Shrek: Modern Myth Storytelling Is Essay

Open, View, and/or
Download this Document

Total Length: 643 words ( 2 double-spaced pages)

Total Sources: 2

Page 1 of 2

Shrek is a "search" story because it involves a quest for treasure -- externally, Shrek is after the Princess and is seeking the reward of being left at peace in his swamp, and on a more profound level the film shows both he and Fiona on to be quests to discover themselves and their capacity for love and self-acceptance that they didn't really now they were on. Both internal and external searches find strong origins in myth (Seger, 1). It is also a hero story about overcoming prejudice against the fairy tale creatures (one of the best scenes is the brutal interrogation of a gingerbread man who is a member of the resistance), with Shrek as the primary hero. The film is nontraditional in that the hero never starts out as mundane, but ultimately gains a "normal" existence (Seger, 2).

Despite the high level of mythical identification that is possible in myth, it is doubtful that the movie was constructed by a formulaic adherence to mythic structure, or even a conscious and designed departure from such structure.

Stuck Writing Your "Shrek: Modern Myth Storytelling Is" Essay?

View All Our Example Shrek: Modern Myth Storytelling Is Essay

Have A Custom Example Essay Written

As Seger points out, "these stories are part of us. And the best way to work with them is to let them come out naturally as you write the script" (Seger, 6). This is a fact that Shrek plays on heavily, and on several levels. Not only is the basic story of the movie itself very much based on traditional myths -- and therefore inherited its structure -- but many of the minor characters (who are also some of the most memorable) -- also come from stories that are well-known in today's culture. As a sort of meta-film, this fact of Shrek's creation really plays about the universality of many stories and characters. This film is entertaining and compelling not just because it is funny and well acted, but because the story speaks to us….....

Show More ⇣

     Open the full completed essay and source list


OR

     Order a one-of-a-kind custom essay on this topic


sample essay writing service

Cite This Resource:

Latest APA Format (6th edition)

Copy Reference
"Shrek Modern Myth Storytelling Is" (2009, April 03) Retrieved June 3, 2026, from
https://www.aceyourpaper.com/essays/shrek-modern-myth-storytelling-23342

Latest MLA Format (8th edition)

Copy Reference
"Shrek Modern Myth Storytelling Is" 03 April 2009. Web.3 June. 2026. <
https://www.aceyourpaper.com/essays/shrek-modern-myth-storytelling-23342>

Latest Chicago Format (16th edition)

Copy Reference
"Shrek Modern Myth Storytelling Is", 03 April 2009, Accessed.3 June. 2026,
https://www.aceyourpaper.com/essays/shrek-modern-myth-storytelling-23342
   

Open, View, and/or
Download this Document
order custom essay example