Literary Archetypes and Stranger Things Part 2 - The Adult Cast
CAUTION! This blog post contains spoilers if you have not yet watched Part One of Season Four!
Since our post on the Stranger Things kids cast and the 12 literary archetypes was so popular, we’re tackling the adult cast the same way! Read on for which archetypes we think fit which characters and let us know if you agree with our analysis in the comments section below.
Joyce Byers – The Explorer
Much like her son, Will, Joyce proved she too, was an explorer. Despite her mousey demeanor, Joyce is actually pretty brave, as evidenced by how she unflinchingly entered the Upside Down to save Will, then later fly to Alaska to meet with a stranger in the middle of nowhere in an attempt to save Hopper. Joyce would go to the ends of the earth to help the people she cares about, no matter where, without question.
Jim Hopper – The Hero
Let’s face it: Hopper is a bad ass! He does not hesitate to put himself in the line of fire to save others. As the town’s sheriff, not only is it his job, but it also seems to come naturally to him as he is defending others and saving the day even when it’s not his job to do so. While imprisoned by the Russians in Alaska, he was even a hero among his fellow inmates by knowing the secret to defeating the monster and bravely faced it head to save their lives.
Karen Wheeler – The Innocent
Karen is one of the few main characters who have not yet experienced the terror of the Upside Down. Painted as your typical 80’s housewife, Karen is our reminder of the normalcy and innocence that still exists outside of the drama happening with Hawkins Lab and the monsters slowly being unleashed into an unsuspecting small town. Not to mention that she has been blissfully unaware of how involved her children and their friends have been with all of this.
Martin Brenner – The Outlaw
As the driving force behind Hawkins Lab, Martin Brenner plays by his own rules. He disregards the law and blurs the line between right and wrong with his experiments. He holds a firm justification in his mind for what he does and does a pretty darn good job of convincing those he works with that what they are doing is OK. Despite a charming and charismatic demeanor, Martin Brenner is a very bad man, willing to go to extremes to conduct his research, even if it means hurting children.
Bob Newby – The Sage
It is so unfortunate that we lost Bob Newby in Season Two because he was such an asset. Bob was incredibly smart and possessed excellent problem-solving skills. Also the manager of the local Radio Shack, Bob possessed impressive computer knowledge and skills, especially given the fact that this sort of consumer technology was still very new in the 1980’s. He was able to draw conclusions about what was happening with very little information and help the others find solutions.
Sam Owens – The Caregiver
Even though he was in on what was happening at Hawkins Lab and had assisted with Brenner’s devious experiments, it’s clear that Sam Owens has a heart. In Season Four, he becomes defiant against Brenner when he feels he was going too far with his treatment of Eleven and the experiments. Its apparent that he cares deeply for Eleven and does not wish for anyone to get hurt. He also sees Eleven has the solution to heal the problem caused by Hawkins Lab, rather than viewing her as another monster. As the caregiver character, those he cares about come first.
Murray Bauman – The Magician
Simply put, Murry Bauman is eccentric. In each season appearance he reveals more about himself that shows that he is much more than just an investigative journalist. He knows multiple languages, karate, how to make killer risotto – and those are just a few of his talents. Murray continues to surprise us with all of his amazing abilities, especially in Season Four when he goes way out of his way to help Joyce get Hopper back. Like a magician, he continues to amaze and astound us all with all the surprises he keeps pulling from his bag of tricks.
Vecna – The Ruler
After killing his parents and sister as a child in the 1950’s, Brenner took Vecna, then known as One, under his wing. However, like his relationship with Eleven, Brenner mistreated, manipulated and hurt One, to the point where he snapped and killed staff and his fellow test subjects at Hawkins Lab before escaping. Now as the driving force of the Upside Down, it will be interesting to see what Vecna does to carry out his plans to destroy the world that hurt him so badly, despite the Hawkins kids’ intervention.
What do you think of our analysis of these characters? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below, and don’t forget to watch Season Four, Part Two, premiering on July 1st!