I was recently reading the Legend of Avalos. For an online version, see here:
As a keen student of comparative mythology (e.g. Campbell, Eliade, Frazer, Frye) I instantly saw how the Legend of Avalos is a highly redacted pastiche of mythopoetic archetypes.
I. The Monomyth
1. In general, the Legend of Avalos represents a variant on the Quest. In particular, it represents the anti-Quest, with Avalos as the anti-Hero.
2. His grandmother represents the Heroine.
3. Harvard represents the Tempter or seductress.
4. He must traverse a major river (the Rio Grande) to reach his new destination, thereby recapitulating the life of Joshua (crossing the Jordan).
5. Moving from the country to the city represents a stock plot motif. Small-town boy makes good.
6. Moving from south of the border to north of the border symbolizes his downfall. In ANE cartography, east lay at the top of the map. Facing east, north would lie on one’s left-hand side. Hence, a northern reorientation carries ominous connotations (i.e. the hand of the devil).
7. His migration exemplifies the Journey motif.
8. His rags-to-riches story exemplifies the Cinderella motif.
9. His life-threatening illness exemplifies the Death-Rebirth motif.
10. His admission to Harvard exemplifies the Rite of Passage.
11. Admission to Harvard also represents the Temptation motif. His initiation (stock plot motif) into the cuneiform mysteries precipitates his fall from innocence and self-exile from Paradise.
12. His name (Hector) is a heavy-handed literary allusion to a Homeric hero from the Iliad.
II. Criteria of Authenticity
Is there a kernel of truth in the Legend of Avalos? To answer that question, we need to apply standard Historical-Critical techniques to authenticate his words and deeds.
1. On the face of it, it’s highly unlikely that a real person would exemplify so many archetypal motifs.
2. What if we apply the criterion of dissimilarity to the Legend of Avalos? Just as a Jesus tradition must be dissimilar to both the church and the synagogue to be deemed authentic, an Avalos tradition must be dissimilar to both the church and the academy to be deemed authentic.
But the various details of the Avalos legend all reflect stock characters and stock plot devices derived from Pentecostalism or academia.
Based on the criterion of dissimilarity, as well as multiple parallels with the literary anti-Hero, we’re forced to conclude that the Legend of Avalos is pulp fiction. The anonymous redactor cobbled together the narrative details from either reading comic books or watching B-movies—possibly both.