Many central archetypes operate in the individual psyche and society: the feminine-masculine, the evil, the almighty hero, and the Sacrifice Savior. The archetypes operate in the woman's psyche as in the man's psyche. As reality becomes more complex, the need for archetypes becomes more important.
Cinema is a place where the myth clearly stands out. We need heroes to identify with, and film actors sometimes become a model for human lives. Famous actors are like cultural archetypes. They guide us over time as a stable mythological model, where they are more important than the various characters they replace on screen.
Many actors, because their personality is built around the persona of the actor and not around their true self, fail to form a strong enough personality. The imaginary may also cause the actor over-pride and arrogance. In many cases, the adoption of the character of the false hero is very easy, for the actor and the fans, but the disillusionment is very difficult. This is also because commercial cinema underestimates the depiction of grim reality.
Ernest Udet was an example of such a star. He, too, was endowed with a personality that was not strong enough in relation to the persona of his actor. In many cases, the adoption of the character of the false hero is very easy, for the actor and the fans, but the disillusionment is very difficult. The original myth that is appropriate for comparison in the context of the Nazi regime is the legend of Daedalus and Icarus.
Modern cinema deals extensively with archetypal-mythological models of male-female relationships. The anime and the animus strive in these films to connect into one complete being. In every culture we will find that the myth revolves around opposing pairs, which are binary pairs like life-death, man-god, heaven-earth, blessing-curse and more. The inclusion of opposites is the key to individuation, the wholeness of the self, which is the goal of every individual.
The archetype of the opposing duo has deep roots in popular and military culture: the brotherhood of the warrior duo, the warrior bond with his weapon, and the brotherhood of the unit and the nation. The nature of close ties is flexible. In Udet's case, he was in competition with Herman Goering for the role of squadron commander and failed. Later, during his Nazi career as a senior general, he was in a contest, in which he also lost, against Erhard Milch, for his proximity to Goering and control of the Ministry of Aviation.
Each archetype also receive a negative aspect, which may take over. The magic of evil is a magnet for filmmakers. In the mountain movies, in which Ernest Udet got his fame as a hero pilot, the captives must be rescued at almost any cost. In the face of demonic evil forces one must embark on an active and collective struggle of survival. If at the same time the protagonist manages to maintain a photographic and human brotherhood, and inner forces develop in him, the journey is an initiation into life.
An archetypal duo associated with evil, and an important component of the fighter pilot myth, is the "hunter and prey". Richthofen described in detail his teenage experiences as a cavalryman and hunter, as the primary basis for his flying skills and military leadership. Herman Goering was filmed as a proud pilot alongside a plane he shot down. Hunting is proof of masculinity. It legitimize the abandonment of the sacred connection to others. It encourages a violent mentality. Hunting is also an expression of the ability to disengage from religion.
The military hero embodies the best qualities that the younger generation seeks to instill. The warriors were a focal point of admiration in every generation, in their lives and deaths. Their qualities were focused on one character, who was an exemplary public and a savior, and took on a mythical character. A particularly revered hero is a superhero, omnipotent, with superhuman powers. Behind the character of the superhero is the personality of the magician archetype, powerful, omnipotent, and with a variety of appearances. A situation in which the "I" identifies with the archetype of the magician creates something that does not belong to him. It's inflating the self beyond its dimensions. Man becomes in his own eyes a supreme man. Archetypes have intense and non-personal energetic power. The temptation to be drawn into identification with the magician's personality is inversely related to self-confidence, ego power, and self-awareness.
Germany's famous aircraft squadron in the First World War was nicknamed the "Flying Circus". Its pilots were among the elite of German officers, who adhered to military and moral code, which was expressed in strict adherence to military norms and integrity. Many of them came from the ranks of the German nobility. Richthofen belonged to a noble family with Prussian military heritage. The flying circus officers were unable to put on the wizard mask. The aura of the superhero did not suit them. The trickster archetype suited. The cunning clown, who is a part of magician archetype, was suitable for their image in the general population.
The German society in crisis needed a leader to connect the character of the trickster to the character of the hero. This was Adolf Hitler, who understood his role well. The former corporal was able to inflate his ego without being blamed. This attracted to him and to the Nazi movement all the shadow forces, which are expressed in an aspiration for honor, control, superiority, competition and power, and are characterized by exploitation and deception. The parallel between Hitler and the archetypal magician figure exists in the context of other archetypal figures, such as the almighty hero, the trickster clown, the hunter and the hunted, and the Sacrifice Savior. All are popular in the German folk tradition.
One of the dangers of being the magician archetype is narcissistic, arrogant and forceful arrogance. Goering's pompous figure, Hess' lust for control flying to Britain on his own, and Udet's debauchery were all expressions of this. As long as the hero has no other way to deal with life, he needs his grandiosity. But the magician denies his feelings, and operates in primitive mechanisms of denial and division. He therefore avoids the integration of real emotions, and a real adaptation to reality. As a person he is superficial and lonely. He is connected to technology as compensation. He is a technological hero. He is stuck in a kind of adolescence. His personality is characterized by immature idealization, and immature faith in the future, from which idealism and over-boldness that know no bounds may develop.
The comic books with the blatant graphic illustrations are one of the important sources for the super heroes of the movies. For example, Batman and Superman were heroes of comic books before becoming heroes of movie series. Today's superheroes began as illustrations, and received most of their grandiose design and power in cinema. Ernest Odet was a gifted cartoonist. Carl Ritter, the important Nazi filmmaker and agitator who made nearly a hundred films, and was also a fighter pilot and flight instructor, started as the owner of a graphics studio. Hitler was a painter, and his graphic ambitions were the source of his spiritual power.
A major motif that characterizes comic book characters like Superman, Spiderman and Batman, is that they have super-virtuoso powers. Their abilities express the urge to break free from the limitations of human existence and take off beyond them. The mythical motif of supernatural flight expresses it. The desire for super natural flight pushed humanity on its path to evolution. Aviation joined this desire. Early commentators used the mythological legend of Daedalus and Icarus as a metaphor for describing its achievements. The Nazi's miracle weapons, on which they hung their hopes, after the great failures of the Luftwaffe, were also mostly aviation: the jet, the rocket interceptor, the cruise missile, the ballistic missile, the long-range bomber, and more. The "bad guys", the Allies, had flying abilities that turned out to be even more powerful. As such, they challenged the Nazis even more.
One can look at superheroes from the perspective of a narcissistic disorder. Of lack in parental love, which creates a bond in creating a relationship and empathy for other and reinforces a sense of insecurity, seeking compensation in a fantasy about. Modern consumer and impersonal society encourages this fantasy by fierce achievement competition. The impulse is not an authentic inner fulfillment, but a victory over the other, who is sometimes also endowed with the same superpower. As a result of this extremism, the bad guys are utter villains. The grandiose urge may excite all evil forces in the psyche.
One of the other dangers of the magician archetype is over-narcissistic, arrogant and forceful pride. As long as the hero has no other way to deal with life, he needs his grandiosity. But the magician denies his feelings, and operates in primitive mechanisms of denial and division. He therefore avoids the integration of real emotions and a real adaptation to reality. As a person he is superficial and lonely. He is connected to technology as compensation. He is a technological hero. He is stuck in adolescence. His personality is characterized by immature idealization and immature faith in the future, from which idealism and over-boldness that know no bounds may develop. Evil Hitler, Goering's pompous figure, Hess' lust for control who flew to Britain on his own, and Udet's debauchery, were all manifestations of this.
The negative hero is a double of the positive hero. They wear masks, which hide their true identity. They run away from painful emotions and translate them into an urge for revenge. The Nazis wore masks. They hid, for example, the rearmament of the army and the re-establishment of the Luftwaffe, as much as they could. They deceived the leaders and peoples of Czechoslovakia and Austria and conquered their countries. The Holocaust took place under the guise of fraud, when the victims were allegedly sent to labor camps, and up to the last minute did not really believe that this was their end.
The evil hero is a double of the good hero, as in the split of "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde", which is one of the descriptions of Nazi society. The cognitive ability to sharpen contradictions is the base for creating symbols. Every archetypal element in human life is double-faced. Each archetype also receive opposite aspect, which may take over. In many mythical stories, the source of evil is the clinging to a particular object as the sole source of satisfaction from the ego's desires. In the "Ring of the Nibelungs" myth, for example, the ring allows him to be enslaved to greed, and is therefore eventually thrown back into the waters of the Rhine. In other stories, the source of evil is the unbearable, governmental, parental or communal hierarchy.
The magic of evil is a magnet for filmmakers. The evil theme in Ernest Udet's films is that of the egocentric desires. In all the mountain films, the protagonists' feelings regarding the rescue of their loved ones, who are trapped in the storm, are described in detail. The answer is the same in all movies: rescue the trapped, even at the cost of sacrificing life. In the face of demonic evil forces one must embark on an active and collective struggle of survival. If at the same time the protagonist manages to maintain his humanity and positive inner forces are developed in him, the journey is an initiation to life.
The Nazis, in the name of this opposing egocentric desires, became addicted to the forces of control and power. They preferred the mythical principle over human existence. They set out on a crusade into heaven, which was also a crusade against the infidels in their faith. Therefore in Udet's case, the evil ego from which he was freed in the movies reappeared in his failed private life.
The Comics magazines are an important source of the movies' mythological heroes. For example, Batman and Superman were heroes of comic books before becoming heroes in movies. . The comic book heroes draw power from small, rejected animals, which have a hidden power: a spider for Spiderman, and a bat for Batman. The identification with a weak and mysterious animal allows for a metamorphosis in the hero's soul.
A small animal with metamorphic power is the bird. The young generation of Germany in the Weimar Republic developed state-of-the-art gliders and flying techniques which imitated the flight of birds. They discovered, among other things, the hot air thermals, which birds use to soar in circles. In this way the gliders broke many distance records during the 1920s. Otto Lilienthal, the Jewish pilot who built gliders with wings that mimic the wings of a bird, was immortalized in a magnificent burial shrine.
In fairy tales miraculous events take place that save the heroes. The rescuer can be an external figure, but at the same time the statement comes true: "God helps those who help themselves." Moreover, the path is often more important than the goal. The messages around embarking on a journey are complex. It is difficult to know whether the master is a deceiver who intended to plunge the hero into the abyss, or whether the fall is a way to mobilize mental resources. It is faith and effort that bring salvation. The Red Baron, and the silver aerobatic plane that Udet brought from the United States, were such guides. It was impossible to argue with the Nazi fantasy, because it was part of their ability to survive.
The journey with the guide leads to the theme of the Sacrifice Savior. The myth of the victim is ancient, and has many meanings, both positive and negative. It involves the sacrificial archetype. When a person sacrifices himself, there is an identity between him and the world, and this is the key to a new consciousness. Often self-sacrifice comes as compensation for the sin of pride.
The spirit of sacrifice is one of the qualities of fighter pilots, and it was nurtured by the Nazi regime. Death while flying, in battle or as a result of a technical malfunction, or human error, often occurred at the beginning of the aviation era. The pilots were therefore perceived as sacrificing their lives voluntarily, as Sacrifice Saviors. Richthofen's death made him a myth. The official denial of Ernest Udet's suicide was sweeping, and it was reported that he died in a flight accident. Hitler and Goebbels committed suicide with a cyanide pill. So did Goering at the end of the Nuremberg trial. They have all voluntarily sacrificed themselves.
Since the Savior Sacrifice motif is a powerful archetype, it emanates from the self even without conscious intention. The shape of the airplane resembles the cross of Christ, which is a major source of self-sacrifice. The Germans were only a few months away from completing the development of their wonder weapons, when a turning point occurred in the war that led to their defeat. The German people were driven, at the very end, by a powerful unconsciousness.
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