archetype (The Millennial Generation)|
All three Millennial-aged characters are Merlin-type archetypes in this film. Typically this archetype would be a wise old man appearing periodically in a story line to redirect the hero, warn against unforeseen dangers and/or inspire the reluctant hero to keep on. In this story, however, this role is taken on by 3 boys—all 7 years apart in age—who are wise beyond their years. This is a new archetype for young audiences to align with. In a broader sense, it is an essential new archetype for Millennials as we will require our junior generations to be wise beyond their years when they take the mantle of leadership in the coming decades as we face both man-made and natural global challenges. And only a GenX hero is humble enough not to prejudice their council with age.
Jack Archer (8)
Emit’s son, Jack has accepted the loss of his mother with maturity and has channeled his emotions into his chess playing. He speaks frankly with the therapist of his concern about Emit’s lack of acceptance.
Dakota Slim (22)
A calm, wise and pensive character who sees the larger picture in the unveiling of human consciousness that the end of the Mayan Calendar portends and very personal unveiling that needs to happen for Emit.“…take heed to some things you ain’t looking at too closely”.
The Guide (15)
This elusive yet ubiquitous boy that Emit happens upon thrice on his journey in the story quietly leads him to where the Shaman sits with the Morion in the sacred cave of the Kachina. He sits by as the “spirit breath” of the place causes Emit to have a shamanic experience which finally unveils his acceptance of his responsibility for his wife's death.
[Spoiler Alert] It’s not until the final scene of the film that we realize this boy (The Guide) is, himself, the Shaman that has set the whole prophecy in motion.
The Trickster Archetype
Kachinas are the family's Totem. In The Unveiling, it is Kokopelli that reappears in one of his many archetypal manifestations as The Trickster. Unlike the Euro-American Trickster archetype, the Indigenous People’s required Tricksters in their most sacred ceremonies as a reminder that the sacred comes through upset, reversal, surprise.
The Syzygy Archetype
In psychology, Carl Jung used the term "syzygy" to denote an archetypal pairing of contrasexual opposites, which symbolized the communication of the conscious and unconscious minds: the conjunction of two organisms without the loss of identity. In this film series the Syzygy is the two narratives, the internal, self-talk and personal observations of Emit as he moves through the story and the interspersed clips of Emit hosting the Unearthed program as he talks to the audience in a logical, presentational manner. The two narratives flow in the film like a double helix, parallel, twisting together but never touching. At the pivotal point of the film, however, the two intersect. In The Unveiling, this intersection happens when Emit says that Dakota calls the end of the Mayan Calendar “an unveiling” – there is a two-second pause and the story continues. The lofty idea of a cosmic unveiling paired with the painful ritual of unveiling his wife's tombstone is the tension—the space between Emit's drive and his denial. |
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