IDEAS: Journal on English Language Teaching and Learning, Linguistics and Literature
Vol. 14 No. 1 (2026): IDEAS: Journal on English Language Teaching and Learning, Linguistics and Lite

Identity Crisis in the Hero’s Journey of Ruby Gillman; Teenage Kraken (2023)

Anisa Nurhidayanti (Sastra Inggris, Universitas Islam Negeri Sunan Gunung Djati Bandung, Bandung, Jawa Barat)
Yuyun Nurulaen (Sastra Inggris, Universitas Islam Negeri Sunan Gunung Djati Bandung, Bandung, Jawa Barat)
Dian Nurrachman (Sastra Inggris, Universitas Islam Negeri Sunan Gunung Djati Bandung, Bandung, Jawa Barat)



Article Info

Publish Date
05 Jul 2026

Abstract

This study analyzes the 2023 DreamWorks animated film Ruby Gillman, Teenage Kraken to explore how the protagonist's growth reflects psychological maturation amid internal conflicts and social pressures. Using a qualitative narrative approach, this research combines the hero's journey with Erik Erikson's psychosocial theory, offering a novel interdisciplinary framework that maps mythic archetypes onto adolescent identity formation. This integration contributes to film and literary studies by demonstrating how commercial animated cinema utilizes classical narrative structures to articulate complex psychological crises. In conclusion, this research demonstrates that each phase of the monomyth serves as a precise metaphor for the Identity vs. Role Confusion crisis. By transitioning from a passive Identity Foreclosure through a vulnerable Psychosocial Moratorium, the protagonist successfully attains Identity Achievement and the virtue of Fidelity. Ultimately, this contemporary animation redefines true maturation not as social conformity, but as the ego's courage to embrace a hybrid self to achieve a stable sense of self-sameness.

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Journal Info

Abbrev

ideas

Publisher

Subject

Languange, Linguistic, Communication & Media

Description

IDEAS Journal is published twice a year in the months of June and December (P-ISSN 2338-4778 and E-ISSN 2548-4192); it presents articles on English language teaching and learning, linguistics, and literature. The contents include analyses, studies and application of theories, research report, ...