Deep Diving into Victoria Lynn Schmidt's Heroine Journey

Victoria Lynn Schmidt's heroine's journey diagram is an alternative way to analyze protagonists in films, as opposed to Joseph Campbell's masculine-focused model, while still keeping similar traits. With Schmidt, the female protagonist experiences numerous positive and negative emotions throughout their story, shaping them to become stronger and face their struggles directly. Schmidt starts the heroine's journey with the Illusion of the Perfect World. This initial stage is described as "the heroine's initial state, where she lives in a world she believes is safe and protective, shielded from pain and uncertainty, relying on coping strategies that she believes will work." The illusion blinds the protagonist and has her content with her current situation. However, this thinking all changes after the heroine undergoes the Betrayal phase where she realizes the world is not as perfect as she once thought and is now losing hope. In the Betrayal stage the first swing of emotions is displayed in Schmidt's journey and is seen throughout her model.

Following the Betrayal phase, the heroine experiences the stage of Awakening and Preparation for her Journey, "where despite her initial despair, she decides to act and embark on a transformative path." In this awakening phase, the heroine usually faces doubt from those around her but she does not let it impede her progressions. Following this, the heroine faces another setback with the Descent stage halting her progress. The state of Descent has a larger impact than Betrayal and has the heroine feeling emotions of fear, guilt, or shame. With Descent, the heroine feels she needs to change and go about things in a different manner. And this change leads to the heroine finding success and experience the Eye of the Storm step in her story. In the Eye of the Storm, the protagonist starts feeling comfortable and has adapted to her new circumstances. 

Although the heroine is feeling elated, problems begin arising when she becomes too comfortable and allows the success to get to her head. This comfort leads to her getting into major trouble as she falls into the period of Death. In Death, despite the Awakening and the Eye of the Storm transforming her, the heroine feels all is lost and accepts defeat in her quest. Ensuing the phase of Death, the heroine, devastated,  leans on those who have accompanied her throughout the adventure, to help fix her wrongs. In this stage of Support, the heroine embraces her femininity and continues on in her journey, with the aid of those around her. 

After these crucial steps of Death and Support, the heroine finally figures out how she will complete her task. This Rebirth stage sees the heroine gain strength and resolve unseen previously and face her trials with courage and intelligence. This rebirth is much stronger and significant compared to the awakening, earlier in the heroine's journey, as with this newfound insight, the heroine has the necessary composure to achieve victory. After the rebirth and triumph, she makes her grand return to the original setting in the film. In the final step of the heroine's journey, the Return of the Perfect World, the heroine sees the world as it truly is and she has a positive effect on those she met through her adventure. Ultimately, she is changed from within and ends her story on a high note.

Schmidt's heroine's journey follows a structure that has the female protagonist experience contentment and discontentment throughout their quest, until they rely on assistance of those around them, allowing them to reach a point they could not before.