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An ogre (feminine: ogress) is a large, cruel, monstrous and hideous humanoid monster, featured in mythology, folklore and fiction. Ogres are often depicted in fairy tales and folklore as feeding on human beings, and have appeared in many classic works of literature. In art, ogres are often depicted with a large head, abundant hair and beard, a voracious appetite, and a strong body. The term is often applied in a metaphorical sense to disgusting persons who exploit, brutalize or devour their victims. Closely related is the troll figure, although these are sometimes not as malevolent.

Etymology

Hop o' My Thumb, illustrated by Gustave Doré

T (or from the Greek river god Oiagros, father of Orpheus).

The word ogre came into wider usage in the works of Charles Perrault (1628-1703) or Marie-Catherine Jumelle de Berneville, Comtesse d' Aulnoy (1650-1705), both of whom were French authors. Other sources say that the name is derived from the word Hongrois, which means Hungarian. All these words may derive from a shared Indo-European mythological concept (as Tolkien himself speculated, as cited by Tom Shippey, The Road to Middle-earth, 45). Some see the French myth of the ogre as being inspired by the real-life crimes of Gilles de Rais.^[1]

The first appearance of the word ogre in Perrault's work occurred in his Histoires ou Contes du temps Passé (1697). It later appeared in several of his other fairy tales, many of which were based on the Neapolitan tales of Basile. The first example of a female ogre being referred to as an ogress is found in his version of Sleeping Beauty, where it is spelled ogresse. The Comtesse d' Aulnoy first employed the word ogre in her story L'Orangier et l' Abeille (1698), and was the first to use the word ogree to refer to the creature's offspring.

Ogres in modern fiction

One of the most famous ogres in pop culture is the character Shrek.

Ogres in modern games

Ogres appear in many popular fantasy roleplaying and video games series. See also Ogre (disambiguation).

References

Rose, Carol. Giants, Monsters, & Dragons: An Encyclopedia of Folklore, Legend, and Myth. New York: W. W. Norton & Company, 2001. ISBN 0-393-32211-4
Shippey, Tom. The Road to Middle-earth. London: HarperCollins, 1992 (rev.). ISBN 0-261-10275-3
South, Malcom, ed. Mythical and Fabulous Creatures: A Source Book and Research Guide. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1987. Reprint, New York: Peter Bedrick Books, 1988. ISBN 0-87226-208-1
"Ogre." Encyclopædia Britannica. 2006. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. 15 May 2006 <http://www.search.eb.com/eb/article-9125639>

Notes

^ www.hérésie.com

[1] www.hérésie.com

[1]

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 An '''ogre''' (feminine: ''ogress'') is a large, cruel, monstrous and hideous [[humanoid]] [[monster]], featured in mythology, folklore and fiction.  Ogres are often depicted in [[fairy tales]] and folklore as feeding on human beings, and have appeared in many classic works of [[literature]].  In [[art]], ogres are often depicted with a large head, abundant hair and beard, a voracious appetite, and a strong body.  The term is often applied in a metaphorical sense to disgusting persons who exploit, brutalize or devour their victims. Closely related is the [[troll]] figure, although these are sometimes not as malevolent.
-Of course, everyone knows that ogres are real. They are like immigrants and live mostly in Louisiana, although they are still rare due to their difficulty in crossing the border unnoticed. They spend most months in Cuba, but return during Smarch. Ogres real the end.
 ==Etymology==
 [[Image:Poucet10.jpg|thumb|left|[[Hop o' My Thumb]],  illustrated by [[Gustave Doré]]]]
+T (or from the Greek river god [[Oiagros]], father of [[Orpheus]]).
-The word ''ogre'' is of [[French language|French]] origin.  Its earliest attestation is in [[Chrétien de Troyes]]' late 12th century verse romance [[Perceval, the Story of the Grail|''Perceval, li contes del graal'']], which contains the lines:
+The word ''ogre'' came into wider usage in the works of [[Charles Perrault]] (1628-1703) or [[Madame d'Aulnoy|Marie-Catherine Jumelle de Berneville, Comtesse d' Aulnoy]] (1650-1705), both of whom were French authors. Other sources say that the name is derived from the word ''Hongrois'', which means [[Hungarian people|Hungarian]]. All these words may derive from a shared Indo-European mythological concept (as Tolkien himself speculated, as cited by [[Tom Shippey]], ''The Road to Middle-earth'', 45). Some see the French myth of the ogre as being inspired by the real-life crimes of [[Gilles de Rais]].<ref>www.hérésie.com</ref>
-{{cquote|et s'est escrit que il ert ancore
-que toz li reaumes de Logres,
-qui ja dis fu la terre as ogres,
-ert destruite par cele lance}}
-"And it is written that there will come a time when all the kingdom of Logres [England] which formerly was the land of the ''ogres'' will be destroyed by that spear."  The ''ogres'' in this rhyme may refer to the giants who, in the fictional [[History of the Kings of Britain]] by [[Geoffrey of Monmouth]], were the inhabitants of Britain prior to human settlement. Ogre could possibly derive from the two mythical giants [[Gog and Magog]] (or from the Greek river god [[Oiagros]], father of [[Orpheus]]).
-The word ''ogre'' came into wider usage in the works of [[Charles Perrault]] (1628-1703) or [[Madame d'Aulnoy|Marie-Catherine Jumelle de Berneville, Comtesse d' Aulnoy]] (1650-1705), both of whom were French authors. Other sources say that the name is derived from the word ''Hongrois'', which means [[Hungarian people|Hungarian]].<ref>Dictionnaire de l'Académie française, (1932-1935)</ref>  The word ''ogre'' is thought to have been popularized by the works of Italian author [[Giambattista Basile]] (1575-1632), who used the Neapolitan word ''uerco'', or in standard Italian, ''orco''. This word is documented<ref>[http://vocabolario.biblio.cribecu.sns.it/cgi-bin/Vocabolario/search_context?rimando=1&pattern=ORCO.&tag_n=ENTRY&attr_n=ID&attr_v=W288 Vocabolario Degli Accademici Della Crusca]</ref> in earlier Italian works ([[Italian_literature#Imitators|Fazio degli Uberti]], XIV cent.; [[Luigi Pulci]], XV; [[Ludovico Ariosto]], XV-XVI) and has even older cognates with the Latin ''[[orcus (mythology)|orcus]]'' and the Old English ''orcnēas'' found in [[Beowulf]] lines 112-113, which inspired J.R.R. Tolkien's ''[[Orc#Early_modern_usage|Orc]]''.<ref>[http://www.humanities.mcmaster.ca/~beowulf/main.html Beowulf<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>  All these words may derive from a shared Indo-European mythological concept (as Tolkien himself speculated, as cited by [[Tom Shippey]], ''The Road to Middle-earth'', 45). Some see the French myth of the ogre as being inspired by the real-life crimes of [[Gilles de Rais]].<ref>www.hérésie.com</ref>
 The first appearance of the word ''ogre'' in Perrault's work occurred in his ''Histoires ou Contes du temps Passé'' (1697).  It later appeared in several of his other fairy tales, many of which were based on the [[Naples|Neapolitan]] tales of Basile.  The first example of a female ogre being referred to as an ''ogress'' is found in his version of ''[[Sleeping Beauty]]'', where it is spelled ''ogresse.''
-The Comtesse d' Aulnoy first employed the word ''ogre'' in her story ''L'Orangier et l' Abeille'' (1698), and was the first to use the word ''ogree'' to refer to the creature's offspring. One of the most famous ogres in pop culture is the character Shrek.
+The Comtesse d' Aulnoy first employed the word ''ogre'' in her story ''L'Orangier et l' Abeille'' (1698), and was the first to use the word ''ogree'' to refer to the creature's offspring.
 ==Ogres in modern fiction==
+One of the most famous ogres in pop culture is the character [[Shrek (character)|Shrek]].
 [[Image:4377 - Bern - Kindlifresserbrunnen am Kornhausplatz.JPG|thumb|right|upright|The Ogre Fountain in [[Bern]], [[Switzerland]]]]
-Literature for children is rife with tales involving ogres and kidnapped [[princess]]es who were rescued by valiant knights, and sometimes peasants. Ogres are also popular in [[fantasy fiction]], such as [[C. S. Lewis]]'s ''[[The Chronicles of Narnia]]'', and in various fantasy [[game]]s.
-* The [[protagonist]] of the ''[[Shrek]]'' films is an ogre. Shrek is voiced by [[Mike Myers (actor)|Mike Myers]], using a cartoonish  [[Scotland|Scottish]] accent. Shrek is an unsociable but not particularly hostile ogre living in a swamp. However his explanation of other ogres suggests the stereotype isn't without basis either.  His wife, [[Princess Fiona]], was born human but became an ogre by means of a spell, cast on her before the beginning of the first film.  Their three ogre children (who have not yet been named) are also fictional ogres seen in ''[[Shrek the Third]]'' and ''[[Shrek the Halls]]''.
-* These films were based on the children's book ''[[Shrek!|Shrek!]]'', written by [[William Steig]], though in that book Shrek was never explicitly mentioned as being an ogre.
-* In the British science-fiction series ''[[Doctor Who]]'', aliens called Ogri, which resemble large rocks and feed on blood appear in "The Stones of Blood". The Doctor suggests that Gog, Magog, and Ogre could derive from this.
-* Also in the series ''[[Doctor Who]]'', the evil Daleks use a race of large, unintelligent humanoid brutes called Ogrons as warrior-slaves. The Ogrons are featured in the stories "Day of the Daleks", "Frontier in Space", and very briefly in "Carnival of Monsters".
-* In ''[[Disney's Adventures of the Gummi Bears]]'', there is an army of villainous ogres residing in Castle Drekmore and led by Duke Igthorn, who attempt to conquer King Gregor and Dunwyn Castle.
-*In the movie ''[[Time Bandits]]'', the protagonists are found by an ogre and his wife on the ogre's ship.  The ogre is outwitted and left at sea after the protagonists commandeer the ship.
-*In the ''[[Xanth]] Chronicles'' by [[Piers Anthony]], ogres are stupid beasts with immense strength that communicate almost exclusively through rhyme as in the Chronicle ''[[Ogre, Ogre]]''. At several points in ''[[A Spell for Chameleon]]'', the first Xanth novel, the lead character worries that the women he encounters are actually female ogres in human form.
-*In the ''[[Spiderwick]] Chronicles'' (the fifth book), Mulgarath, the primary antagonist, is an evil ogre who wants to enslave the world, ridding it of all humans.
-*In [[Tamora Pierce]]'s books that revolve around [[Tamora Pierce#The Tortall Universe|Tortall]], there are two kinds of ogres: peaceful farmers and warlike monsters. Both types are extremely tall and often seem menacing. In her book ''[[Wolf-Speaker]]'', the peaceful "breed" are slaves who mine black opals.
-*''[[A Book of Ogres and Trolls]]'' by [[Ruth Manning-Sanders]] contains 13 fairy tales.
-*''[[Revenge of the Nerds]]'' (1984) and film sequels featured [[Donald Gibb]] as "Ogre", the most brutish of the fraternity jocks.
-* In the ''[[Smurfs]]'' animated series, an ogre named Bigmouth (voiced by the late [[Lennie Weinrib]]) occasionally befriended the title characters while making life for the evil wizard [[Gargamel]] difficult.
-''Ogre'' is often used metaphorically, as in the association of ogres with [[Nazis]] made in [[Michael Tournier|Michel Tournier's]] novel ''Le Roi des aulnes'' (1970; ''The Ogre''). Other modern works depicting ogres include ''L'Ogre'' (1973) by [[Jacques Chessex]], and [[Nacer Khemir|Nacer Khemir's]] ''L'Ogresse'' (1975), a collection of [[Tunisia]]n tales.
 ==Ogres in modern games==
@@ Line 63: / Line 39: @@
 * [[Monster]]
 * [[Kaiju]]
+* [[Shrek (character)|Shrek]]
 ==References==