Degree Name

MA (Master of Arts)

Program

Reading

Date of Award

12-2019

Committee Chair or Co-Chairs

Delanna Reed

Committee Members

Delanna Reed, Edward Dwyer, Ron Roach

Abstract

This study explores the archetypes, motifs, and stages of the Joseph Campbell's Hero's Journey as they are found in the Moldvay revision of the rules to Basic Dungeons & Dragons, that emerge from playing the game using the seven adventure modules printed for these rules. Using narratological concepts, the definition of what makes narrative is expanded to include the narrative that emerges by playing story-based roleplaying games like Dungeons & Dragons. These narratives, based on the seven adventure modules, are the analyzed using Campbell's monomyth as an interpretive tool, showing that these types of narratives are up to similar academic scrutiny as other forms of narrative. Such scrutiny shows that the types of narrative that emerge from playing a tabletop roleplaying game like Dungeons & Dragons need an expansion of the models for narrative analysis. This expansion presents a myriad of opportunities for future study.

Document Type

Thesis - unrestricted

Copyright

Copyright by the authors.

Share

COinS