Grendel was strong and powerful monster. (line 1) He was so strong that he could rip men apart. Most men in the kingdom feared him. He was the most evilest monster in land.(line21-24) Even though many of the men in the kingdom didn’t know about his mother.…
It gives the reader the feeling that he does not possess the same thought processes as humans do; therefore, he is characterized as a monster. However, in this novel, Grendel’s point of view and thoughts are more developed and deeper than how he is portrayed in Beowulf. The readers get a glimpse of the story through his eyes and it may change their view of Grendel. He is a solitary and disoriented creature who is misunderstood by humans and all those around him. He looks for a place to belong and his quest is to know who and what he…
Meanwhile this can be followed by the idea of hope for the world that lies within Grendel. This hope provides evidence for Grendel’s lack of damnable intentions. This is demonstrated during his time spent with the dragon, pages fifty-seven through seventy-four. The dragon is largely selfish and nihilistic, however Grendel refuses to believe the negativity presented by the dragon. On page seventy, one may read the dragon speaking of all of the world being consigned to oblivion. That is, he states that eventually all current occurrences will be meaningless. “You don't know that!” Grendel simply debates. Additionally, page seventy-one the dragon is speaks of the little to no effect that even an apocalyptic age would have on the world over time.…
He, a descendant of Cain, has been exiled into darkness: “Conceived by a pair of those monsters born/ Of Cain, murderous creatures banished/ By God, punished forever for the crime/ Of Abel’s death” (20-23). Therefore, as a foe of God, Grendel is angered at the fact he cannot exist in light. Given that he cannot enact his revenge upon God himself, Grendel enacts his revenge upon God's people. Other reasons why he may attack humans is that the text also specifically says that he can't stand the noise of the "harp’s rejoicing"(4) in the mead hall. Grendel is perhaps attacking because the joyful camaraderie reminds him each day of his own isolation -- owing to his connection to the Biblical Cain. He is described as child-like. Young children will lash out when they are frustrated or don't like what is going on. If a noise is too loud, they might just cry, but they might hit the person making the noise. Of course, children don't react this way out of violence or evil, but rather out of a lack of self-control. Grendal is both child-like and evil. He is unable and unwilling to control himself. His reaction to the joyful noises he hears in the hall begins as a lack of self-control and continues as an evil act of anger and vengeance against the…
Grendel’s goodness is continuously suppressed by the misunderstanding of humans. When Grendel first encounter’s humans, the humans immediately mistake Grendel for a bloodthirsty monster because of his appearance. In the beginning when Grendel is still developing his moral and spiritual understandings of the world,…
In writing from Grendel’s perspective, I think Gardener is trying to makes us sympathize with Grendel. While reading the story from Grendel’s point of view we can see that he also felt fear at some point in his life. Like when he caught his foot in the crack where two old treetrunks joined Grendel says “I shrieked in fear; still no one came.” In Grendel’s story he says men are dangerous thinking creatures, “Suddenly I knew I was dealing with no dull mechanical bull but with thinking creatures, pattern makers, the most dangerous things I'd ever met”. In his story we can see that they were the ones that made him a monster because they could not understand him. They just saw that he was an ogre an assumed he was a monster, so they attacked him…
Both characters, Grendel and the monster, can’t be associated with people. Both are grotesque, alarming creatures. Both are sentient, they cannot become a fellow comrade to their surrounding societies despite their depression and loneliness. Both want nothing more than companionship with someone other than Grendel’s mother and Victor Frankenstein, but they are aware of how utterly impossible…
“Poor Grendel’s had an accident, I whisper. so may you all” (Gardner 174). I think it is Grendel’s hatred of the society of mankind that develops throughout the novel, leading to his ultimate curse he lays upon them with those words. “I knew I was dealing with no mechanical bull, but with thinking creatures, pattern makers, the most dangerous things i'd ever met” (Gardner 27). This quote is an example of why I think Grendel's last words refer to a curse to mankind. Grendel believes mankind are the most dangerous and terrifying creatures out there and deserve to be cursed as they have treated him so bad. For example “But they were doomed, I knew, and I was glad. No denying it. Let them wander the fogroads of Hell” (Gardner 53). Grendel wishes…
In the story Grendel, there are a lot of different themes and lessons one of the main themes in this story is isolation. Grendel is a very isolated character who is looking for his purpose in life. Grendel has a lot of hate in his heart, but there is also a lot of love in it at the same time. So throughout the story, there are a lot of moments when Grendel has a battle within his self. For example when Grendel first hears the Shaper playing in chapter 3 it starts to make Grendel think different about what he knows is true and what he wishes were true. Grendel understands the world as a brute, emotionless place that follows no meaningful pattern or laws. He knows that all the beautiful concepts of which the Shaper sings about heroism, religion, love and beauty are merely human projections on how the humans would like to see the world.…
Evil has no definitive interpretation; it is a matter of morals and the mindset of the being. It depends on the person to define such an ambiguous idea, some have faith in God(s), others look to dictionary definitions. Though based on Grendel’s intelligence and his repeatedly disgusting acts, he is evil. He is an astute being that can comprehend what kind of pain he creates by his ways, and he has no remorse for anything. Grendel’s actions are revolting, from ruining Wealhtheow, to killing harmless beings, to many spouts of unprovoked violence.…
The dragon rebuffs each of Grendel’s questions with a cold, empirical retort. The dragon refuses to let Grendel slip into what he feels are negative emotions. “ I was Grendel, Ruiner of Mead Halls, Wrecker of kings! But also, as never before, I was alone.” (P.80) We are given an intriguing backdrop into internal battle the lost Grendel attempts to find a purpose in any part or role in life, even that Grendel is the monster. Grendel is merely portrayed as an emotionless, unintelligent furious monster incapable of anything beside hate and murder. “Tedium is the worst pain.” (P.138) Grendel life is filled with violence and hate, Grendel’s boredom torments him more. Being lived for a long time and invulnerable to weapons has made the person he is now. He does not get surprises or thrills for life any longer. He fights as much out of habit as to achieve any real goal in his…
A home is a place where one lives and feels most comfortable. In John Gardner’s Grendel, the dragon is a character that has a large influence on the way Grendel thinks towards the end of the novel. He also is responsible for Grendel’s decision to attack the Scylding people, and eventually this decision led to Grendel’s “unexpected” death. The dragon impacts the Anglo-Saxon people because his words influence Grendel to raid the Scyldings, he impacts Grendel by presenting a different outlook on life, and the character reflects the meaning of the book because he believes everybody has a set role in the world and they cannot change that.…
In the epic of Beowulf, one of the warrior’s biggest adversaries is a creature from the swamp named Grendel. Although the character of Grendel is present for only a short portion in the story of Beowulf, Grendel signifies one of the important messages in the text about humanity. In Beowulf, Grendel is called a ‘monster’. However, if observed closely, analyzing the meaning behind the story, it is easy to see that Grendel is not a typical monster, in fact, it doesn’t seem like he is a monster at all. There is much evidence within the short period of the text where Grendel is present, which indicates he is not a true monster. In observing the relationship with his mother, his circumstances of his given situation, and his own actions it is obvious that the character of Grendel is extremely complex and is much more than just your typical ‘monster’.…
Grendel's initiative in Grendel is mainly self defense. Grendel was the one who was mistreated first by the humans. It started when he was simply observing the humans and he got caught in a tree. He was then attacked by a bull and several humans. He did not act on the humans first. They automatically assumed that he was there to cause them harm. So it is the humans who started terrorizing Grendel, not the other way around. In Beowulf, it is the opposite of this.…
Out from the marsh, from the foot of misty Hills and bogs, bearing God’s hatred, Grendel came, hoping to kill 395 Anyone he could trap on this trip to high Herot. He moved quickly through the cloudy night, Up from his swampland, sliding silently Toward that gold-shining hall. He had visited…