Civilization and humanity have always been a turning point for stories. Looking back on one of the first documented pieces of literature, Gilgamesh, civilization can bring the best and worst of humanity. In Gilgamesh, the stark comparison between King Gilgamesh, a posed hero and Enkidu, a savage defender of animals and nature is used to balance the point of views. Most of the story is about the binaries between the civilized city and the natural, barbaric world - and governments. Enkidu was brought into the civilized world after Gilgamesh was threatened, showing him a life style of a society he had never known. A similar view of society can be seen in Dreamwork’s, Shrek. Shrek, an ogre living in the woods, has become the animated personification of savagery, content to frighten human travellers who happen to run into his swamp. Although being a product of his environment which in Gilgamesh’s terms is considered …show more content…
Gilgamesh was challenged after his masculinity was questioned by someone so savage. His choice to de-savage Enkidu stems from fear of being overpowered by someone from a crude society and admiration for being almost equal to him. By civilizing Enkidu, giving him beer, bread and sexual relations, it gave him the basic necessities to create friendship without losing his primitive skills prior to civility. He wasn’t subjected to complete change, just physical change. Shrek was given friendship and love and a choice of isolation again but he discovered another side of life that he had never experienced before, giving him a sense of humility. Shrek learned what an ordered society looked like - which was conflicting to his previous image. Ordered civilization offered him a sense of belonging and acceptance. Same can be said with Enkidu. Enkidu was given a makeshift family who taught him their past knowledge and built him up, something that was never really present to