To this day, I think my favorite film theory that I accept in my mind as canon is the theory that Shrek literally came up with his own name on the spot as he first meets Donkey
Apologies in advance for repeating some things that have been said on another tumblr post that I cannot find.
The catalyst from the theory comes from how uncertain he sounds when first introducing himself. The “uhhh……shrek” definitely sounds like something he kinda came up with on the spot. It’s even supported when he first introduces himself to Fiona, saying it in almost the same way.
But it’s a theory that seems to make sense. None of the signs or decorations in his swamp are marked with his name (unless you count the title card in the mud, but that’s probably not diagetic). There’s no record of his existence outside of simply “ogre”. And that’s all he’d ever really been to the world. The theme of him being seen as a monster is obviously seen throughout the movie quite a bit, but that can also be seen with how he’s addressed throughout the movie.
I took a look over the transcript for the point. Up until halfway through the movie, there are only two characters who say Shrek’s name. Shrek himself, once when introducing himself, and Donkey. The first time anyone else says his name is when he first saves Fiona and asks his name, still believing him to be Prince Charming. Of course, after finding how unorthodox he is and then learning he’s an ogre, she doesn’t refer to him by name at all until the next day after the Robin Hood encounter. At no point in the movie does anyone else say the word “Shrek”. Not even Lord Farquaad. Farquaad always refers to him as “the beast” or “this thing” or “the ogre”. And that’s part of the theme of how he is seen by the rest of the world. As far as he knows, he doesn’t have a name. He’s just…an ogre.
If this theory is true, then he never really thought of having a name. At least, not until he met Donkey. Donkey might have been the first person to ask him his name. And he wasn’t someone who just ran away from him, thinking he was some hideous beast. And that’s what made him decide to give Donkey his “name”. It’s what started to give him a sense of identity as being more than a monster. It’s a theory that massively improves the movie and I will live and die by it.
I was actually thinking about this right after I posted this.
My theory is that he’s just a dimwit who loves the hell out of life too much to reflect on himself and his identity. So he just thinks of himself as “Donkey” and is like “aw hell yeah you bet your ass (lol) I’m Donkey!”
I love theories that actually make the themes of the movie better
