Joseph Campbell’s Hero’s Journey in the Animated Movie Shrek
Part I: Film Analysis
What qualities does the hero possess that make them heroic according to Campbell’s the Hero’s Journey?
In the movie Shrek, we can see Shrek meeting all 12 stages of the Hero’s Journey, from the ordinary world to the return with the elixir. In the beginning Shrek is seen as selfish and just wants to be left alone in his swamp. The call to adventure begins when the fairytale creatures show up to his swap because of an eviction by Lord Farquaad. Shrek sets out with his mentor, Donkey, to find Lord Farquaad in an attempt to get his swamp back. However, the Lord doesn’t want to hear from an Ogre and orders the guards to kill the Ogre for the title of Champion. Shrek and Donkey beat all the guards and the Lord hears Shrek out. However, there is a catch, maybe another call to action. Lord Farquaad gives the people their Champion, Shrek, in which Shrek is supposed to go rescue Princess Fiona from her keep. In a way, Shrek refuses the call by tell the Lord he is already on a quest to get his swamp back. The Lord and Shrek come to an agreement, if Shrek brings the Princess back, the Lord will give Shrek his swamp back exactly the way it was. Next, you see the crossing the first threshold phase in which Shrek and Donkey embark on their journey to the Princess’ keep.
Then we see test, allies, and enemies, this is where they are approaching the inmost cave, which happens to be the Princess’ castle with the fire breathing dragon guarding her. This is when Donkey awakens the dragon and in an attempt to stop the dragon, Shrek, fortunately gets thrown by the tail into the Princess’ keep and saves the princess. On the way out of the castle, comes the ordeal. Shrek did not slay the dragon before saving the princess which offers some problems on their way out. Shrek has to save Donkey from the dragon on his way out and in doing so gets a chandelier to fall on the dragon creating a metal collar and leash, in which Shrek is able to get the dragon tangled around pillars in the castle and Shrek, Donkey, and Princess Fiona are able to escape without the dragon following them. Their journey to return the Princess to the Lord beings and when they are almost to the kingdom, the Lord meets them just outside the kingdom and gives Shrek his swamp back because the deal has been completed. However, the road back isn’t how Shrek thought it would be. Shrek had fallen in love with the Princess on their journey to the kingdom.
Shrek cannot let the Princess marry the Lord just for the Lord’s benefit of becoming a King. So, Shrek turns back and heads for the Lords castle to stop the wedding. Shrek arrives and confesses his love for the Princess and the Lord attempts to have his captured, again. Shrek was able to get the guards off of him and kisses Fiona, completing her curses cycle and leaving her an Ogre. Donkey and dragon show up outside the castle’s window and Shrek and Fiona were able to jump out onto the Dragon’s back and ride off to his swamp, his home with Fiona now.
In what respect does the hero deviate from the monomyth (the Hero’s Journey)?
The only deviation that I see in Shrek is his story doesn’t quite go in chronological order of the Hero’s journey. What I mean is, Shrek meets his mentor, Donkey, before his call to action during his ordinary lifestyle. When meeting the mentor comes after: 3. Refusal of the call. I would almost say that a deviation also falls when Shrek falls in love with Fiona, but that is Shrek’s story and not really a deviation because Shrek’s story is the way his Hero’s Journey plays out.
Describe the villains or monsters that the hero must vanquish.
In your normal save the princess movies, you must slay the dragon before being able to carry on and save the princess from the tall tower. However, Shrek does things differently and does not even kill the dragon. Instead, he was able to get a chain around its neck and tangle it up so the dragon could not follow them once they were out of its reach. And, it worked, clever huh? But, the dragon turned out to not be the monster that needed to be vanquished. It was Lord Farquaad that was the evil villain in this case. He was trying to destroy and enslave the magical creatures of the village, as well as, marrying Princess Fiona for his benefit to finally make him a King.
Describe the role of the mentor in allowing the hero to be successful in their quest.
I would say the mentor in Shrek would be Donkey. He never leaves Shrek’s side no matter how much Shrek wants to get rid of him. He offered Shrek advice on numerous occasions and was there for Shrek when he needed him the most. For instance, when Shrek went to interrupt the marriage ceremony between the Lord and Princess, after the whole debacle, donkey appeared riding the dragon that was from the tower they saved the princess from and Shrek and Fiona was able to ride away on its back.
Would the hero have been successful on their own?
I believe Shrek would not have been successful on his own because like Shrek said, “Ogres are like onions, we both have layers.” In the beginning, I would definitely say Shrek was like a fresh onion who had not been attempted to be peeled to see who Shrek really was as a “person.” On the journey to return the princess to the Lord’s castle, Fiona and Shrek had many arguments that were somewhat, mostly solved by donkey. Leading me to believe if donkey hadn’t have been there, Fiona would not have continued the journey with just Shrek.
According to Joseph Campbell’s monomyth, what ultimately defines a hero?
According to Joseph Campbell, a hero is ultimately “someone who has given his or her life to something bigger than oneself. -Joseph Campbell.” (BigThink, 2014). I believe what ultimately made Shrek the true hero is Love. He ultimately fell in love with Princess Fiona and was determined to save her from the treacherous Lord Farquaad. In the end, this was accomplished and Shrek and Fiona lived happily ever after. Furthermore, he saved all the magical creatures and they were able to return back to their homes and live happily ever after, also.
Part II: Reflection
Why are quest narratives told?
I believe they are told to, in the end, teach us lessons about life. There is always a deeper meaning to the quest narrative stories that is able to reach everyone differently because everyone’s perspectives are different.
What purpose do they serve in different societies?
Quest narratives can be used effectively in many different context. They can easily be transformed into different cultures and societies about how and what story they are trying to reach and get across to others.
How can our own lives be viewed in terms of a quest narrative?
Everyone’s life is different, in terms of different highs and different lows. However, everyone experiences bad times and good times. We are all the hero of our own story and by looking at it that way, our lives follow the Hero Journey as well. We all have our own battles to win and during those battles we reach out to others, our mentors, that help us along our journey. Sometimes our journeys don’t end the way we would like them to or it takes us longer to reach the end than we thought, but we always pick ourselves up and finish our journey with the people who love us.
How can an individual mature and change through taking heroic action?
Taking heroic action means putting others before yourself. Meaning you are putting your life on the line to help and sometimes save others. These actions can change someone, whether it be good or bad. For instance, a military member can take heroic actions but could return home with PTSD. Others could take actions and become a better person, seeing there is more to life than themselves or arguments with others. Sometimes it takes us seeing bad things or experiencing them ourselves to change us as a person and see what really matters in life.
