The Heroine with 1001 Faces: An Evening with Maria Tatar

Maria Tatar, a Harvard professor of fairy tales and folklore, is the author of The Heroine with 1001 Faces, a contemporary response to Joseph Campbell’s famous work, The Hero with a Thousand Faces. Tatar explores how the traditional hero is depicted as a superhuman, conquering, or even violent figure, while heroines are characterized by curiosity, compassion, and an interest in justice. She argues for the development of a new Hero’s Journey. The stories in which a woman goes on a journey or faces trials have been treated as anomalies; Tatar reexamines famous stories featuring women, ranging from ancient myths to characters such as Wonder Woman or Nancy Drew. Discover how these women are heroes, too. Maria Tatar will appear in conversation with the journalist, critic, and translator Liesl Schillinger. Schillinger has written for many publications including The New York Times, The New Yorker, and The Washington Post and has translated fiction from French, German, and Italian.