John Gardner’s Grendel, is the first person narrative of the monster, Grendel, from Beowulf. In the Epic Poem Beowulf, the main character Beowulf kills Grendel. He does this because to him Grendel is an evil monster that deserves to die. In Grendel, Grendel tells his own story of how he met his fatal demise. In the beginning Grendel believed he was without purpose or identity. In the end, his isolation, suffering, and experiences led him to find purpose and identity.
Since Grendel was born he struggled with identity and isolation played a big part in this. He was one of a kind and his only influence was his mother. She often remained isolated from him in their cave and never talked to him.
She’d forgotten all language long ago, or …show more content…
He scorned them and often described their stupidity and pointless actions. After meeting a ram on a mountain Grendel says, “‘Scat!’ I hiss. ‘Go back to your cave, go back to your cowshed or whatever.’” After doing this the ram challenged him to fight. Grendel hated and had no interest in fighting the ram and believed it had no purpose trying to fight him. He believed the goat has no purpose when he did not even know his own. Other than hating beasts he also hated the outside world in general. “The sky says nothing, predictably. I make a face, uplift a defiant finger, and give an obscene little kick. The sky ignores me, forever unimpressed.” Perhaps Grendel believed everything was purposeless because he was never told the purpose of things around …show more content…
And I, Grendel, was the dark side, he said in effect. The terrible race God cursed. I believed him. Such was the power of the Sharper’s harp.
After learning his own identity Grendel was still left without purpose in himself or the world around him. As he studied the humans he realized they were no better than the way they depicted himself. He observed the senseless violence they placed upon one another and and still could not find purpose.
The dragon helped Grendel discover his purpose. It told Grendel that everything had a purpose and that Grendel’s was to fight the humans. He was the darkness and they were the light. His purpose was to defeat or be defeated. After being defeated by Beowulf, the human hero, Grendel feels he has served his purpose and the world around him does too. “Animals gathering around me, enemies of old, to watch me die…. They watch on, evil, incredibly stupid, enjoying my
Since Grendel was born he struggled with identity and isolation played a big part in this. He was one of a kind and his only influence was his mother. She often remained isolated from him in their cave and never talked to him.
She’d forgotten all language long ago, or …show more content…
He scorned them and often described their stupidity and pointless actions. After meeting a ram on a mountain Grendel says, “‘Scat!’ I hiss. ‘Go back to your cave, go back to your cowshed or whatever.’” After doing this the ram challenged him to fight. Grendel hated and had no interest in fighting the ram and believed it had no purpose trying to fight him. He believed the goat has no purpose when he did not even know his own. Other than hating beasts he also hated the outside world in general. “The sky says nothing, predictably. I make a face, uplift a defiant finger, and give an obscene little kick. The sky ignores me, forever unimpressed.” Perhaps Grendel believed everything was purposeless because he was never told the purpose of things around …show more content…
And I, Grendel, was the dark side, he said in effect. The terrible race God cursed. I believed him. Such was the power of the Sharper’s harp.
After learning his own identity Grendel was still left without purpose in himself or the world around him. As he studied the humans he realized they were no better than the way they depicted himself. He observed the senseless violence they placed upon one another and and still could not find purpose.
The dragon helped Grendel discover his purpose. It told Grendel that everything had a purpose and that Grendel’s was to fight the humans. He was the darkness and they were the light. His purpose was to defeat or be defeated. After being defeated by Beowulf, the human hero, Grendel feels he has served his purpose and the world around him does too. “Animals gathering around me, enemies of old, to watch me die…. They watch on, evil, incredibly stupid, enjoying my