Trope Talk - The Mentor
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 28 ก.ค. 2018
- In this video I chat about the character archetype of the mentor, and some of the common tropes often found within the archetype.
Let me know who some of your favourite mentors are in the comment section below!
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Iroh is definitely one of the greatest mentor-type characters out there. He is well aware of who Zuko is trying to become (a villain) and what he's planning to do (capturing the Avatar and gaining power while failing to realize how destructive and negative he is), yet his uncle slowly but surely helps to shape him into a better person. It's already incredible that absolutely EVERY important character in the Avatar series has gone some major changes and HUGE development. Zuko is one of those who had a really bad start (as a moody teenager with anger management issues and lack of self-control) yet Iroh was his biggest influence. Iroh continued to support Zuko no matter their ups and downs, no matter how much of a brat he was. That's a great way to show family values as well. Even if Zuko's father and mother (later on) weren't there to support him throughout the series, Iroh was always there, worrying and trying to help him in any way possible. His love was sincere.
I don't know if you saw Kung Fu Panda, but I liked Shifu as a mentor in the first film. He is a highly successful mentor to five brilliant students yet fails with Po. He has a vulnerability to him as he still struggles to learn new lessons himself from his own master, Oogway, while also feeling he is beyond such things as a master himself. When his own master inevitably vanishes/leaves him, he is then forced himself to take what he has learned from Oogway and apply it to Po in a new if familiar style of teaching. Shifu plays the double role of student and mentor within the film and it's pretty cool to see!
I know that everyone hates the Hunger Games but Haymitch. He really has some sort of wisdom, but he is a very flawed character. He doesn't really have much of a chance to teach Katniss or Peeta anything, but he tries his best to help them. I think that he is a great mentor character because he serves his function, but also complex with his own character all the same. Idk. I just like how he was written.
Professor Albus Dumbledore is my favorite "Fantasy" mentor. Here are a few reasons why: 1. He learned at age sixteen that he was not to be trusted with power. So, he remained as a teacher at Hogwarts. 2. He mentored not only Harry Potter but thousands of other students throughout his tenor as first Transfiguration teacher and then as Headmaster of Hogwarts. And, 3. He fought both Grindelwald and then Voldemort years later. The latter being a former student of his. Dumbledore is a very well written mentor. One, of MANY, reasons why JK Rowling is my favorite author/writer. JRR Tolkien being a CLOSE second.
IMO, one of the interesting things about Avatar is that some of Aang's 'mentors' are not much older than he is. For example, Katara, Toph and Zuko all teach him not only the techniques, but also the philosophy behind their kind of bending. And all of them have made experiences they can pass on to him that help him grow. All that happens while they're still growing themselves, for example Katara who hunts down the killer of her mother, but then decides not to take revenge. On the other hand, Zulo passes on some things he has learned from Iro, which in fact makes him a middleman for Iro as a mentor. I think that's a really fascinating construct.
Mentors with significant character flaws are way more interesting imo. Great trope talk. :)
I've always loved the mentors that were actually failed heroes in their own rights.
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I adore the mentor archetype. They are often my favorite character. Thank-you so much for a lovely talk about them! Here's some of my favorites
I love Chiron from Percy Jackson because 1) he's excellent 2) his mentoring isn't just limited to Percy 3) his mentored demigods before Percy, so his advice is legit 4) he puts his tail in hair curler things 5) he has no ulterior motives for helping Percy, Annabeth, or the other kids.
I love these Trope Talk videos.
This is the first time I'm seeing one of videos and I'm SUPER into writing advice videos, but I can honestly tell you, you did an awesome job, and sounded like you REALLY knew what you were talking about. Great job! However I would've also love to see an examination of double-crossing mentors that hide their dark side from their students, like with Palpatine and Darth Vader, or Ra's Al Ghul and Bruce Wayne in Batman Begins.
Iroh is the best mentor ever. I friggin' love him.
Ahhhh you reminded me that I still need to buy the Ender's Game books. I have a mentor in the story I'm writing and this gave me a few things to think about. I really like the mentor-like characters. They always hold a special place in my heart. I love these trope talk videos by the way!
One of my favorite portrayals of the "failed hero" or extremely flawed mentors is wolverine in the movie Logan (excellent movie if you haven't seen it you should). The relationship between him and Laura is very reluctant in the beginning but it turns into two people who previously had nothing now having only each other. I love how they both learn from each other and grow as people equally rather than the mentor passing on wisdom but not growing much themselves.
You hit it on the tee when you talk about the traditional mentor, because I’ve realized that since forever I never liked those mystical mentors stories, whereas Avatar, to mo is the most brilliant because it tackles the two opposing character sides because no villain should be “cookie cutter” and they also grew up and were raised and avatar is one of the only stories that really tackles character backstories so well
Other tropes like "Luke, I'm your father" or "I was once like you" are novadays insanely common for mentor characters (Eragon for example had BOTH). But I wonder why mentors as (surprise) villains are so rare. Hear me out. It's an excellent source for drama and tragedy (because we know and like the character) as well as logical because mentors have (or at least had) to be powerful/trained in whatever the hero can do to be effective teachers, and fights between worthy opponents are usually the best ones.
Love your trope talks. I never really considered whether or not I like mentor figures being included before and I think I lean towards yes. It does depend on the type of mentor, I tend to like the helpful but a little mysterious type, someone who genuinely seems to want the hero to grow and do well. I'm also okay with them having ulterior motives or betraying the hero so long as their relationship is established enough so it actually matters.
YES YES YES YES YES to the mere mention of Cobra Kai!! Everyone needs to have watched this, even if you haven't seen the original movies. (Although you should do that!) With Cobra Kai, if you do a review I would argue there's no antagonist in this reboot, just differing points of view based off Daniel and Johnny's contrasting childhoods:) I honestly think Cobra Kai is the best series of 2018 so far, it's nice to hear about it from a Booktuber not just the movie review channels:)
One of my favorite mentors is Jim Ellis from the movie Pride, based on the true story set in 1974. It's about the first all African-American swim team, and what I love about Jim is the way he teaches the kids not only how to swim, but also how to be good citizens and the way he protects them and gets some of them, back in school. He doesn't take their BS and admits when he's not being a very good role-model, and he's also the main character, which is a slightly different take on the mentor thing.