Undertale and the Hero's Journey (Departure)

In this article, I analyze the story of Undertale using Joseph Campbell’s concept of the “Hero’s Journey.”

This article contains heavy spoilers for Undertale. If you haven’t played it yet, leave this page immediately, shut out all information from gameplay videos or walkthroughs, and go play Undertale.

Why I haven’t tried reading the story of Undertale through the lens of the Hero’s Journey until now is a mystery even to me. It’s about five years overdue, but let’s finally settle this.

Before Starting the Journey#

Let’s borrow some help from Vogler. Sorting out the following points will give us a clearer view.

The Protagonist’s [Problem]#

External problem
- Escaping the Underground
Internal problem
- Integration of human and monster(?)

Polarities#

Human vs. Monster
FIGHT vs. SPARE

The Hero’s Journey#

Now, let’s get into the main topic.

In this article, I will focus on the Pacifist Route.

Prologue#

The story begins when a human child climbs Mt. Ebott and falls into the Underground.

As Campbell points out:

Or the figure may be that of a cosmic mountain, with the city of the gods, like a lotus of light, upon its summit, and in its hollow the cities of the demons, illuminated by precious stones. (Vol. 1, p. 70)

Mt. Ebott is the passageway, the axis mundi, connecting the world of humans and the world of monsters.

The effect of the successful adventure of the hero is the unlocking and release again of the flow of life into the body of the world. (Vol. 1, p. 69)

…or so they say, but will our protagonist truly be able to achieve such an ending?

The Call to Adventure#

Right off the bat, we run into a point that doesn’t follow the Hero’s Journey.

In fact, in Undertale, a Call to Adventure is almost never given.

At this point, the only person you have any real interaction with is Toriel, but she strongly urges the protagonist to remain in the Ruins. If you think back carefully, nobody ever tells the protagonist, “You must now embark on an adventure.”

The only thing in the story that encourages (or seems to encourage) you to set out on an adventure is the voice in the dream the protagonist sees when sleeping in bed after the fight with Toriel.

Chara, please…

Wake Up!

You are the future of humans and monsters…

To a player who perceives the protagonist—the character under their control—to be Chara, this voice is unmistakably a Call to Adventure delivered by a herald appearing from the dream world. Just like in The Demon Girl Next Door, it’s an exceptionally fitting method for a Call to Adventure.

But be careful. In reality, this voice is addressed not to the protagonist, but to Chara. Taking that fact into account, this actually isn’t a Call to Adventure at all.

Which means that within the narrative of Undertale, nobody ever gives the protagonist a Call to Adventure. What drives the protagonist forward is none other than the will of the player.

Refusal of the Call#

The protagonist is urged by Toriel to remain in the Ruins.

The protagonist—and the player—might feel tempted to choose a peaceful life in the Ruins alongside Toriel, without ever setting out on an adventure.

If we view the journey up to escaping the Ruins as a single self-contained cycle of the Hero’s Journey, we could also interpret Toriel as the “Woman as Temptress,” working to persuade the protagonist to abandon the adventure.

Supernatural Aid#

Toriel—a literally named “Tutorial” character—teaches you how to navigate the Underground.

She is also the one who hands you the cell phone. This is a magical item essential for reaching the happy ending.

Crossing the First Threshold#

Without a shadow of a doubt, this is the battle with Toriel.

The protagonist must prove their strength against the Threshold Guardian and take their first step into the adventure. Stories where the mentor becomes the threshold guardian, and defeating them serves as the ordeal to cross the threshold, are plentiful—and Undertale is no exception.

However, we need to pay close attention here as well. There is a major twist.

When our HP gets low, Toriel intentionally diverts her bullet patterns so they won’t hit us. In this battle, the protagonist (basically) cannot lose.

Winning a trial that you are guaranteed to win by any means proves nothing about your own strength. That would mean this battle fails to function as a threshold-crossing ordeal.

The Essence of the Trial#

So how should we interpret this? If there is an ordeal with the possibility of defeat in this scene, what could it be?

Perhaps the trial is: Can you “SPARE” Toriel?

The protagonist can defeat Toriel, or they can spare her. Either way, the story progresses, but if you choose the former, the path to the happy ending is closed.

The ability and mental fortitude to engage in persistent dialogue without attacking monsters is precisely the strength that the protagonist (and the player) must demonstrate in this trial.

Looked at that way, it makes total sense that the standard command to spare after shaving down an enemy’s HP doesn’t work on Toriel, and that actually sparing her requires failing to “SPARE” 24 times.

Interestingly, this minimum figure of 24 turns required to end the battle is probably the highest among all monsters.

And tied for first place is Sans. Ending the battle with him requires 24 uses of “FIGHT.”

Strictly speaking, the battle with Sans ends when the 25th attack lands. However, that 25th attack is carried out regardless of the player’s input. In terms of player command selections, the count remains identical to Toriel’s. I might have miscounted, but it’s a fascinating coincidence.

The Belly of the Whale#

The battle with Toriel can also be understood as the “Belly of the Whale” stage. What matters in this stage is the imagery of the hero being swallowed into the belly and undergoing a metamorphosis within it.

The mere fact that anyone can physically walk past the temple guardians does not invalidate their significance; for if the intruder is incapable of encompassing the sanctuary, then he has effectually remained without. Anyone unable to understand a god sees it as a devil and is thus defended from the approach. Allegorically, then, the passage into a temple and the hero-dive through the jaws of the whale are identical adventures, both denoting, in picture language, the life-centering, life-renewing act. (Vol. 1, p. 140)

To rephrase this for the Toriel fight: “Anyone can get past the fight with Toriel. But the essence of the trial lies in embracing from the bottom of your heart that ‘you don’t have to kill anyone.’ Anyone who fails to understand this cannot proceed down the Pacifist Route.”

The Great Mother#

If we accept Jung’s arguments, Toriel’s maternal imagery takes on an even deeper significance.

The archetype of the “Great Mother” carries connotations of motherhood, containment, and death and rebirth. Toriel is a character designed to let the protagonist experience the “Belly of the Whale” stage, which is why she acts as a protective mother.