Shrek

what does it mean to be human? what does it mean to be monster? what is a monster? is shrek a monster? society will tell you yes, especially the society in this movie. we understand shrek to be an outcast and a misfit but how deep does that really go? if monster is in between animal and man is anything other than man or animal a monster? the fairytale creatures all have something in common. they’re “different” and discarded from society for a price by the “ruler”, the “big man” of this society: farquad. he’s the one that decides who is a monster and who is not. once he realizes that he can exploit shrek he does so believing him still to be machine and not hero. he’s othering shrek as a vessel in which to exhaust his power and privilege to get what he wants. we must ask ourselves who the real monster is. is it farquad? is it western ideals of what it means to be “normal” and therefore accepted? are we all monsters? who gets to decide?