How Does Grendel Change In Beowulf Essay

John Gardner’s Grendel is the retelling of the heroic epic poem Beowulf; however, the viewpoint has shifted. Grendel is told from the viewpoint of one of Beowulf’s antagonists and the titular character of Gardner’s work—Grendel. In Grendel, Gardner humanizes Grendel by emphasizing parallels between Grendel’s life and human life. Through Gardner’s reflection of human feelings, human development, and human flaws in Grendel, this seemingly antagonistic, monstrous character becomes understood and made “human.”

The story of Beowulf is an ancient one, and one that has been passed down for generations. The ideals and themes are traditional and its message is clear throughout the entirety of the epic poem. Beowulf is told from the third person omniscient point of view, his conflict was always what one would call “the bad guy” or “the villain,” and though he died in the end, he won gold and victory for his kingdom; all bad guys defeated. John Gardner, author of Grendel, decided to take the classical story of good and evil, and tell a new story from the villain’s perspective. Grendel explores varying literary elements which exposes the character of Grendel to readers along with various themes represented throughout each page.

John Gardner offers an alternate interpretation of the old english epic “Beowulf” by narrating the experiences of the monster Grendel, after whom the book is named. Grendel conveys himself as a homicidal, ravenous beast, only capable of destruction and chaos. Therefore, one can conclude that Grendel is indeed evil, and that he well deserves the cessation of his existence. However, depending on the philosophical ideologies and the relative perspective one finds self in, they may conclude differently. Nevertheless, the reader may likely to find one’s self both sympathizing with, and scorning Grendel, because, as the 10th century old english monster says, “balance is everything”.

Beowulf is a great piece of Anglo-Saxon literature that can be, and has been, translated in multiple ways. Of the many outstanding translations, two of which are by Burton Raffel and Seamus Heaney, different ways of writing are portrayed. Grendel’s description is written quite differently in both translations. Heaney’s translation is more similar to the Anglo-Saxon style of writing than Raffel’s translation.

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

Grendel is a novel dominated by forces of good and evil, religious allusions, heroism, and nature. These themes are the primary go-to’s for thoughts on significant themes in a novel such as this, but one overlooked theme plays a larger role in the context of the novel. The importance and power of language is arguably one of the most significant themes of the novel. This theme is demonstrated within 3 main scenes within the novel including; Grendel’s first encounter with men, The Shaper’s words and effect, and in the battles between Grendel, Unferth, and Beowulf.

AJ Voltarel Grendel Essay 10/31/2014 Mrs. Alhman When Grendel was still young, he spent his time exploring his confined world, untroubled by the outside universe or philosophical questions. Grendel’s finding of the lake of firesnakes and the realm beyond it is his start to his first adventure in a larger world, one full of danger and possibility. As such, crossing the lake is a crucial step for Grendel in his move toward maturity. When the bull attacks him, he climbs into a tree and sees that the world is chaotic, following no pattern for no visible reason.

In the books Beowulf and Grendel they discuss the meaning of our world, the power of good and evil. Prince of the welders was portrayed as the hero because this spine chilling “immortal” monster was to be slain at the hands of this warrior. The reason that “the slayer” wanted to defeat Grendel was so he could keep the riches and try to fill that void that fuels the greed within him. The creation of Grendel was a sound decision due to the aspect that it shows the ulterior motives of the story. The story of Beowulf is very one sided. It shows the views of Beowulf, the Danes, and the people but it does not show the feelings of Grendel, it only portrays him as a monster. Looking at the story of how Grendel was brought up and his thoughts as

There are many similarities and differences between the movie "Beowulf and Grendel", to the poem. Major differences between the movie and the poem would be Grendel himself. In the poem, he is described as an evil monster born from two demons. In the movie, Grendel is actually human, but known as a troll to the warriors and Danes. The poem doesn’t give the background of Grendel or show how the Danes killed his father and the possible reason of his revenge, like in the movie. If the witch, Selma, was not included in the storyline of the movie, the audience would not have known key information that she was used to show from more flashbacks. The witch gives more of an idea about Grendel’s past life that could have been the possibility to

Identity in some ways can be achieved by both experiences, but also interact with dominant and impactful characters. The book, Grendel, is based on the tale of Beowulf which is a literary piece depicting the life and involvements of an adolescent beast named Grendel, who acquires hidden guidance. He identifies both with humans and creatures on a rational level ultimately trying to find his place in acceptance in the world. During his exciting journey, Grendel encounters a wise dragon who ultimately aids him in finding his own true self. The author of the work, John Gardner, writes this tale with the goal of developing a protagonist who from the outside appears to be a simple beast but on the inside gains understanding of maturity. In the

The story of Beowulf is a heroic epic chronicling the illustrious deeds of the great Geatish warrior Beowulf, who voyages across the seas to rid the Danes of an evil monster, Grendel, who has been wreaking havoc and terrorizing the kingdom. Beowulf is glorified for his heroic deeds of ridding the land of a fiendish monster and halting its scourge of evil while the monster is portrayed as a repugnant creature who deserves to die because of its evil actions. In the epic poem, Beowulf the authors portrays Grendel as a cold-hearted beast who thrives on the pain of others. Many have disagreed with such a simplistic and biased representation of Grendel and his role in the epic poem. John Gardner in his book, Grendel set out to change the

John Gardener’s ‘Grendel’ depicts the monstrous Grendel, previously portrayed as the vicious villain in ‘Beowulf, journeying through his life, attempting to achieve some kind of self-realization. Spending much of his time observing humans, Grendel develops a great disdain for religion. Gardener reinforces Grendel’s with anti-religious quotes from poets and philosophers, like William Blake and Francis Nietzsche. As his spiritual void increases, Gardener slips into an existential despair, fueled by the talk of the Shaper, who’s strangely persuasive words confuse Grendel’s underdeveloped mind. Finally, as Grendel slowly recognizes he is separate from men, his encounter with the dragon drives him to the self-realization that he is a monster

Of the three monsters present in the Anglo-Saxon epic Beowulf, it could be argued that the dragon is the most important of all – he is the final fierce opponent that slays our protagonist. The characterization of the dragon is therefore a vital part of the narrative. The passage in the text describing the theft of a cup from the hoard and the dragon’s subsequent rage (32.2278-2311) is instrumental in this characterization. In this passage there are important parallels made between the dragon and both Grendel’s mother and Beowulf himself. The passage also builds the significance of the dragon as a villain, and effectively characterizes the dragon with several literary devices.

Beowulf, composed during the eighth century, has its roots in the traditions of the Anglo-Saxon tribes. King Hrothgar, a successful ruler, builds his mead-hall, Heorot, where he entertains his guests and warriors with songs and feasts. The jubilant songs and festivities anger a horrendous monster, Grendel, who begins to terrorize the Danes, slaughtering and feasting on their corpses. Beowulf, a Geatish warrior, sails to save the Danes from their misery by slaying Grendel. Beowulf remains one of the most influential works of literature today because of its elegant tone and many contrasts. John Gardner draws inspiration for his novel Grendel from Beowulf. The novel offers the reader insight into Grendel’s mind as he attempts to find his purpose

The story of Beowulf is a heroic epic, chronicling the distinguished deeds of the great Geatish warrior, Beowulf, who travels across the seas to rid the Danes of the evil monster Grendel, who has been inflicting destruction and terrorizing the kingdom. Beowulf is glorified for his heroic deeds of ridding the land fiendish monsters and stopping the scourge of evil, while the monster, Grendel, is portrayed as a repugnant creature who deserves death for its evil actions. However, many have disagreed with such a simplistic and biased representation of Grendel and his role in the epic poem. John Gardner in his book, Grendel, sets out to change the reader’s perception of Grendel and his role in Beowulf by narrating the story through Grendel’s point of view. John Gardner transforms Grendel, once perceived as an evil fiend in Beowulf, into a lonely but intelligent outcast who is actually quite similar to humans, due to his intelligence capacity for rational thought and his real, and at times irrational emotions. Gardner portrays Grendel as a hurt individual and as a victim of oppression, ostracized from civilization. Although the two works revolve around the same basic plot,, the themes and characters in Beowulf and Grendel are often different and sometimes contradictory.